Optimus was flying through the skies in vehicle mode, just doing his job. Oh, sorry, not as Prime, no, he’s always doing it. I was referring to his Mobian job. It dawned on the Autobots that the people of Mobius won’t accept Cybertronian currency, so they got themselves some jobs so they can stay at the base and not have to mooch off G.U.N. funding. Prowl joined the local police force. Jazz returned to Dancitron, and business picked back up. Ratchet was hired by a hospital as a doctor after he passed the necessary exams with flying colors. Ironhide worked at a shooting range near the police station Prowl worked at. Bumblebee and Cliffjumper became pizza toppers at a pizza joint. Optimus got into trucking. To do his job, Tails had found some Cybertronian tech which works as a subspace trailer that pops up whenever Optimus needs it. Right now, he was hauling some nitrous oxide for a major dental office. He was still concentrating on the sky lanes, but Shadow’s remark about magic was still playing in his mind. “Sparks and mumbo jumbo!” he hissed in an imitation of Shadow’s voice. “Yeah, right! You saw the Scarlet Specter, didn’t you?! What are your powers even classified as if they’re not magic?!”
“Grand Prime Rig,” called a voice over his radio, “this here’s dispatch. We got ourselves another voice squawkin’, wantin’ to give you the low down on somethin’ huge.” Optimus rolled his holo-form’s eyes. He made the call two-way.
“Teletraan, that was awful,” he replied.
“But not inaccurate,” remarked Teletraan.
“You didn’t even use any C.B. code!” protested Optimus.
“I never practiced, okay!” snapped Teletraan.
“What’s this ‘something huge’ you wanted to talk about?” quizzed Optimus.
“Oddly enough,” answered Teletraan, “a green Mobian rabbit wanted to talk to you. Before you ask, I don’t know how she found the base. As I was trying to find the breach, she said she wanted to meet you in the downtown area.”
“That security breach is disconcerting,” muttered Optimus as he landed near the dental office. “I’ll talk to the rabbit. You find that breach and plug it up. I don’t want Shockwave or Eggman getting to our intel.”
“Yes, Sir!” obliged Teletraan. Once the call ended, Optimus helped the other dentists with safely unloading the laughing gas. Optimus then asked the dentist helping unload the trailer what the gas is used for.
“Mainly for anesthetic when there’s major dental work going on,” explained the dentist.
“You make your patients laugh when there’s a root canal going on?” mumbled Optimus. “I know I shouldn’t say this, but your planet’s customs are strange.”
“I’m sure I’d say the same if I were on your planet,” countered the dentist.
“In any case,” replied Optimus as he got a canister out, “this is the last one.”
“Thanks, Prime!” bid the dentist. Optimus nodded farewell, made the trailer disappear, and took off to the downtown area after telling his dispatch that the delivery was a success. Once he arrived, he saw Trema in her Mobian disguise.
“You must be the rabbit that gave my A.I. a security scare,” mused Optimus.
“Sorry about that,” apologized Trema. “A friend gave me clearance.”
“Who?” asked Optimus as he arched an eyebrow.
“Well,” stammered Trema, “in the interests of…”
“Master Trema,” called the Scarlet Specter’s voice, “enough. He’s going to know eventually.” The Scarlet Specter stepped out of an alley.
“It’s too soon!” protested Trema.
“Trema?” repeated Optimus. “That’s a common Nebulan name for girls.”
“Crap,” swore Trema.
“He needs to know,” replied the Specter as her hands went for the mask and hair. When they were pulled off, Optimus’ eyes went wide when he saw Amy’s face.
“AMY?!” he squawked.
“Not so loud!” yelped Amy as she quickly put the wig and mask back on.
“Wait, what’s going on?!” demanded Optimus. “Amy, are you the reason Ms. Trema managed to get through Autobase Omega 1’s security?” Amy shuffled her feet. Optimus sighed. “Amy, we may be friends, but the Autobots are still a military group. You can’t give access to our base to just anyone. Teletraan had a bit of a scare. He was convinced it was Eggman trying to steal our secrets, at worst, Shockwave. Any more requests to give your friends access needs to be cleared with me. Are we clear?”
“…Yes, Prime,” mumbled Amy.
“Good,” replied Optimus. He then turned to Trema. “Ma’am, I’m going to need you to surrender your access to my base as this whole thing needs to be secret.”
“Oh,” groaned Trema, “very well.” She gave Optimus her access card and Optimus put it in his pocket.
“Now, with that cleared up,” declared Optimus, “what is it you wanted to talk to me about?”
“It’s about the Nebulan graffiti,” answered Trema. “Amy showed me what it looked like through her memories and I swear the handwriting looks familiar to me.”
“Can you translate it?” asked Optimus. “My omni-linguistics can’t pick up on that chicken scratch.”
“Let’s see,” muttered Trema as she made a magic image of the graffiti. Nebulan writing is read from the top right corner to the bottom left corner, on a diagonal. “… ‘Come and get me you bucket of…blots?’ Oh! Bolts!”
“It’s directed to the Autobots?” asked Amy.
“Why would a Nebulan bother with defacing a billboard?” quizzed Optimus. “And who on Nebulos doesn’t know how to spell bolts?”
“Well, there was my brother, Krunk,” mused Trema, “but he’s in prison right now.”
“Guys, shh!” hissed Amy. “I think I hear something.” The conversation stopped as all auditory input, both technological and otherwise, were dialed up to maximum. Optimus guessed where the sound was coming from. It was in the alley Amy had come out. Trema led the way. They looked up the building wall to find more graffiti. Optimus started reading it.
“‘Autobots smell like…’ okay, that’s just rude!” he protested. Then they heard the noise again. They turned to see a Nebulan man in red robes spraying the wall in writing. Trema’s eyes went wide as she recognized the Nebulan. She then dropped the Mobian disguise and grew to her full height.
“Hey! Krunk!” she shouted. The Nebulan turned, his eyes popped, and to finish the awkward silence, he threw a fireball at the ground before taking off in flight. Amy closed her fist and put out the flames while Trema took a broom as tall as her out of subspace. She hopped on and zoomed after Krunk. Optimus flew off after her in vehicle mode and Amy turned into a cloud of red mist and tailed Optimus. Optimus switched on his comms to all Autobots.
“All Autobots, take notice,” called Optimus, “A couple of witches and I are in pursuit of a Nebulan wizard of the Red Order! We’re en-route to the city limits! He is in the air and we need him down!”
“This is Prowl, message received!”
“Ratchet, on the way!”
“Ironhide, ready to kick kiester!”
“Bumblebee, reporting!”
“Cliffjumper, I have visual!”
“Jazz, on your six and contacting G.U.N.!”
“All right,” declared Optimus, “let’s roll out!” The chase was on! Jazz and Bumblebee flanked Krunk on the left while Ironhide and Prowl flanked him on the right. Optimus and Cliffjumper took the middle while Amy, Trema, and Ratchet stayed above him. The formation tightened and went lower, much to Krunk’s annoyance. He shot fireballs at them, but to no avail. Suddenly, a pair of high speed, spherical, and organic projectiles hit him in the chest, knocking him to the ground. The projectiles unfurled to reveal Sonic and Shadow. “I have GOT to learn how to do that,” thought Optimus as he and the other Autobots transformed and landed near Krunk. Optimus then spoke in guttural tones to Krunk, who responded back in less than flattering phrases.
“Well, aren’t you rude!” snarled Prowl.
“What did he say?” asked Sonic.
“He just called Optimus the close relative of a scraplet!” translated Jazz. Krunk then gave a Bronx Cheer.
“Okay, that’s universal,” growled Shadow.
“What are you doing on this planet? You’re supposed to be in prison!” snapped Trema in the Nebulan language.
“Like I’d tell you!” growled Krunk in the same language. He then launched a fireball toward her, which the Specter, Amy, blocked. The impact, unfortunately, knocked the hat, wig, and helmet off. The assembled team, bar Optimus and Trema, gawked at Amy’s reveal.
“I’ll explain later!” assured Amy as she cast a bolt of lightning. Krunk sent it towards Optimus, who directed it up and away from the city. The technique surprised Amy. Prime was a young bot. As such, he shouldn’t know how to redirect lightning yet. She still hadn’t mastered it! Krunk then twirled his wand in his fingers and teleported behind Optimus to spray writing on him. He then knocked Optimus down and ran away with Amy and the Autobots in hot pursuit while Trema helped Optimus up.
“What did Krunk write on me?!” he yelped.
“Nothing I wish to repeat in polite company,” was Trema’s response. Optimus decided not to pursue the matter and decided to pursue Krunk. He went with a flying kick to his back and knocked Krunk down again. Krunk then spun around and grabbed Optimus’ face. He tossed him towards Amy, who threw up a barrier before blacking out from the immediate strain.
“All right, Krunk,” called a voice, “let others have their turn with the metal men.” A red cloud then coalesced to become the infamous Captain Aaron Witwicky. “You creatures of metal and those of the other Magic Orders may bow before your new magic king.”
“And, suppose we don’t play along?” asked Prowl. Aaron smirked and threw a fireball at the Autobots. Amy leapt up and knocked it aside. Since she and Aaron were of the same order, it was easy. To say that Aaron was thrown for a loop would be an understatement.
“What?” he hissed. “What is this?!”
“Captain Witwicky, are you out of your mind?!” snapped Amy. “Drop your wand at once!”
“What treachery is this?!” he snarled. “By whose authority?!”
“I am Amy Rose, the Scarlet Specter,” proclaimed Amy. “And it’s you committing treason by firing on innocent people!”
“These low-lives worship machinery!” argued Witwicky. “This war shall elevate the universe to a new height!”
“You flaming dolt!” insulted Amy. “Hasn’t it occurred to you that that futile war is over in this age?”
“Amy!” warned Trema.
“Over?!” shouted Aaron. “What do you mean?!”
“She means that all Orders are at peace,” explained Trema.
“Lies! All lies from a naïve fledgling!” dismissed Aaron.
“That’s no lie, I can assure you,” replied Optimus.
“It’s…over?!” hissed Aaron. “A glorious war…without technology…that I started…,” a dangerous red light started gathering around him, “…IS OVER?!” The light came with something solid as it expanded and knocked everyone off their feet.