The facilities in the new northern outposts were functional enough for Skygnaw's current needs. Since these bases were merely transitional hideouts, he didn't obsess over the rough permafrost walls.
After a thorough inspection, Skygnaw dismissed the five Mid-Class reinforcements, leaving only the original four drones led by E-13—the ones who had followed him from the start. They were tasked with the base's maintenance and basic perimeter security. There was a fundamental difference in trust between his original "loyalists" and the newly arrived grunts.
He designated the tundra site as Base One and the village site as Base Two.
Stepping into the laboratory of Base One, Skygnaw exported the data he had siphoned from Sentinel Prime's derelict ship. With the influx of Decepticons on Earth, Soundwave hadn't issued any new directives, effectively granting everyone a period of "free movement."
Skygnaw knew better than to stick his head out while Optimus Prime and NEST were on high alert. He decided to use this window to digest the stolen archives.
Hidden within the complex Cybertronian files was an experimental project that caught his attention: "Project: Pretender."
"Pretender?" Skygnaw muttered, his processors whirring. "That sounds familiar..."
He opened the experimental logs.
"...A specialized fusion of espionage tactics and biometric mimicry. The cloaking capability allows for..."
"I see..."
A realization dawned on him. A Pretender was the ultimate evolution of a stealth unit. It consisted of a high-precision biomimetic shell and a miniature Cybertronian core. The shell could shrink to perfectly match a target lifeform, simulating body temperature, heartbeats, and even pulses. Some shells were even equipped with internal weaponry and nano-regeneration.
The core unit controlled the shell via a neural link; even if the outer "human" skin was shredded, the actual Transformer inside remained unharmed.
Skygnaw thought of Alice, the Decepticon who would later infiltrate Sam's college. It was clear Soundwave already possessed this tech. However, the manufacturing process was grueling and the resource requirements were astronomical, explaining why they were so rare.
"A pity," Skygnaw sighed, shaking his head. "The shell requires a specific spark-frequency. I can't just shove my Elite-Class core into a human-sized suit."
If he could have become a Pretender, he would have vanished into human society, watching the Autobots and Decepticons bleed each other dry from the safety of a high-rise apartment.
Moving on, he focused on the heavy hitters: Space Bridge technology and the Control Pillars. These were the ultimate "get out of jail free" cards. If he ever found himself cornered by a Leader-Class opponent, a localized bridge was his only hope for survival.
Time blurred as Skygnaw studied. However, his peace was interrupted by the sudden return of Brawl.
The tank-former arrived looking battered and brought shocking news: The Konnas Canyon base was gone. Wiped clean off the map.
NEST and the Autobots had struck while the three Decepticon squads were mid-unloading. The sheer number of Decepticons had panicked the humans, leading to an incredibly violent escalation. Facing a combined force of Ironhide, Bumblebee, and Optimus Prime, the Decepticons had been slaughtered.
Long Haul had been decapitated by Optimus before he could even signal for a combination. Skywarp and Onslaught had been forced to trigger emergency retreats after sustaining heavy damage from Ironhide's heavy cannons.
The casualty list was staggering. The Combaticons had lost Swindle; the Seekers had lost Jetfire (the clone) and Thundercracker; and the Constructicons—the specialized engineering team—had been entirely wiped out. T-19 and the base's clone garrison were scrap.
Skygnaw mourned his former subordinates for exactly two seconds before a logical discrepancy hit him. If the Constructicons are gone, how does Devastator happen in the future?
He pushed the thought aside and looked at Brawl. "Where are Onslaught and Skywarp now?"
Brawl looked sullen. "Onslaught took the survivors and hijacked a cargo ship. They're heading for a different continent. Skywarp took his remaining Seekers and fled into high orbit."
Different continents? Outer space? Skygnaw felt a strange sense of irony. In all of North America, he was likely the only Elite-Class Decepticon left on the ground.
"And Barricade?" Skygnaw asked.
Brawl's faceplate twisted with fury. "Coward! Onslaught said Barricade fled before the first Autobot even breached the perimeter. If he hadn't abandoned the line, the Commanders wouldn't have been hit so hard!"
Skygnaw suppressed a smirk. Classic Barricade. "Stay here for now, Brawl. You're safe in the north."
While Skygnaw played the scientist, his partner Karl was busy playing the CEO.
In a subterranean research center in Miami, an elderly chief engineer named Jobson held a device that looked like nothing else on the market. He stared at Karl in awe.
Karl was no longer the messy teenager from the chemical plant. He wore a tailored charcoal suit and a luxury watch. He looked every bit the "disruptive tech mogul."
"Mr. Karl, this is incredible!" Jobson shouted. "Your 'technical notes' changed everything. Without them, we'd still be struggling with resistive touch-lag. This... this is a revolution."
Karl smiled politely, hiding the fact that he didn't understand a single word of the engineering jargon. He didn't need to be a genius; he just needed the data Skygnaw gave him.
The device was a "Touch-Screen Phone." In 2007, a world of T9 texting and Blackberry keyboards, it was a thunderbolt.
"Start the marketing campaign," Karl ordered. "I want 'Aura Materials' and 'Karl Manufacturing' on every billboard in the country. Money is no object."
Within a month, the ads were everywhere. A phone without buttons. A screen you could slide with your finger. The world began to buzz, unaware that the tech in their pockets was a simplified shadow of a Cybertronian legacy.
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