The battle at the Hoover Dam escalated by the second. Even though Sector 7 possessed advanced weaponry and combat aircraft specifically designed to handle extraterrestrial threats, this was not a fight humanity could win through brute force alone.
The ruthless and adaptable Decepticons quickly reorganized. The human tanks, which had initially served as an effective distraction, were now being targeted by guided missiles and surgical airstrikes. Even so, the wreckage of the defeated Decepticons' bodies was clear to see around the battlefield.
Aboard the Nemesis command bridge, Megatron watched the unfolding chaos with disdain.
"Use our cannons to eliminate the human defenses. It disgusts me to see my soldiers fall to such inferior vermin," he commanded coldly.
"As you wish, Lord Megatron," replied a Decepticon operator, activating the ship's cannons, which slowly rotated and locked onto ground targets.
A chain of explosions devastated human defenses. The ground trembled, splitting under the force of each blast, each shot a storm of destruction.
"Maintain continuous fire. I shall grace the battlefield with my presence," Megatron declared, turning and marching toward the launch platform. Behind him, his loyal followers moved like ominous shadows.
While the Nemesis rained hellfire from above, Optimus watched from the battlefield.
"They're burning through their Energon like there's no tomorrow," Bulkhead commented, trying to steady his aim as the earth trembled beneath his metallic feet.
"Megatron is more determined than ever. There's something here he desperately wants," said Optimus, his gaze fixed skyward.
"Optimus, we're too exposed. We need to fall back, we can't hold against this kind of firepower," Arcee warned, covering their rear.
"I know. But I fear that Megatron still intends to launch another attempt to destroy the dam. And if he succeeds... millions of human lives will be at risk."
Then, a new shadow fell across the battlefield.
Multiple Decepticons leapt from the Nemesis in attack formation, led by a sleek silver Cybertronian jet. At the center of it all flew Megatron himself. Midair, he transformed back into his robot form, slamming into the ground like a meteor and creating a crater with the force of his landing. His crimson optics glowed with menace.
"We meet again too soon, Optimus," Megatron sneered. "I must admit... the humans are surprising. But they remain weak and insignificant."
"What do you want here, Megatron? The humans have nothing to offer you," Optimus replied, trying to avoid a direct clash.
"You know as well as I do that I'm after one in particular," Megatron's voice dripped with contempt. "And I do not intend to leave empty-handed."
"I won't allow you to endanger innocent lives," Optimus warned, standing firm as ever.
"I'm tired of your speeches," Megatron said, charging his fusion cannon. "Decepticons… ATTACK!"
Chaos erupted once again. Fire and energy beams lit up the sky. The Autobots were retreating, but still holding the line. Optimus activated his blade, deflecting incoming blasts with the precision and elegance of a seasoned Prime, but even he had his limits. He was being pushed back.
Megatron advanced with overwhelming presence. Every step of his shook the cracked earth. He casually fired his fusion cannon at distant human armored vehicles, turning them into fireballs in seconds.
"Soundwave, alert me to any signs of singular Energon signatures," Megatron ordered, never taking his optics off the battlefield.
As always, Soundwave did not reply with words. He remained focused, his sensors locked on multiple frequencies, coordinating the Decepticon aerial supremacy with near-mathematical precision.
Suddenly, something caught his attention. The radar detected several unidentified objects approaching the battlefield—none of them part of the current forces.
With a subtle gesture, Soundwave transferred the hacked satellite data to the Nemesis, visualizing the incoming signatures. The image revealed: human reinforcements. Multiple aerial squadrons were approaching from the north, south, east, and west. Military aircraft from various bases converged on the dam.
Soundwave sent a silent ping directly to Megatron.
"These pests multiply like vermin. Exterminate them," Megatron growled, irritated.
Soundwave began prepping a new wave of Decepticons to intercept the reinforcements, but the radar pinged again. More signals. Dozens. Hundreds.
"Soundwave, multiple signals approaching… this is more than reinforcements. This is a coordinated human offensive," a Decepticon operator warned.
Soundwave slowly turned his head toward him. The operator instantly regretted speaking and returned to his work without another word.
Without wasting time, Soundwave activated his robotic tendrils. Until now, he hadn't unleashed his full arsenal when hacking the satellites. But now… he would proclaim hell upon the skies and his target: The Unmanned aircraft.
In a matter of moments, support drones sent to bolster the aerial assault began to reprogram their targeting systems. It didn't take long before entire regions of the sky devolved into warzones above the clouds.
The hacked drones turned their weapons on their own allies. Missiles were launched against human aircraft that had come to assist. A military cargo plane exploded mid-air, its burning wreckage raining down like a meteor shower.
"We're being attacked by our own drones!" a pilot screamed over the radio—before his transmission was cut short.
The human air force began to collapse before it could even join the fight. Any chance of a coordinated large-scale counterattack was nullified.
From afar, Megatron watched the distant explosions with a crooked smirk on his metal face.
"Still human. Still pathetic."
Meanwhile, on the ground, Optimus gazed upward, his optics following the falling debris of friendly aircraft. His fists clenched, his voice simmering with sorrow and restrained fury.
"Optimus, advancing across open ground like this is suicide!" Arcee shouted, unloading shots from her arm cannon. "You can't take on Megatron while their damn warship is still pounding us from above!"
Optimus knew she was right. It was madness to become a direct target of the Nemesis. But standing still, with no counteroffensive, was a slower death.
***
Inside Sector 7 Headquarters...
"Sir, looks like the reinforcements won't make it in one piece," an operator reported, eyes locked on a rapidly blinking red screen.
Tom clenched his fists as radar signals vanished one by one. The drones that were supposed to be their air support had become weapons turned against them.
"We underestimated their capabilities..." Tom muttered under his breath, frustration weighing heavily on every syllable. "There's someone among the Decepticons more dangerous than their leader."
"It's gotta be that bastard, Soundwave," Fowler said grimly, already suspecting who was behind it. "That freak never showed this kind of reach before."
"Sir, we have already lost 40% of the troops...." another operator reported urgently.
Tom turned sharply, trying to maintain his composure.
"What about the rest of our fighters? Are they in the air?"
"Not yet, sir. They're struggling to launch. The data interference from the enemy ship is accompanied by electromagnetic disruption. It's affecting even our internal systems. The secondary command station is likely facing the same issues," the operator explained. "There's no way we can compete with this."
Just then, their satellite feed vanished—replaced with a screen of flickering alien numerals.
Tom took a deep breath. The operator was right. The pride of the air force was grounded. Their skies had been invaded. Their most secure protocols were now weapons turned against them.
This wasn't just war... it was humiliation.
He no longer held control of the situation. He knew they couldn't defeat or even properly counterattack the Decepticon main fleet. But he had at least hoped to last longer.
Tom stared at the console, reflective. It felt like they were playing chess against an opponent who could see the entire board while they stumbled blind.
"Got any ideas?" Fowler asked, clearly at a loss.
"I can't just send my men out blind without intel or air support," Tom replied, arms crossed. "We need a distraction." He turned back toward the command room. "The Autobots are overwhelmed... the Decepticons are more focused, more organized than ever."
Before he could issue a new command to his ground units, a strange sensation washed over him. It was subtle at first, an unexplainable lightness.
Operators around him noticed too. One of them gasped, eyes wide as small dust particles began to float in the air, as if gravity itself was loosening its grip.
"Sir... something's wrong... soooo wrongggg..." the voice stretched strangely.
Fowler looked down—and realized his feet were no longer touching the floor.
"What the hell is happening now?!"
Tom narrowed his eyes. The sensation tugging at his stomach, the warping of the room... he remembered this.
"This... this feels like the gravitational field of NBE-00..." his voice trembled with the memory. "Things are about to get even more complicated soon, I hope the boy really knows what he's doing."
Fowler stared, confused—until the realization clicked. "You mean...?"
***
On the battlefield...
The Autobots held the line. Explosions rocked the earth while energy blasts tore through the sky. Arcee dashed forward, leaping at a Decepticon and slashing her arm blade across its face, slamming it into the ground in one swift motion.
She rolled into cover behind a destroyed vehicle, evading retaliatory fire. But just as she prepared to strike back, she noticed something… strange.
A rock beside her, along with shards of shattered glass, was floating—rising slowly into the air.
"What in the name of Primus is going on?"
Arcee tried to move, but noticed her feet were no longer grounded. She was… floating.
"What the—?!"
Bumblebee rushed over, leaping to grab her hand. His optics widened when he realized he too was being pulled upward, weightless and out of control.
Optimus scanned the area. Debris, dust, soldiers—everything was slowly lifting off the ground. Even he began to feel the effect.
"Autobots! Grab onto something fixed! Now!" he ordered.
He clutched a damaged power distribution tower, anchoring himself tightly.
Bulkhead managed to wedge his arms awkwardly into a nearby boulder, it wasn't elegant, but it held.
Optimus spotted Arcee and Bumblebee drifting, almost helpless against the pull.
"Arcee! Use that car beside you! Propel yourself to us!" he called out, trusting she could make the maneuver.
Without hesitation, Optimus tore a live electrical cable from the structure and threw it toward Bumblebee, who caught it just in time.
Optimus pulled hard, yanking Bumblebee into a safe grip against the metallic framework. Arcee, agile as ever, kicked off the floating vehicle and "leapt" through the air, grabbing hold of them.
"What is happening, Optimus?!" Arcee asked, bracing herself while observing the chaotic, dreamlike landscape.
"The only ones unaffected are Decepticons built for aerial combat... This is coming from below," Optimus replied, watching as the Hoover Dam trembled. "This feeling... it's all too familiar."
Bumblebee let out a small, stunned beep as he watched the destruction unfold.
***
Back at the Autobot base, Ratchet was glued to the panels in front of him, alarms flaring red across every screen.
"By the Allspark…" he muttered. "A massive energy surge is being emitted from beneath the dam!"
"What's generating that much energy?! It's far beyond the forest's cyberformed energy peak!" he added, stunned.
Jack clutched a railing, tension etched into his face. "What the hell is going on out there?!"
"This is insane," Raf said, scanning the data on his laptop. "It's so much energy... it's actually distorting the gravitational field. This shouldn't even be possible!"
"Is it some kind of Cybertronian artifact?" Miko asked, clearly worried about Bulkhead.
"No. No artifact can emit energy at this scale," Ratchet replied, deeply disturbed. He couldn't fathom what could possibly generate such overwhelming force.
"Ratchet… if my calculations are right… the energy index is higher than that of the sun," Raf stated, visibly sweating.
"You've gotta be kidding!" Miko practically screamed.
"Is this for real?" Jack was in disbelief.
***
Aboard the Nemesis, Soundwave watched the data graphs spin out of control. His tentacles spun rapidly, connecting to various consoles. Calculation after calculation... but they all led to the same result: Singular Energon, on a completely incomprehensible scale. And the energy spike continued to grow.
Hovering over the battlefield in his aerial mode, Megatron witnessed the earth begin to rupture. Cracks formed, rocks trembled, and even the nearby mountain began to split.
"Soundwave, report! What is happening?!" Megatron demanded, his voice sharp with tension.
Suddenly, a silent pulse, nearly imperceptible, swept across the battlefield. Every Cybertronian, both Autobot and Decepticon, froze for a moment. The ground ceased shaking. The fractures in the earth stopped. Chaos, for one strange moment… was suspended.
Bumblebee gave a confused, short beep, his optics wide with disbelief. Everything was… still.
Arcee placed a hand over her chest. She felt something strange. Something indescribable, but familiar. Comforting. Almost like… home.
"Do you feel that?" she asked, voice trembling with emotion.
Optimus remained silent for a few seconds. His optics were locked on the dam. Deep within his spark, the Matrix of Leadership pulsed—resonating with something ancient… long forgotten, but now undeniably present.
"…It can't be," he whispered. "You've been here all along."
Bumblebee and Arcee exchanged startled glances. They were close enough to hear his words.
"Optimus, are you alright?" Arcee asked, worried.
Optimus activated his radio. His voice echoed to all Autobots across the battlefield.
"Autobots… the Allspark is on this planet."
The silence that followed was deafening. Arcee's eyes went wide. Bumblebee froze completely.
Bulkhead was still struggling to hold his ground against the previous gravitational anomaly when he was completely paralyzed. The information that had just arrived seemed to have stopped him momentarily.
Back at base, Ratchet stopped typing. For the first time in centuries, his cybernetic mind settled into a dazed understanding. He opened his blue optics and heard it echoing in his mind.
Across the battlefield, Megatron landed hard on the ground. The air still buzzed faintly with the remnants of the energy pulse.
"Soundwave! Report!" Megatron barked.
But Soundwave remained motionless. On the Nemesis's bridge, all the Decepticons present could see in shock and confusion.
Soundwave, the emotionless tactician, now felt something he hadn't experienced in eons: a shiver of recognition.
The signal from the singular Energon… it all made sense now. Singular Energon was nothing but a diluted echo of its true source.
Knock Out stormed onto the bridge, followed closely by Breakdown.
"Soundwave! The Energon levels in my lab just exploded! What was that?!"
Soundwave slowly retracted his tentacles, still stunned. Only one phrase repeated across the Energon radar on the Nemesis:
[[Energy levels confirmed: Allspark located]]
[[Energy levels confirmed: Allspark located]]
[[Energy levels confirmed: Allspark located]]
Knock Out stared at the data, and for the first time, he was completely silent. Not out of fear... but pure disbelief.
Breakdown whispered, barely able to believe his own words:
"It can't be... he's here?"
"On a primitive planet like this?" Knock Out murmured, mouth agape.
Soundwave activated his communicator. It was an impulsive, instinctual act, something he hadn't done in millions of years. Even the sound of his own voice startled him.
"Lord Megatron..." he said, his voice deep and measured. "The Allspark is here, on this planet."
Outside, Megatron froze. The words echoed endlessly in his mind.
"The Allspark…" he murmured, gazing toward the dam in the distance, then toward Optimus standing by the power tower.
The expression on Prime's face said it all. It gave him complete confidence in Soundwave's words. He already trusted his subordinate's words, but instinctively knew it would be true, given Optimus's reaction to such an overwhelming display of power seconds before.
Megatron clenched his fists and then issued the most important order in so long.
"ALL DECEPTICONS, MAXIMUM PRIORITY: LOCATE THE ALLSPARK!"