Diego Garcia, NEST Base.
A fully armed military force suddenly surrounded the NEST base. Following them, a convoy of various tanks and armored vehicles—ignoring the protests and warnings of the guards at the camp gates—violently broke through the entrance and stormed into the NEST encampment.
"Hey! Who are you people!"
Having received word of the intrusion, William Lennox hurriedly led a group of soldiers, armed with nothing but rifles, toward the armored convoy. They were in the middle of a rest period and hadn't even had time to don their full gear.
Faced with the aggressive Lennox and his men, the armored convoy suddenly swerved to bypass them, driving straight toward a hangar within the base.
"Shit, their target is Ironhide and the others!" Lennox cursed under his breath, leading his men in a desperate chase after them.
Inside the hangar, Ironhide and the other Autobots guarding Optimus Prime's chassis were startled to find themselves surrounded by a strange human army. Though confused, they marched out of the hangar and transformed their limbs into weapons.
"What is the meaning of this? You point guns at us? Do you wish to go to war with the Autobots!"
Ironhide lacked Optimus's tolerance and patience. Facing muzzles and tank barrels pointed directly at him, his cannons immediately began to glow with charging energy.
"Ironhide, don't!"
Lennox finally caught up and shouted to stop him. He waved his hands frantically while his soldiers ran between the two sides. "Lower your weapons! Lower your weapons!"
"Tell them to put their guns down!" Lennox rushed to the command vehicle of the armored convoy, roaring repeatedly. "Tell your men to lower their guns! Tell your men to lower their guns! They just lost Optimus—don't provoke them!"
An officer stepped down from the command vehicle, refusing to yield an inch. "Colonel Lennox, I am acting on orders. Have the aliens lower their weapons first."
Just as the tension reached a breaking point, threatening to erupt into a one-sided massacre, another figure pushed open the door of the command vehicle.
"Colonel, as of this moment, your unit is disbanded."
In a scene that felt like a repeat of history, Galloway slapped a document against Lennox's chest. Lennox's fury froze for a second, only to ignite with even greater intensity.
"Disbanded? What are you talking about? I don't understand you, Mr. Advisor!"
"You don't understand? Then I'll tell you again, my Colonel." Galloway stepped up to Lennox, staring him in the eye. "Your unit is disbanded. Immediately, right now, cease all resistance operations against the Decepticons and stay quietly in this place until further instructions!"
"Instructions? No, we report directly to Secretary John Keller."
"Listen, Colonel, I will see your direct superior, but not now," Galloway said overbearingly. "I have a warrant signed by the President himself. You have no choice. You must execute this order now."
Lennox gripped the document that had been slapped against his chest, remaining silent. Seeing Lennox humbled, Galloway was in an excellent mood. He turned his finger toward the Autobots surrounded by tanks.
"Aliens come to our planet for revenge, and our soldiers are the ones who suffer for it. The truth is out! We've been fighting the Autobots' war for them!"
"We will win again," Galloway continued, "but it won't be through war. It will be through every possible diplomatic channel."
"This idiot has completely missed the point," Sideswipe shook his head, looking on with pity. "He thinks they are a nation that will always keep winning."
"Diplomatic channels? Like handing over the boy?" Lennox asked suddenly.
"It's not out of the question, Colonel," Galloway said dismissively. "After all, so many Decepticons have arrived, and this is clearly just the beginning. I'll tell you one more thing: the Cabinet has already drafted plans to negotiate with the Decepticons in hopes of a peaceful resolution. And the Decepticon contact has already been chosen—his name is Skygnaw. You should know him."
"What? Negotiations?" Lennox was aghast. "You absolutely cannot negotiate with them!"
Negotiating with the vicious Decepticons? Had the higher-ups lost their minds?
"It's not up to you, Colonel." A fake smile crossed Galloway's face as he took one last look at Ironhide, Ratchet, and the others. "Now, take your soldiers and this pile of scrap metal back into the base!"
With that, Galloway turned and walked back to the armored vehicle. The officer who had first emerged held the door open for him. The army surrounding NEST hadn't come for a combat mission; they were there for deterrence—to ensure the Autobots and NEST didn't go rogue after receiving their orders.
"Ratchet, perhaps it is time for us to leave this planet," Ironhide said, stowing his weapons, his tone sounding somewhat lonely as he watched the convoy depart.
"But Optimus would not have wanted that," Ratchet replied, also putting away his weapons.
With Galloway's departure, a conflict had vanished into thin air. Galloway hadn't fled; he had left as a victor. Robert Epps walked up behind Lennox and patted his shoulder. "Seriously, I said it the last time he was here—I really don't like that guy. He's a lunatic. A world-class idiot."
Paris, France.
On the bustling Champs-Élysées, Ron and Judy Witwicky wore silk scarves over their heads, carefully avoiding the crowds as if terrified someone would recognize them.
As tourists on the most famous boulevard in Paris, they should have been sightseeing or at least sampling the local cuisine. Instead, they were forced to hide, terrified of the omnipresent traffic cameras—all because their son, Sam Witwicky, was now wanted by the entire world.
Ron and Judy had started a spontaneous honeymoon trip after their son left for college, but they had clearly chosen the wrong time to travel. Otherwise, they would at least know if their son was safe.
In fact, because of The Fallen's broadcast, most of the world was in a state of panic. Rumors were flying, and countless doomsday cults had sprouted up like mushrooms. Some had even taken The Fallen's mechanical head as their icon, preaching "Universal Unification"—the idea that as intelligent life in the cosmos, they should coexist peacefully and explore the secrets of the universe together.
Of course, The Fallen knew nothing of this; otherwise, he wouldn't mind teaching these "insects" a lesson for insulting him with such worship.
In short, regarding the existence of aliens, there were those who were excited, those who were terrified, those who were indifferent, and those who just wanted to watch the drama. This resulted in internal chaos before any external invasion had even officially begun. If the alien robots hadn't vanished after landing on Earth, order would have collapsed long ago.
Consequently, although Ron and Judy looked suspicious, no one paid them any mind. Wasn't the "zero-cost shopping" event at the mall down the street much more interesting?
"Honey, where do you think Sam is? Do you think he's in danger?" Judy asked worriedly as they returned to a small hotel that didn't require registration.
"Don't worry," Ron comforted her. "Sam has those Autobot friends. He'll be fine."
Despite his words, a trace of worry flashed in Ron's eyes. Their son didn't have the capability to take on the whole world.
While Ron and Judy worried for their son, they had no idea they were about to be in danger themselves. In the cramped room, Ron went out to buy food while Judy sat in a chair, dazed. She instinctively pulled out her phone. Although her husband had warned her a thousand times not to turn it on because it would expose their location, her worry for her son drove her to turn it on anyway.
"Damn it, what am I doing!" she cursed, feeling she had lost her mind. Just as she was about to turn it off again, the screen lit up.
Ring— Ring—
A ringtone echoed. After hesitating, Judy finally pressed the answer button. What if it was Sam calling?
"Sam? Is that you?"
"What? Who is this?"
"I don't understand what you're saying. I don't like people heavy breathing on the phone..."
In space, a massive satellite—having just moved into an orbit directly over France—shuddered as its communication antenna vibrated at a high frequency.
[Skygnaw, location confirmed.]
Olney, New Jersey.
A yellow Camaro and two Chevy subcompacts—one red and one green—drove over the overpass into the city of Olney. Inside the lead Camaro, Leo stretched in the back seat. Having vowed never to sit in the back again, he had been forced into it once more.
After more than ten hours of driving, Sam and the others had finally reached their destination. The convoy slowed as it entered the busy downtown area of Olney. Turning through several streets and following the navigation, they finally stopped at a specialty restaurant located on a dingy, cluttered street.
"This is it!" Sam and the others opened their doors and stepped out.
"Not bad. A restaurant is a great cover," Leo said, looking around. The street was mostly filled with ordinary workers coming and going. The appearance of aliens didn't seem to have affected them at all; they were still working hard.
"You two wait outside first," Leo stopped Sam and Mikaela, explaining. "Wait for my signal. When I say it's okay to come in, then you come in, got it?"
"Got it," Sam and Mikaela shared a look and chose to trust Leo.
30+ chapters are available now and daily updates!
@patreon.com/AgentTwilight