“This is…quite the predicament,” muttered Prowl once the Autobots heard Bumblebee’s report. “With Eggman making his own Transformers, Shockwave could provide him with the necessary genetic knowledge to complete the project.”
“What’s stopping her from stabbing him in the back?” asked Cliffjumper.
“The fact that she jumped from place to place,” guessed Bumblebee. “Think about it, why was she always moving? She clearly has experiments to run, so, why move? The most logical answer…” Prowl saw where Bumblebee was going.
“Her infrastructure vanished the instant Metroplex did,” he realized.
“Bingo,” confirmed Bumblebee. “With Eggman giving her a place to stay…”
“It would stand to reason,” figured Optimus, “that Eggman intends to use her knowledge to conquer Mobius. Autobots, I see no reason to sugar coat it. Eggman and Shockwave are a dangerous combination. We need to beef up our security. Prowl…” he didn’t get very far when the alarm sounded. “What now?!” wailed Optimus.
“Incoming call from Amy,” replied Teletraan. “Audio only.”
“Must be on her phone then,” remarked Optimus. “Put it through.” Amy’s voice then came through.
“Optimus, we’ve got a massive problem!” yelped Amy. “Mrs. Anderson’s baby girl, Maxy, has gotten bigger!”
“…Kids grow up fast, Amy,” replied Ironhide.
“Er, not as fast or up as the Sky Spy’s showing us,” mumbled Teletraan. “Take a look.” The Sky Spy gave a picture of Downtown being menaced by a giant baby, female human/Mobian rabbit hybrid. Well, perhaps “menaced” is too strong here. She didn’t know any better in this situation.
“……Just when I thought I saw everything!” breathed Ironhide.
“Amy, we’re gonna get Team Dark on the way,” called Optimus. “Has Sonic been contacted?”
“Both him and Tails,” replied Amy.
“Good, we’ll see you there,” answered Optimus. “Prime out.” The call ended, and Optimus dialed up Shadow.
“This is Agent Shadow,” came the familiar raspy anti-hero voice.
“Shadow, get your team downtown!” directed Optimus. “There’s a…Sweet Solus Prime, I can’t believe I’m saying this…there’s a giant baby running loose.”
“………There’s a WHAT running loose?” asked Shadow.
“Yeah, you heard me right!” confirmed Optimus. “I can’t believe I said that, but there’s a giant baby, and, according to our Sky Spy, it’s her snack time!”
“Optimus, if this is a joke…” warned Shadow.
“Look, just get downtown and you’ll see what I mean!” snapped Optimus. He ended the call. “Teletraan, activate the Ground Bridge. Destination: Downtown Station Square”
“Coordinates set,” reported Teletraan.
“And they’ve been double-checked,” called Ratchet.
“ONE TIME!” protested Teletraan. “ONE TIME I GET YOU GUYS TO THE WRONG LOCATION AND YOU WON’T LET IT GO!”
“You dropped us off in the middle of the ocean,” remarked Bumblebee, “not the theme park that Eggman was at.”
“I nearly lost my Dark Spot!” snapped Cliffjumper.
“Just go through already!” hissed Teletraan. The Autobots stepped through the Ground Bridge and arrived at the action zone. Team Dark was there, and Shadow was in disbelief at the fact that a giant baby was crawling around and exploring her surroundings by play.
“H…how…how is this…?” stammered Team Dark’s leader. Poor Shadow.
“I’m asking the obvious here, but how did Maxy get this way?!” quizzed Sonic as he, Tails, and Amy came up.
“I think the question is, who’s behind this?!” yelped Optimus. “She was the size of my pinky tip when I last saw her!” At that point, there was a shuffling noise and a quiet argument.
“Move back, you fat…get your hand out of…from me, you meat-sack!” snarled three voices. They came from something covered by a tarp. It didn’t disguise the tank shape under it.
“Never mind,” remarked Optimus as he moved towards the tarp. “I can guess.” He lifted it up and revealed Shockwave in her vehicle mode with her holo-form shoving Eggman back onto Metal Sonic all in her canopy. They stopped arguing when they saw Optimus’ face. He then went into vehicle mode and activated his holo-form. “All right, who did it?” he asked. Metal Sonic and Shockwave pointed at Eggman.
“You built it!” protested Eggman.
“And you suggested using a child as a test subject,” answered Shockwave as she opened her canopy and shoved her allies out. “The enlargement process of the Mass Inducer has proven to be successful on organic tissue. The next test is to try it on Cybertronian tissue. The results of the control variable are recorded and thus, the child is no longer needed.” At that point, the barrel of Shockwave’s gun aimed itself at Maxy!
“SHOCKWAVE, NO!” shouted Optimus as he transformed and flipped her aft over kettle. The shot went into the air, away from Maxy, as Shockwave transformed and landed on her front. “That’s a child you’re about to shoot!” snarled Optimus.
“It is a control variable that has served its purpose, nothing more,” argued Shockwave.
“That’s my daughter!” roared a woman’s voice. Mrs. Sandra Anderson came running up. She was a human with a twin tail hairstyle and a purple lover. She had a set of buck teeth and a bunny ear headband with a dark purple bow on each end. This was her work outfit at the Hops Diner, a rabbit themed restaurant. Right now, she looked mad at Shockwave. If it were possible, she would have decked Shockwave right there.
“Fleshling, do not interfere with matters that don’t concern you,” ordered Shockwave.
“That’s my baby making a mess of Downtown and that’s my baby you threatened!” snarled Mrs. Anderson. “This matter DOES concern me!” At that point, Prowl and Ironhide made yelps of surprise. Maxy had grabbed them and the impact of her hands caused their holo-emitters to switch off, so they looked like they were cars that could drive themselves. Maxy thought they were toys and made “vroom vroom” noises. The two bots were protesting. At that point, a pair of human scientists with their daughters came around the corner. One was of Indian origin and the other was of African descent. The Indian man was Professor Isaac Sumdac and his daughter was a red-headed, blue eyed teen called Sari. The man of African descent was Doctor Ezra Green and his daughter was Franki. The four goggled at the sight.
“Maxy?!” yelped Dr. Greene. Maxy then crawled towards the four and they ducked into an alley. Maxy tried to reach for them, but they held the hand back.
“Now, now, little Maxy!” urged Professor Sumdac. “Let Dr. Greene and I find out what happened, so we can bring you back to proper size!” Maxy then made various baby noises. The meaning behind them was clear; she didn’t want to return to normal, she wanted to play. Sari then came up with an idea.
“Maxy! Behind you! It’s Stephen Hawking!” she called. Maxy bought it and started crawling behind her.
“I…can’t believe that worked!” muttered Franki.
“It gets her to behave whenever I babysit her,” explained Sari.
“I need to try that,” mused Franki.
“Professor Sumdac! Dr. Green!” called Tails as he flew over. “Eggman and I need your help shrinking her down! It was his fault in the first place anyways.”
“We’ll try and help the others slow her down!” replied Sari. She and Franki joined Sonic, Amy, and the Autobots while Shockwave and Metal Sonic were about to bring their weapons to bear on Maxy!
“Will you put them away?!” shouted Optimus as he tore a chunk of pavement out of the road and shoved it down Shockwave’s gun. Shockwave then busied herself by trying to get the obstruction out.
“Prime, with your permission,” called Ironhide, “I’d like to act like Unca Io’Hide with her.”
“I presume that’s what you called the Sergeant when you were a Sparkling,” muttered Shockwave.
“Oh, I could tell stories about the times I had with him!” laughed Ironhide.
“Spare me!” wailed Optimus. “Permission granted, Sergeant.”
“Thank you, Sir,” bid Ironhide. He then took to the air in vehicle mode. “Oh, Maxy, little lady!” he called in the tone a father would adopt when speaking to his baby child. “Wanna play tag with Unca Io’Hide?” The giant baby soon gave her attention to Ironhide and chased him. They soon ran alongside the coast until Maxy looked out to sea.
“Babph!” she said as she pointed to the water. She then started wandering into the sea and sat down in the harbor.
“What?” quizzed Ironhide. “A bath is more fun than tag? I knew Mobius could be backwards, but that takes the oil cake!”
“Oh dear,” gulped Mrs. Anderson as she saw her massive daughter playing with the ferry boat, splashing it up and down saying “Boatie!” over and over.
“We’ll pay for the ferry,” assured Optimus.
“Yes, but she’s taking a bath!” yelped Mrs. Anderson.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” mused Jazz.
“It’s not the bath I’m worried about,” answered Mrs. Anderson, “it’s what comes after; naptime!”
“Is…that a bad thing?” asked Prowl.
“Well, in these circumstances, yes,” replied Mrs. Anderson. “If she doesn’t have Pupdaw, her stuffed dog, she’ll throw the biggest tantrum ever recorded!”
“And…it’s back at your house, isn’t it?” sighed Optimus, guessing the upcoming problem.
“I’ll get you home so we can get her toy,” offered Prowl. Mrs. Anderson entered Prowl’s right passenger’s side and they sped off with Prowl blaring his sirens. At that point, Maxy stopped playing with the ferry and stretched, yawning as she did so.
“Uh oh!” gulped Bumblebee. “She’s gonna put two and two together!”
“Pupdaw?” asked Maxy. “Wan Pupdaw.”
“I’m going in,” called Sonic.
“Aren’t you afraid of water?” quizzed Optimus.
“Desperate times and all that!” offered Sonic. He started running on the water towards Maxy, who was starting to get worried that her toy wasn’t there. Optimus transformed and followed Sonic. “Oh Maxy!” called Sonic. “Be a good little girl and Mr. Sonic will get you a lollipop!”
“Really?” muttered Optimus. “That’s the best you can do?”
“Give me a break!” protested Sonic. “I haven’t spoken baby in a few years!” Maxy wasn’t interested in a lollipop, she wanted her toy and the two tiny things circling her didn’t have it. In frustration, she flipped them over and they bounced on the water a few times before Optimus opened his canopy and caught Sonic.
“Who taught that kid karate?!” groaned Optimus. Maxy crawled up onto the nearby beach.
“Maxy, no screaming!” called Ironhide, trying desperately to hold the tantrum back. “Please?”
“Maxy!” shouted Mrs. Anderson’s voice. She came out of Prowl to allow him to transform and showed Pupdaw to Maxy. It was a stuffed, purple, cartoon dog with a long right arm and a blue hat. “Look! It’s Pupdaw!”
“Pupdaw?” asked Maxy, tears still in her eyes. She then started screaming as she didn’t believe her mother.
“Oh dear, I was afraid of that,” sighed Mrs. Anderson as her kid fell on her back and flailed her arms and legs in frustration.
“Why is she screaming?!” yelped Optimus. “She’s got her toy!”
“Pupdaw’s too small for her to recognize,” explained Prowl.
“So, what do we do?” asked Sonic. “Go to the giant stuffed animal shop?”
“You COULD get something that passes for her toy,” remarked Shockwave. Optimus looked down at the toy, then got an idea.
“Mrs. Anderson, may I see Pupdaw for a klik?” he asked.
“Er, sure,” stammered Mrs. Anderson as she handed the toy over. “Why do you need him?”
“You’ll see,” assured Optimus. He then brought Pupdaw up close to his face and lined the toy up with Shockwave. He realized something was missing. He handed Pupdaw back and grabbed Metal Sonic.
“HEY!” protested Metal. Optimus then held Metal to Shockwave’s head. Shockwave and Metal started struggling.
“Ratchet! I need Metal paralyzed!” called Optimus. “Help me out here!” Ratchet got the idea and opened Metal’s head.
“Release me!” ordered Metal.
“Let go of my head!” snapped Shockwave. Ratchet soon fixed up Metal Sonic so that he had a death grip on Shockwave’s helmet.
“My arms!” he gasped. “I can’t move!”
“Optimus, restore his motor functions!” demanded Shockwave. Optimus responded by pushing her to the giant, tantrum throwing baby.
“Just make sure to bark, Pupdaw,” he called.
“Pupd…no!” Shockwave realized what was going on as the crying seemed to stop. She looked up to see Maxy drying her eyes and looking at her. The giant baby then smiled.
“Pupdaw!” she gurgled happily. Shockwave considered her options. Her gun was blocked, so she couldn’t fire at her to scare her off and with Metal Sonic having a death grip on her head, she couldn’t transform without bits of him entering her internal mechanics and debilitating her, so she only had one option, lacking dignity, but it was the best course of action: she ran for her life. Sadly, unless she had engaged her Cyber-ninjutsu protocols, she couldn’t run very fast. She was picked up by a giggling Maxy and went into her mouth, headfirst. She was then released from her slobbery prison and then hugged tightly. Maxy then grabbed the gun arm and shook Shockwave for a bit. Lots of damage warnings were flashing that she could be separated from her arm at any moment. Maxy then got up on her feet and started walking into the city, slowly.
“All right, now all that’s left is to rock her to sleep and tell a story to her!” sighed Mrs. Anderson. She then felt eyes on her and realized what she said. “Oh no!” she moaned as she slapped her forehead and ran her hand down her face.
“So, where are we going to find a giant storyteller?” asked Optimus.
“Guys!” called Tails’ voice. He came running up with Eggman, Dr. Greene, and Professor Sumdac with the device that made Maxy turn giant. “We’ve got it set to ‘shrink’,” reported Tails. “Now, all we need to do…”
“Er, can you wait until she’s asleep?” asked Ironhide as he transformed to robot mode. He turned to Optimus. “I think, with the device set to ‘grow’ again, I can rock her to sleep.”
“What?!” yelped Tails.
“I miss rocking a baby to sleep and telling a story,” explained Ironhide. “Call me sentimental, or riddled with guilt over Firestar’s death, but I want to have that chance again. With your permission, of course, Prime.” Optimus nodded.
“Permission granted,” replied Optimus. “Tails, go ahead.” Tails then switched it on and fired on Ironhide. He grew to a proper size relative to Maxy.
“Oh, Maxy!” he called. “Want to hear a story?” Maxy gurgled in anticipation. “Why don’t we have a sit-down?” offered Ironhide. Maxy crawled over to Ironhide and he scooped her up, holding her in a position that would allow for rocking. “Why don’t I tell you a story I once told Optimus when he was a Sparkling? This is the story of the Destruction of the Hammer of Primus.”
“The…what?!” gulped Optimus, surprised.
“You’re acting like that’s a bad thing,” observed Amy.
“I’m surprised he told me that story when I was a baby!” explained Optimus. “That’s not a story one tells a toddler!” Ironhide shushed everyone below, then started rocking Maxy.
“It was a dark and stormy night on the planet of Cybertron!” he began. “The wind blew louder than a thousand Insecticons!” He made a wind sound effect as Maxy started drifting off. “That ship could destroy an entire planet with one single blast! And we, the fifteen Wreckers, were sent to crush it!” Maxy was in a deep sleep at that point as she dropped Shockwave. Ironhide then set Maxy down and gave a thumbs-up to Tails. Tails set the device to “Shrink” and shrank the two back to their respective sizes. Mrs. Anderson picked her baby up and gave her the real Pupdaw.
“Aren’t they adorable when they’re asleep?” she asked no one in particular.
“You’re a lucky woman,” sighed Ironhide. “Treasure her forever.” Mrs. Anderson could sense the sadness in his voice but didn’t pry.
“Is there a way for one of you to take us home quietly?” she asked the Autobots. “She’s a heavy sleeper, except in cars.”
“The Ground Bridge is a quieter way,” answered Ratchet. “Teletraan, do you have Mrs. Anderson’s address?”
“Got it,” replied Teletraan. “Sending a Ground Bridge.” A Ground Bridge opened for Mrs. Anderson and she stepped through.
“No one can beat my stories!” boasted Ironhide once the Bridge closed.
“Yeah, if you want to fall asleep!” muttered Bumblebee.
“Watch it,” warned Optimus. “Ironhide is my father figure!” Bumblebee’s optics went wide when he saw Optimus’ expression.
“What I meant to say,” gulped Bumblebee, “was thank you.”
“That’s better,” replied Optimus.
“Well,” interjected Eggman, “it’s been fun, but Shockwave, Metal Sonic, and I have to go. Shockwave is near enough on her Energon field build-up, she might start shorting out any second. And, with Metal stuck to her head and her gun blocked, she can’t transform.”
“Yes, you DO need to patch things up, don’t you?” replied Tails.
“I’m afraid so,” sighed Eggman. “We’ll play another day.” He held his hand out for a handshake. Tails accepted, gingerly, and they shook. “A pleasure working with you, for one time,” said Eggman as he was about to withdraw his hand.
“Yes, a pleasure, indeed,” answered Tails as he shook Eggman’s hand again. Then, he let go and let Eggman and his allies go on their merry way. They went through their Ground Bridge as Tails waved goodbye. Once it closed, Tails shook his head. “Never try that with a fox,” he laughed. He then fished out the Cyan and Yellow Chaos Emeralds.
“Where’d you get those?!” yelped Optimus.
“Perhaps using Chaos Emeralds as a power source for our Mass Inducer was a bad idea,” mused Eggman.
“Especially since, thanks to you working with the Autobots’ mutant fox ally,” agreed Shockwave, “they now have two Chaos Emeralds.”
“Oh, Shockwave, really,” laughed Eggman. “Did you think I wouldn’t at least keep the playing field even at the very least? While he was shaking my hand, I swapped out one of the Emeralds for a rock. I couldn’t see the color of the Emerald,” he then dug into his coat pocket, “but it SHOULD still shine…WHAT THE?!” It wasn’t a Chaos Emerald he fished out; it was the rock he thought he swapped with Tails!
“And the phrase ‘sly as a fox’ holds water,” sighed Shockwave.
“Great, so now I’m paralyzed and we have NO Chaos Emeralds!” complained Metal Sonic. “Speaking of which, COULD SOMEONE GET ME OFF OF SHOCKWAVE’S HEAD?!”
“And remove the obstruction in my gun,” ordered Shockwave. The Egg-pawns hurried to obey, leaving their creator to rant and rave about how he hated Sonic and his allies.