Chapter 96: A Powerful Being Sealed Behind the Door
"Huh? Discovered? Seems this thing's vitality isn't weak it can still move even with that hole in its back. Impressive!"
Red Spider didn't hold back he practically tore open the robot virus's back. Peering into the massive wound, the exposed metal cables and electronic plates were clearly visible. Yet, despite the damage, the small robot still managed to crawl down the giant's arm and escape to the ground. It had definitely sensed danger!
However, it wouldn't be so easy for Red Spider to strike again. Even while wounded, the little robot was incredibly agile, dodging the detector's attacks every time with astonishing precision, much to Red Spider's frustration.
But just as things seemed to be getting out of hand, a massive mechanical hand suddenly swung forward, striking right at the small robot's position without warning.
A flash of blue sparks burst out the unfortunate robot was smashed to pieces.
Crack! Snap!
"So it was you controlling us all this time, brothers? We never imagined we'd been deceived for so long!"
What was happening? The one who had struck was actually the owner of the mechanical body. The ancient Autobot seemed to realize instantly what had been controlling his mind and body. So he hadn't gone senile after all!
The veteran Autobot, now fully conscious, glanced briefly at Starscream before quickly turning to help his fellow warriors recover.
"You there Starscream, right? Come on! Help me wake my brothers!"
It seemed this ancient Autobot approved of Starscream's earlier actions but there was no time for talk until the others were awake.
"Got it! I'll help right away please, hang on!"
Even though he couldn't sense any emotion from the warrior, Starscream didn't hesitate and moved forward to deal with the remaining infected Autobots. One of them tried to resist perhaps still under the virus's control but before he could even raise his hand, the newly awakened Autobot restrained him.
Now was Starscream's chance to show his skill. He quickly deployed all his internal micro-detectors, commanding them to target the viral robots latched onto the Autobots' necks.
"Click-click-click! Rat-a-tap-tap!"
Those tiny machines turned out to be surprisingly fragile once the weak point was hit, they detached easily. One by one, more veteran Autobots regained their senses.
"Brothers, did you see the message this little one showed us? That's Cybertron today! It seems our worst fears have come true!"
Once they were all awake, the one carrying the shield suddenly projected a golden light from his forehead, wrapping around the holographic image of Cybertron that Starscream had shown them. He quickly marked a set of coordinates and zoomed in.
"Zap! Zap! Zap!"
The kind of operation he performed could only be executed by a Transformer scientist. Starscream had seen Soundwave do something similar on Cybertron but not with such effortless precision and control.
"Yes… this is the real Cybertron. It seems this young one wasn't lying. But the planet's energy is depleting much faster than we expected. Could it be… because we've slept too long?"
Amazing these rough-looking warriors were surprisingly adept at such technical tasks. If Starscream had tried to deceive them with a fake hologram, it wouldn't have withstood that level of scrutiny. Thanks to his quick thinking, however, their hostility completely vanished.
"You... you're really the legendary Autobots? I've heard stories about you in the old chronicles I thought they were myths, but it seems they were true!"
Although these supersoldiers didn't appear in Cybertron's official history, it was clear that some unofficial accounts had preserved their legacy in obscure records.
"Damn it! What happened to Cybertron? And how did we end up on this planet? I remember that Fallen deceived us into coming here. He said he'd found a way to provide Cybertron with endless energy!"
Thanks to Starscream's cunning, as he helped the veterans regain their senses, he quietly changed the emblem on his chest to an Autobot insignia allowing them to recognize him as one of their own. From what Starscream knew, the Fallen was among the few ancient Transformers who bore a Decepticon emblem. Had he not made that switch, these old warriors would likely have looked at him very differently.
"Gentlemen, the matters of Cybertron can't be explained in a few minutes. Please, satisfy my curiosity instead what lies behind that door? Could it be the resting place of the legendary Fallen?"
Starscream couldn't afford to get entangled in endless explanations about Cybertron's history he'd need months to make sense of it all. His current priority was to locate the Dinobots' missing companions and, above all, avoid anything related to the Fallen. Starscream wanted nothing to do with that infamous figure.
"You mean that iron door? The Fallen wouldn't be sealed in such a place. If I recall correctly, behind that door lies a power unparalleled among the Autobots a warrior of the new generation. We sealed him ourselves before entering stasis, to prevent the Fallen from awakening."
Could it be… that the being sealed behind that door is Grimlock, the legendary leader of the Dinobots?
(End of Chapter)