Chapter 98: The Fallen's True Intentions
"Captain! Captain, wake up! Look carefully it's Dart! And him, that's Sludge! Captain, calm down!"
Perhaps because Grimlock was prone to emotional outbursts, even after being struck down by his captain's claw, Dart immediately leaped forward and, together with Sludge, helped lift the giant before them.
Starscream had initially wanted to help, but after the mighty mechanical Tyrannosaurus let out a thunderous roar, he wisely stepped back.
What a joke! The mouth of this giant mechanical T-Rex was large enough to swallow half of Starscream's body in one bite one wrong move and he'd be sent straight back to Cybertron for repairs.
"Brothers it really is you two! How did you get here? And these veterans why are you all gathered? Where is that despicable Fallen and his followers? Why can't I find them? I remember… I remember sealing that guy myself! The energy link is still within me!"
After finally regaining some composure, Grimlock returned from his dinosaur form to his robotic one. Yet as he greeted his comrades, he awkwardly lowered his head and placed his hands over his chest, as if searching for some device.
"Captain, what are you talking about? The first ones we found here were these eight veteran Autobots, and now we've found you too. But according to our detection equipment, there doesn't seem to be any other Transformers here. And that Fallen you mentioned we have no idea where he is!"
This represented a massive gap in information. Grimlock was still stuck in the memory of the final battle from a thousand years ago, but that scene was ancient history now. The Fallen was nowhere to be found which was strange, since he was supposed to be the one who built this base. By all logic, this place should have been his territory!
"Uh, well… Commander Grimlock, long time no see. I'm uh Red…"
Whether because of the height difference or because Grimlock only had his Dinobot comrades in mind, he completely ignored Starscream.
This disappointed Starscream, the very one responsible for Grimlock's resurrection. Not even a "thank you"! Was this still the noble and refined Autobot commander people spoke of?
"I know you Starscream, right? Megatron's lackey. We crossed paths on Cybertron. I never expected a mere Decepticon like you to earn the trust of my team. So waking me up was part of your plan, wasn't it?"
For some reason, Grimlock harbored a strong bias against Starscream. If not for the familiar faces around, he probably wouldn't have even spoken to him politely.
"Well, it's a true honor that Commander Grimlock still remembers me! But I've scanned the entire base, and aside from your powerful Spark signature, I haven't detected any other energy sources. However, the Fallen sent us a message saying your Dinobot comrade, Slag, should also be here in this base. Do you have any clue where he might be?"
Starscream had assumed Slag would be the first Dinobot they'd find but instead, they had resurrected Grimlock himself. Apparently, the information the Fallen had given them earlier was somewhat misleading.
"What? You mean Ironhide? I was separated from him during the battle with the Fallen. Is that kid alright?"
It seemed our mighty Commander Grimlock was still completely clueless about what had actually happened, and even more so about his comrades. But why had the Fallen revealed the location of all these Autobot super-soldiers in the first place? How strange…
Just as Starscream was about to exchange more information with Grimlock, the ground beneath them began to tremble violently, like the start of an earthquake.
Starscream's advanced sensors should have detected such a thing but for some reason, there had been no warning. Perhaps the metallic walls of the facility completely isolated this place from the ecosystem of the outside world.
"Hahaha… so you've finally released me. Grimlock, I never thought that you, with your simple mind and strong limbs, would come up with such a clever way to seal me. But now that everyone's been revived, shouldn't I stretch my rusty body a bit?"
Ah! So this supposed "earthquake" wasn't a natural phenomenon it was caused by the true master of this biomechanical base. And that master was none other than The Fallen himself, the very being everyone had feared would return.
"What? You've revived too? I… I think I've forgotten something… Why? Why did you come back?"
Hearing the voice in his ear triggered something deep in Grimlock's memory. The towering Autobot suddenly grabbed his head with both hands and began shaking it violently. The eight veteran Autobots nearby did the same, as if their Sparks were being disturbed. Could their resurrection be connected to the Fallen?
"Captain, what's wrong? Wake up! This place is about to collapse we have to get out of here!"
Seeing Grimlock on the verge of losing his mind again, Muddy quickly returned to his robot form and gripped his old friend and commander by the shoulders, trying to steady him.
"I remember now! Back then, these veterans and I combined our Spark power to suppress the Fallen! Now that we've all awakened again, that suppression has completely disappeared and he's probably been resurrected already!"
At last, Grimlock understood.
"Hahaha, Grimlock you truly deserve to be called one of the best of the younger Autobots! I didn't expect you to remember so quickly what happened back then. What a shame… it's already too late!"
(End of Chapter)