Chapter Eight: The Conspiracy Strikes!

"Let me ask you this: if it were for the sake of national security, and we no longer provided you with sanctuary, would you pack up and leave quietly?"

Director Gao, speaking on behalf of the President, posed the most incisive question.

"Freedom is your right, and reasonable demands ought to be respected."

Having received a definitive answer, Director Gao nodded in satisfaction. Yet, Optimus Prime shifted the tone of the conversation, raising a far sharper and more profound contradiction!

"However, before your President makes his final decision, ask him this one question... What if we leave, and your judgment turns out to be wrong?"

"What if the Decepticons have come to Earth not to hunt down the Autobots, but to target Earth itself? Are you certain you can withstand their onslaught entirely on your own?"

With those words, Optimus Prime spoke no more. He transformed back into his vehicular mode and drove off to the designated resting area for the Autobots.

Director Gao was left utterly speechless, choked by the gravity of the situation... The burden of this responsibility was simply too immense for him to bear, nor did he dare to shoulder it!

***

Ten days later, a naval base suffered a devastating attack, and the AllSpark fragment was stolen... Simultaneously, the closely monitored, lifeless husk of Megatron was hauled away from the ocean trench, vanishing without a trace!

In an instant, the United States military plunged into sheer panic, completely at a loss as to what to do!

Just then, the US military lieutenant colonel who had participated in the previous war stepped forward!

"General, I strongly advise that we immediately seek external assistance! As things stand, it is clear that the Autobots alone are no longer a match for the Decepticons!"

"Oh? And who is this external assistance you speak of?"

The American general inquired, though deep down inside, he already had a strong suspicion of the person being referred to.

"Hayden Potts! The human who literally tore Megatron apart with his bare hands during the last battle!"

"Is it truly necessary to ask for his intervention? We have merely lost a base, after all." The general hesitated. Compared to asking Hayden for help, he would actually prefer to place his trust in the Autobots.

After all, one was a human of unfathomable power who could rip apart giant robots with his bare hands, while the others were displaced aliens who had lost their home world and could only seek shelter among humanity—familiar and thoroughly understood entities.

Given the choice, they really, truly wished to avoid seeking Hayden's help if they could possibly avoid it.

"I am merely offering a suggestion, General. How we proceed is entirely up to you."

The lieutenant colonel choked back his words for two seconds, ultimately abandoning his recommendation with a quiet sigh... Truth be told, if that man hadn't been standing quietly in the background as their ultimate safety net, how on earth would they have ever dared to fight alongside Megatron without the slightest hesitation?

"Let's wait a little longer..." The general hesitated before speaking again. "We cannot run to him for help at every single turn. We shall wait until the situation truly becomes perilous..."

"Understood, General..."

***

However, the rapid escalation of events completely caught the U.S. military off guard. During a routine sortie, Optimus Prime was ambushed, and Megatron suddenly reappeared, flanked by two high-ranking Decepticon leaders who joined in to assault the Autobot leader.

Overwhelmed and unable to hold his ground, Optimus Prime managed to take down the other two foes, only to be run through the heart by Megatron's blade...

By the time the U.S. military forces finally arrived at the scene, all they found was the fallen corpse of Optimus Prime!

Meanwhile, having received prior warnings, Mikaela—who was renting a place near Sam's university—suddenly received a frantic distress call from Sam!

"Mikaela, help me! One of my classmates is a Decepticon!"

Inside his dormitory, Sam had been entirely convinced he was about to enjoy a tender, romantic moment after being seduced by a seemingly beautiful female classmate. Just as he leaned in for a kiss, the woman's limbs suddenly elongated, and a metallic appendage sprouted from the back of her throat, aggressively lunging straight for his windpipe!

"Damn it! Hang in there, I'm coming right now!"

Mikaela's expression shifted drastically. Panicking, she bolted downstairs, leaped onto Bumblebee, and sped furiously toward the campus!

"Bumblebee, hurry! Sam is in mortal danger!"

"Sam, where are you taking my goddess..."

Inside the dorm, Sam's roommate, Leo Spitz, opened the door just in time to witness the gorgeous goddess he had admired stretching out a terrifying steel tongue to bind Sam, violently slamming him against the wall again and again!

"What the hell is that thing?!"

Instinctively, Leo hurled the box of takeout pizza he was holding straight at the creature... The Decepticon reflexively released Sam to dodge the projectile. Seizing the fleeting opportunity, Sam bolted from the room, grabbed his roommate, and sprinted frantically toward the library!

"Are you freaking kidding me? What on earth was that thing?!"

Leo shrieked in terror as he ran for his life, shouting questions at Sam.

"A Decepticon! An alien robot! Didn't you even know they exist?!"

"Crap! When on earth did you get mixed up with aliens?!"

"I got mixed up with them two damn years ago!"

Sam roared as he burst into the library. By this time, Mikaela had already arrived on campus, accompanied by Bumblebee and a captured Decepticon she had subdued along the way!

It seemed Sam was about to uncover some truly earth-shattering secrets!

"Boom!"

The massive doors of the library were blasted open. A human-sized Decepticon charged inside, its arms transforming into rapid-fire machine guns as it unleashed indiscriminate gunfire throughout the building! Casualties mounted instantly, with blood and shattered debris scattering across the floor in a gruesome, horrifying spectacle.

At that exact moment, Mikaela—who had just learned that Sam was inside the library—witnessed the carnage unfolding before her eyes!

"Give me back my Sam!"

Seething with murderous rage, Mikaela's mastery over the Glint-Glint Fruit advanced by a massive leap at this very moment!

"Glint-Glint Fruit: Speed of Light Kick!"

"Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"

Mikaela's legs transformed into pure radiance, successfully executing the premier technique of the Glint-Glint Fruit! Propelled by the blinding speed of her transformed legs, she materialized instantly in front of the Decepticon. Amidst her soft whisper, her glowing legs unleashed hundreds of millions of devastating impact strikes within a fraction of a second!

The Decepticon's entire body suddenly fractured under the assault, crumbling into dust and scattering away until it completely vanished from existence!

"Sam!"

Having eradicated the Decepticon, Mikaela collapsed to her knees, weeping uncontrollably.

However, before she could shed more than a few tears, Sam's voice rang out from right behind her.

"Mikaela, I'm okay! Come on, let's get out of the school right now—the Decepticons are hunting us down!"

Sam blurted out a frantic stream of words, pulling his roommate and Mikaela toward Bumblebee. "Bumblebee, step on it! Go find Optimus Prime!"

"Gurgle..."

With his voice box acting up once more, Bumblebee let out a couple of low groans before executing a flawless drift, loading the three of them inside and speeding away in a blur!

"Where are we even going?"

Leo asked anxiously. Without waiting for Sam to reply, Mikaela shouted instructions forward to Bumblebee, who was currently driving at breakneck speed.

"Take us to my master's place! To Uncle Potts's house!"

Bumblebee drifted sharply around another corner, hurtling in the direction of Hayden's residence... At the same time, Sam watched in utter astonishment as numerous Autobots he had come to know over the years began falling in behind Bumblebee's car along the route, all of them racing at top speed toward his home!

"Why are there so many Autobots? Bumblebee, what on earth is going on?"

"Optimus Prime is dead... Earth has been attacked by the Decepticons, and countless meteors carrying enemy forces have plummeted from the skies, causing catastrophic casualties. The Decepticons have hijacked the television networks, ordering all humans to hunt you down and demanding the expulsion of Hayden Potts..."

As he communicated, Bumblebee also projected a captured broadcast feed... Right at the moment Mikaela had entered the campus gates earlier, the opposite entrance had been swarmed by over a hundred military jeeps!

They all knew these forces had come exclusively for one purpose: to capture Sam Witwicky!