Chapter 28: The Six-Faced Beasts Chasing Us
"Damn it! It looks like Ultra Magnus has accomplices! Take him down, fast! We can't let another Autobot escape, or we'll have no way to explain this to Lord Megatron!"
Though the Decepticon guards had suffered heavy losses, they refused to stop tracking Ultra Magnus. After all, Megatron's punishments were notoriously severe. And they'd heard that Optimus Prime had also escaped the Lord's grasp he was furious. Offending Megatron now could cost them their lives.
What these Decepticons didn't realize was that they weren't facing poorly equipped Autobot prisoners. They were up against Starscream, whose combat power rivaled Megatron's, though now disguised as Ultra Magnus.
In fact, even a cursory glance at the torn mechanical body of their fallen comrade made it clear: no Autobot could wield such firepower. Yet driven by duty, these foolish Decepticons didn't pause to consider that. Originally, they were just prisoners in this outpost, the Ninth Penal Territory, and now that they finally had a chance to prove themselves, they couldn't revert to old habits.
Unfortunately for them, Starscream's weapons, equipment, and radar systems were far superior. He leapt from his hiding spot, launching two surface-to-air missiles, one on each flank. Two sharp explosions later, the remaining pursuers were reduced to balls of fire, their bodies completely incinerated.
"System God, my mission should now be 100% complete. Can I have my reward?"
In truth, Starscream and Ultra Magnus had little personal connection. He didn't come to rescue the Autobot warrior he simply wanted to complete the previous system mission to 100% and claim the perfect reward. Eliminating all the mechanical guards was just part of that.
Still, the careless Starscream didn't bother concealing his battle marks. After all, the way Autobots eliminated foes differed from the methods of powerful Decepticons. But in such a remote exile, no strategist would approach to analyze it, so the odds of Starscream being discovered were extremely low.
"Host, Ultra Magnus hasn't fully reached the safe zone. Escort mission still required. Continue!"
"Understood!" Starscream thought. This Transformers system was finicky, but with his escort skills, guiding Ultra Magnus to safety wouldn't be a problem. He transformed and disguised himself as Ultra Magnus, soaring into the sky in robot mode.
Even though Ultra Magnus had covered a great distance, compared to these supersonic fighters, that distance was covered in minutes.
However, Starscream had not anticipated that Ultra Magnus had a nemesis: a highly unconventional Decepticon warrior who wasn't permanently stationed on Cybertron but roamed the universe. This fighter was Sixshot.
It seemed Starscream had forgotten to check his horoscope today. Just at the precise moment Ultra Magnus was trying to escape, Sixshot appeared, witnessing the scene of total devastation.
"Any surviving Decepticons? I am Sixshot, the Ninja Warrior! Tell me what's going on! I don't care about the other Autobots I need to know where Ultra Magnus is!"
Grabbing a half-dead Decepticon, Sixshot shook him violently but couldn't extract a single word of information.
"What happened? These Decepticons were hit by powerful missiles! Ultra Magnus doesn't have that kind of equipment! Activate radar I need to know immediately how they were destroyed!"
As a veteran ninja warrior, analyzing destroyers was Sixshot's specialty. His built-in scanning system ran a powerful comparative algorithm.
"Beep beep beep. Based on ballistics and damage analysis, these Decepticons were likely destroyed by surface-to-air and surface-to-surface missiles. But our database contains no Autobot with that level of firepower!"
Wow. Quite the shocking result for Sixshot. Those supposedly peaceful Autobots didn't seem to have such violent weapon systems. Could it have been a Decepticon accidentally responsible?
"Recheck Decepticon flight units for candidates with comparable firepower."
"Beep beep beep. A dozen candidates match that attack level. Don't tell me it's Starscream… or Overlord…"
Starscream was the first suspect but as a Decepticon Air Commander, accusing him without cause could backfire. And Overlord hated Autobots above all else. Could the last suspect be Dinobot Sarath? Recently, his stance toward Autobots had been unpredictable, even openly opposing their extermination. Could he have betrayed Megatron?
After ruling out all the obvious suspects, Sixshot realized none of the Decepticons with similar firepower seemed culpable.
"Damn it! He must be very well hidden! Track Ultra Magnus quickly! Once we find him, all mysteries will be solved. I wonder what kind of opponent awaits. Perhaps this is the solitude of a master?"
Although Sixshot hadn't found the answer yet, he hadn't given up the hunt. No matter how far this Autobot escaped, Sixshot would be the one to destroy him.
"System automatically blocked. System error. Two Ultra Magnus detected: one flying through the air, the other moving swiftly on the ground like a bus. System error!"
Wow! Things were getting more interesting. Two identical Ultra Magnus figures now appeared on Sixshot's radar…
(End of Chapter)