Dislcaimer: See first chapter.
Warning: Language, AU, OOC

A/N: Due to technical difficulties, and a surprise visit, I wasn't able to post this yesterday, but I did have it ready to post. But, I'll get into that at the end. Read, enjoy, maybe even review? Hope that you like the final chapter in Barbequed 'Gators.

Key:
"Voice speaking through radio/pilots responding to Epps"
_Optimus, radio link_
=Ironhide, radio link=
+Optimus broadcasting a radio transmission+

Word Count: 11,698
Published: 9 August 2009
Status: Complete, 4 of 4

Chapter Four:

Old Alien Archives

Numerous wires later, a couple of shocks, and Glen had just about finished hot-wiring the computer to the radio. "Almost done."

That was good news, at least, it had been good news until Maggie heard something slam against the door, the metal giving an almost groaning screech. She stopped pressing keys as she stared at the door, echoing Simmons question in her mind.

"What the hell was that?"

The door was slammed against again, and this time she could see it moving inwards.

"Barricade the door." Leaving Glen to finish what he was doing, Maggie moved to find something to push against the door while both Simmons and Keller braced themselves against them.

"Get something."

"Watch out!" Grabbing a table, Simmons helped her to shove it over towards the door. In the background, she could hear Glen talking to himself.

"Six, five, four, six, three."

While Simmons used a chair to help keep the doors closed, Keller was breaking the glass on a display case. Pulling out the shotguns within before bringing them over to the door along with the ammo.

"Here, put some rounds into it." Having never held a gun before, Maggie had seen enough movies as well as watching the soldiers earlier to know how to load it. She was perfectly fine with loading the weapons, only flinching slightly as Keller fired through the gap that had appeared through the door, despite their efforts to keep it closed. Maggie was still able to hear Glen talking to himself, which meant he was still working on it.

"Master search. I got! We're transmitting!"

Hearing those words, Keller moved away from the door, leaving Maggie to hold the barricade by herself. Simmons would be back to help her soon enough. They needed to get that signal out, as soon as they possibly could. And he needed to make sure that Glen sent out what he said word for word. "Send exactly what I say!"

Keeping her weight against the table, Maggie hoped that Simmons returned from wherever he had gone. Keller would be busy for at least a few minutes. She didn't have to wait long though as Simmons returned with what she could only guess was a flamethrower.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way! Burn, you little sucker! Burn!" Moving to the side, Simmons immediately took her spot as he pushed the nozzle through the crack in the doors, the burst of flames causing a flare of even brighter light. She ducked down.

For a moment, Keller stared at the sudden source of light, but quickly turned his attention away from Simmons and his flame thrower. "This is Defense Secretary Keller. Get me NORTHCOM commander."

Whirring metal had him suddenly leaning back to avoid having his head cut off, Glen ducking down as well.

"Whoa!"

"Whoa! What was that?"

Shaking himself, Keller continued speaking. They needed to at least get a message out to the Air Force, because Lennox and his men would sure as hell need the help of an air strike with Megatron, NBE One, whatever he was called after them. He would have Glen send a message about having the base contact the local authorities after he sent out the authenticated order for an air strike. "Authenticate emergency action. Blackbird 1195..."

Mission City

"No, no, no, no, no."

"What?"

"It's the same cop! Block them, block them, block them."

Harry didn't dare look behind him to see what Sam and Mikaela were staring at. Not only could he hear the sirens, he feel the approaching Sparks as well. The Decepticons had caught up with them. Gripping the Cube tightly, Harry paid attention to the moving Sparks, not daring to turn around and watch as Optimus confronted one of the two Decepticons. He could only hope that no one died, but knew that it would only be wishful thinking. His thoughts were confirmed when he felt the dark Spark closest to Optimus vanish, as well as the faint tinge of sorrow that Optimus felt at having to take a life, even if it was inevitable.

Sensors picking up on the two approaching Decepticons, Ironhide quickly closed ranks behind Bumblebee with Ratchet. If it wasn't for the fact that he didn't have a bladed weapon, he would have taken on Bonecrusher himself. But, given the fact that if he missed a shot he would very likely hit one of the human driven vehicles, Ironhide merely watched as Optimus transformed and was tackled by the skating Decepticon. Ratchet didn't go because it was too early for him to risk being injured. As their medical officer, Ratchet tended to avoid putting himself in unnecessary danger. He was the one that patched them up after all.

Soon enough, they were out of sight, but his sensors still picked up the moment when Optimus won his fight. That didn't mean he let his guard down. He was fairly sure that he had seen Barricade, and yet the police cruiser had disappeared almost as soon as Bonecrusher had transformed and tackled Optimus. No, he wasn't about to let his guard down, especially with the passengers that Bumblebee carried.

Old Alien Archives

"This is so not good." Staring up at the vent, Maggie had to agree with Simmons. This was definitely not good, at all. With both Simmons and Keller firing, she half hoped that they would get the mech, but soon enough it burst through the duct. She dove down on the floor next to Glen. Simmons and Keller also took cover behind the desks, the robot having fallen down onto one of the display cases.

"He's behind the pillar!" Risking a peek, Maggie quickly shared the robots location.

"Shoot that mother..." Glen never finished speaking as they both got a good look at what the whirring metal disks were. The serrated, shuriken like blades were not something they wanted to be hit with.

"Maggie, cover fire!" Catching the shot gun Simmons threw her, Maggie did as she was asked.

"It's the Air Force! They're responding!" Glen's shout came moments before Simmons once more appeared with his flamethrower.

"Sucker, burn!" Another metal disk whirred through the air, all of them instinctively ducking. She looked up just in time to see the crazy robot get decapitated by it's own weapon. She was also fairly sure that it had spoke, but she wasn't positive of the words. It did sound a lot like, 'oh, shit' though.

"Yes! They're sending F-22s to the city!" Smiling, Maggie put her shotgun down with relief. With the Air Force sending help, it was less likely that the three teenagers she had seen would get hurt, or even worse, killed.

With the homicidal mech out of commission, as well as the news about the Air Force having at least responded to sending help to the city, Keller lowered his shot gun with relief. He could picture what must have been happening at the base. Pilots were being given their orders even as they scrambled into their jets and got ready to take off. The others must have reached Mission City by now, which meant that they would have possibly a ten minute wait until pilots were circling the city waiting to be contacted. Hopefully, the Air Force was also able to contact the local police department, as well as the fire department and anyone else that would be able to help evacuate at least the portion of the city that fights would undoubtedly break out in. Harry had been right after all. There really wasn't anyway that they would be getting the Cube away without a fight of some kind, and it was smart to try and evacuate the civilians prior to their arrival.

"Um, Maggie, are you sure that thing's dead?" Turning towards the others, Keller saw the three gathered around the headless mech. At least, it had been headless. Now, he could see that wires had somehow reconnected it to the body and a few thin pieces of metal were attempting to reattach the head more securely. The thing was still alive.

"Simmons, gather some men and secure that robot for transportation. He is to stay in your sight at all times. We still don't know how our systems had been hacked from Air Force One. From what I've seen, that's the only one small enough to get around the plane undetected. I want that robot secured and ready for transportation within the hour."

"Yes sir."

"Glen, contact the Air Force again. I want a clean up crew on their way to the city." And they would need a clean up crew because he highly doubted that there would be only minor damage done. The robots were too large, and judging by the amount of damage that the small silver one they had confronted had done, they were really going to need a clean up crew. As he was busy giving an authenticated order, he absently watched as Maggie helped Simmons to bind the arms and legs of the mech with duct tape. It probably wouldn't hold the mech for long, but it was better than nothing. At least, it would work until something more secure could be acquired.

"They're sending helicopters here to pick you up Mr. Secretary."

"Make sure that they have radios. I need to get in contact with Lennox and his men as soon as possible. They'll be able to tell us what is going on." Keller didn't dare think about how the group of soldiers might be unable to respond because they were dead. They had already proved once that they could handle being attacked by alien robots, and this time they were prepared and knew what was going on.

Mission City

Stopping at a pawn shop, Lennox ordered for one of his men and three of the Sector Seven soldiers to contact the police and any other local authority figures and organize the evacuation of the immediate area. Once they were moving, he quickly entered the building and found some radios. This time, he was prepared for the possibility of having to pay and pulled out a credit card. Thankfully, the pawn shop took plastic.

"Come on, let's go. Mount up!" Running towards the vehicle he was driving, he handed Epps the radios he had gotten before darting around to the other side.

"Here, I got shortwave radios."

"Wait. What am I supposed to do with these?" The voice was tinged with disbelief, but Lennox knew they didn't have time to be picky.

"Well, use them! It's all we got!" Climbing through the window, Lennox quickly started the driving, making sure that Sirius was with them. The man might not have been a trained soldier, but he was handling the situation rather well.

"This is like Radio Shack dinosaur radios or something, man. I'm only gonna get twenty or thirty miles out of these things. Are there any aircraft orbiting the city?"

Looking around, Lennox only partly paid attention to where he was driving. There were hardly any vehicles about, which clearly meant that either Keller had gotten the message out about evacuating at least part of the city, or the men he had ordered to do so were really good. Either way, it was a good thing for them. He almost wanted to curse the tall buildings as he scanned the skies for any thing in the air, but they were part of the reason why they had come to the city. The tall buildings would provide them with cover.

"F-22 at 12 o'clock. All right, I want planes for air cover and we're gonna get Black Hawks on station to extract that Cube. You got it?" Pulling to a stop, Lennox quickly climbed out, noting that further down the street civilians were being directed away. Harry had been right about trying to get the area evacuated beforehand. They would be spread thin if some of his men had to evacuate the civilians. If a gun fight broke out, panic would have happened and chaos would occur.

"Air Force has arrived! Pop smoke!"

"Raptor, Raptor, do you copy? We have you visual. Green smoke is the mark. Provide air cover and vector Black Hawks for extraction."

"It's Starscream!" The transformed Ironhide was not a good sign.
"Please tell me you copy."

"Back up. Take cover. Bumblebee." Seeing Ironhide and Bumblebee picking up a truck, Lennox stared wide eyed for a moment before hissing out curses.

He was seeing what Ironhide had seen. That F-22 was attacking them. Lennox gave a curse. "No, no, no, no! Move!"

"Back up! Back up!"

"Retreat! Fall back!" Grabbing Sirius, Lennox dragged the man with him. He had helped to save Fig's life, he sure as hell wasn't about to let the man get killed now.

"Incoming!" Ironhide's shout was warning enough as he dove for cover, dragging down Sirius with him. Hearing the explosion, Lennox decided that he needed to get Harry something. The kid had probably saved a lot of lives and even more people from getting hurt by suggesting they evacuate the area. Even with the warning, a second explosion knocked him off his feet and into the side of a building, Sirius and Epps right next to him. Lennox just knew he was going to feel the bruises a long time after this was over.

Seeing the F-22, Ironhide almost thought it was one of the humans'. That was before his sensors had picked up on the fact that it most definitely wasn't. It was Starscream. He wasted no time in transforming out of his alt mode, ordering the humans to back up and take cover as he had Bumblebee help him support a truck to take the brunt of the attack. This was not good. At the very least though, there didn't seem to be any humans that close to them. Bracing himself, he called out a warning. Seconds later, he found himself being blasted to the side and into a building.

Shaking himself, he got up, noticing immediately that Bumblebee had lost his legs. He also noticed that Harry was laying motionless on the ground. For a moment, he thought that the teenager was dead, but a quick scan revealed the boy was alive, if suffering from possibly cracked ribs and numerous cuts. Optics narrowing, Ironhide gave an almost inaudible snarl. He was going to tear that slagging jet apart piece by piece. Bumblebee was young, but this wasn't the first time he had gotten hurt. Ironhide had learned to accept it when it happened, but he made sure that he at least severely injured the Decepticon responsible. Seeing Harry hurt though, Ironhide was feeling even angrier than he had when Bumblebee had first been seriously hurt. He was going to tear Starscream apart and then use the pieces as target practice.

There was a reason that the Decepticons were cautious about hurting the younger Autobots in front of him. More often than not, they would either find themselves dead, close to it, or missing a limb or two. It would seem that Starscream needed a reminder of just why Optimus called him his weapons specialist, not to mention why most Decepticons fled when he was present and there was an injured Autobot he considered to be a youngling in the area. Ironhide tended to use any moving Decepticon as target practice for every weapon he had in his arsenal. Starscream had just painted a very large target on his aft by hurting not only Bumblebee, but Harry as well.

As Lennox went to get radios, and a few men left to organize the evacuation of the area, Harry silently wished that he not only had his wand, but knew a few strong Muggle repelling charms. If he could put one up around them, then bystanders were less likely to get hurt. Of course, it would also repel the police, which they needed to help evacuate the area. That was something he didn't need. And even worse, it may effect the pilots, which they needed. Thankfully though, it seemed that the area was being evacuated quickly with no problems. That was a good thing, a very good thing. Still holding the Cube, Harry tried to find Optimus. He knew that the Autobot leader was still alive, but he wasn't very close to the city. Concentrating hard, he picked up on the mech's Spark, relieved to notice that although it was rather far away, Optimus was moving towards them.

Climbing out of the Camaro when they stopped, Harry felt a small amount of relief when he saw the jet. Keller had managed to contact the Air Force. His grip tightening on the Cube, Harry was fairly sure that there would be imprints left when he finally let go. Staying close to Sam and Mikaela, Harry stretched out his senses as far as he could, trying to sense where the Decepticons were, more importantly, were Megatron was. The Decepticon leader wasn't hard to find, his insanity and tainted Spark was like a beacon to him, and despite the fact he was almost as far away as Optimus, he was moving a lot faster. That wasn't good, but hopefully the Cube would be gone before Megatron arrived. Looking for the other Decepticons, Harry found three of them, noting that one of them was on the ground while the other two were in the air. Eyes widening, Harry cursed, just moments before Ironhide transformed, confirming what he had just realized. The jet was a Decepticon. And they had painted a large target for it using green smoke.

Shoving the Cube into Sam's arms, he quickly pushed the two older teens further away from where Ironhide and Bumblebee were lifting a Furby truck. He had just pushed the two down behind a parked car when Ironhide shouted his warning. Harry was knocked off his feet. The force of the blast slammed him into the side of a car, actually denting it before he bounced off and hit the ground, cracking a couple more ribs. Lying face down on the street, Harry struggled to catch his breath, his ears ringing. His chest blazed with pain, his lungs burning with each breath he took. It was almost impossible to breathe. He could sense his godfather's worry, as well as Ironhide's. If they could worry, Harry knew that they were alive and probably unharmed. Turning his head slightly, he was hit with Bumblebee's pain at about the same time he saw the yellow mech.

He was missing both of his legs, but beneath the pain, Harry felt a steely determination from the mech. Seeing Sam and Mikaela, Harry almost gave a sigh of relief, but stopped himself just in time. His lungs were already burning enough from trying to breathe, he wasn't going to do anything unnecessary. Forcing himself to his feet, he swayed dangerously, but managed to stay standing. Slowly, he made his way over to the three, finding it easier to breath with each step. That may have been because he had found a rhythm though. It didn't matter though as he clenched his jaw, forcing the pain to the back of his mind. He was even able to ignore the sting and trickle of sticky blood that let him know he not only had cracked ribs, but numerous cuts and scrapes from being knocked off his feet as well as from flying debris. He was so focused on ignoring the pain, he barely even heard what was being shouted.

"Anybody hurt? Everyone okay?" He was hurt, but Harry wasn't about to tell Lennox that. There really wasn't anything that could be done until after they got the Cube out of the city and away from the Decepticons.

"Clear the area."

Finally reaching Sam and Mikaela, Harry felt some small amount of relief to see that the two were relatively unharmed. Staring at Bumblebee, Harry found himself almost frozen in place as he fully saw just how injured the mech was.

"Ratchet!" Harry winced as Sam shouted. He was in enough pain already without having to add to it.

"What the hell was that?!" Sinking further down between the two, Sirius winced slightly. He was going to stay out of this argument.

"What are you talking about?" He was definitely staying out of this argument.

"What do you mean, what am I talking about? They shot at us!" Sinking lower, he searched for Harry, relieved to see his godson near Sam and Mikaela. He was hurt, but he was alive, and that was what mattered. He would heal with time, and unlike Bumblebee, he hadn't lost any limbs. The yellow mech had lost both of his legs just below the knee.

"F-22 pilots would never fly below buildings. That's alien. That ain't friendly!" Unable to resist, Sirius had to comment on that last remark.

"What was your first clue? The fact he tried to kill us, or that he's one of Megatron's minions?" Whatever Epps was going to say was cut off as a voice crackled over the radio.

"Army Black Hawk inbound to your location. Over." Finally, they needed those guys here a good fifteen minutes ago.

"Alpha 273, ten miles. November Victor, 1.2 clicks north." Epps had barely finished speaking when two small explosions occurred, showering them in dirt. Almost as one, the three of them glance over the top of the torn up bit of street they were currently using as cover. A tank was firing on them. Things just kept getting better and better.

Hearing the whistle of a projectile cutting through the air, Harry turned just in time to see two small explosions shower his godfather, Lennox, and Epps in dirt. Looking down the street, Harry found himself extremely grateful that the area had been evacuated. Watching the tank run over a parked car, Harry was extremely thankful that they seemed to be the only people around. With the streets clear of vehicles, Jazz had to swerve around very little as he made his way toward the tank, Ratchet right behind him. Remembering what it had been like the night after the Quidditch World Cup, Harry knew that things could have been far worse. Without anyone in the area, there wasn't a crowd of panicking screaming people, hurting each other in the chaos that would result in an attempt to get away. He was very thankful that he didn't have to experience it again.

"Move out! Let's go!"

Lennox's order snapped him back to the present, and it seemed that he wasn't the only one. Mikaela darted off, but after seeing where she was headed, Harry turned his attention to finding the Cube. He absently wondered if his trip through the Veil was the reason why he no longer needed glasses, but decided to ponder the thought later. Carefully searching the ground for the Cube, Harry continued to ignore the pain he was in. With the sheer amount of energy the Cube gave off, it was impossible for him to pin point its exact location, which was why he was carefully scanning the ground. He needed to find the Cube.

"No, I'm not leaving you." Looking up, Harry watched as Bumblebee gently pressed the Cube into Sam's hands. Well, he no longer had to look for it.

Swerving to the side, Ironhide narrowly avoided being hit. Annoyed, he transformed out of his alt mode, his momentum carrying him forward into what would have been a roll if he hadn't used his cannons to fire at the ground. They lifted him high enough to avoid being hit by another shot before he was on his feet, only to dive forward over yet another couple of missiles. He grinned as he saw Jazz transform, jumping onto the tank. Even as Brawl transformed out of his alt mode, Jazz stayed on him, using his small size to his advantage as he kicked off one of the Decepticon's shoulder launchers. Unfortunately for Jazz, Brawl grabbed him by his leg, flinging him into a building.

Ironhide wasn't too worried though. Jazz was already back and launching an attack of his own just moments after he hit the tank with a shot from each of his cannons. Seconds after Jazz hit Brawl, Ratchet flipped over the tank, his saw cutting off one of his arms. Moving closer, Ironhide was going to get a few more shots off when Lennox and his men downed the tank wtih a few well aimed shots. It was rather impressive. He would have to discuss weapons with Lennox later. Before he could give the idea much more thought, Megatron arrived. This was not good.

"It's Megatron. Retreat! Move! Fall back!"

Cursing, Ironhide listened to Ratchet's orders as he fired at the Decepticon leader, giving the humans time to scramble away. Seeing Jazz attack the Megatron, Ironhide snarled. The silver mech was going to get himself killed sooner than later if he kept attacking Decepitcons more than twice his size. Primus, Jazz wasn't even as big as one of Megatron's arms. Shaking his head, Ironhide left Jazz to fend for himself. If the smaller mech survived, Ironhide would make sure Jazz would think twice about doing something so foolish again. Still snarling to himself, Ironhide was just grateful that there weren't any humans about. It had been the right decision to evacuate the area.

Standing completely frozen, Harry almost stopped breathing. Megatron was here and extremely close to where they were. He was snapped out of his frozen state by Mikaela showing up with a tow truck. "Sam, help me with this."

Ignoring that he was ignored, Harry quickly moved to help Mikaela wrap cables and chains around Bumblebee. The sooner it was done, the sooner she could get Bumblebee out of the area. They were nearly half way done when he felt a deranged joy coming from Megatron's Spark. Jumping down, Harry ignored how his ribs protested the move and focused on Megatron. He could feel that deranged joy as well as the intent to destroy the closest Spark to him. He had barely blinked when he identified the Spark as Jazz's.

"No." The word was whispered, but it didn't matter as his magic pulsed through him and he disappeared with a resounding crack, reappearing on Jazz's chest just in time to hear Megatron's voice.

"No! I want two!" Metal groaned beneath him, but the sound didn't last for long as once again Harry felt his magic surge through him and felt the sensation of being squeezed through a small tube before finding himself on the outskirts of Mission City, as far away from the battle as they could get without actually leaving the city. He was still sitting on top of Jazz's chest, the sleek mech looking utterly confused. Instead of pondering how he had aparrated not only himself, but Jazz across the city, Harry quickly slid off the silver mech. They needed to get back to where the others were, as soon as possible.

Hearing the unmistakable sound of apparition, Sirius felt his heart stop. Panic trying to claw its way into his mind, Sirius frantically searched for Harry, only forced to stop by Lennox dragging him forward. Moving on his own, he noticed that Sam and Mikaela were hooking Bumblebee to a tow truck. Harry was no where in sight though. Shaking himself, he forced back his urge to panic and moved to help Mikaela. Panicking wouldn't do him any good. Climbing onto the back of the tow truck, Sirius swiftly moved the cables around, doing as Mikaela asked him to. Once Mikaela and Sam were safe, he would focus on keeping Lennox and Epps alive until everything was over. Only then would he allow himself to panic and worry about Harry. After all, Harry would skin him alive if he allowed either man to die.

"All right, I can't leave my guys back there, so here, take this flare. Okay, there's a tall, white building with statues on top. Go to the roof. Set the flare."

"No." Hearing Sam say no, Sirius grabbed the teen and spun him around so they were face to face.

"You will listen to him. We don't have time to argue. Just because no one is here, it doesn't mean the city is empty. Lennox and his men can't get the Cube to safety and distract the Decepticons at the same time. Do what he tells you." Snarling, Sirius let Sam go to continue helping Mikaela with the last couple of cables.

"Listen, get to the roof and signal the choppers with the flare. We'll hold them off, get going."

Noticing that Lennox was about to waste time arguing with Mikaela, Sirius quickly spoke up. "Lennox, I'll get her out of here as soon as we're done. There's only a few more cables to attach and she'll be gone."

Seemingly satisfied, Lennox turned and began to organize his men. That tank wasn't dead yet and to make things worse, they had another two Decepticons to deal with, and that wasn't including Megatron.

"Sam, we will protect you." Hearing that, Sirius felt better about letting Sam take the Cube. Mikaela wasn't going to be in too much danger as soon as she left, and with the two mechs protecting Sam, he was unlikely to die. That just left him making sure that neither Epps or Lennox died. He was almost positive that Harry would show up if Sam was in serious danger of dying. Whatever had him apparating must have been serious. Harry wouldn't have left Sam and Mikaela otherwise.

"Sam! No matter what happens, I'm really glad I got in that car with you." Staring, Sirius felt the urge to burst into laughter well up in his throat. Even in the middle of an alien robot war, there was still the drama of teenage romance. Thinking about Harry, Sirius couldn't help but shudder. When his godson finally started dating, Sirius knew that there would be one disaster after another, and that wasn't counting the normal drama. He was not looking forward to the day Harry went out on his first day. Knowing his godson's luck, his date would either get kidnapped, or something equally disastrous would happen.

"Sam! Get to the building! Move!" Ironhide couldn't have picked a better time to remind the two love birds of the situation. Sam had barely started moving away when Megatron spoke, ordering the attack. They needed to get that Cube out of the city.

"Decepticons, attack!" Securing the final cable, Sirius nearly lost his balance as the ground shook.

"Black!"

"She's leaving now." Checking the cables one last time to make sure they were secure, Sirus turned to Mikaela just as she was about to get into the cab.

"Get out of here. Find somewhere to hide and stay there." Accepting her quick nod as agreement, Sirius moved towards Lennox, accepting one of the guns he was handed. He may not know anything about them, but he did know he would be able to point and shoot the thing at the robots. If he was lucky, he would actually hit the Decepticon, if not, well there weren't any people in the area that could get hit. Probably why he was even given a gun in the first place. After this was over though, Sirius was definitely going to ask Lennox and Epps to teach him how to shoot and actually hit what he wanted to hit.

With Ratchet covering the rear, keeping a Brawl distracted, Ironhide took point. He hadn't seen Harry, but he would worry about the small teen after they got Sam to the building. At the moment, he could only hope that the teen was still alive. He had to focus if he was going to protect Sam so he could get the Cube out of the city. Seeing Blackout, Ironhide picked up a car with a growl, snarling as he was knocked into a building. Lousy Decepticon scum.

Driving as fast as he could, Optimus felt a small amount of relief as he plowed through a blocked street, heading for where he could faintly sense Megatron. With the general area evacuated, there was a lower chance of the humans getting caught in the middle of their war. As far as he could tell, both Ratchet and Ironhide were near the Cube. If he distracted Megatron, they may just be able to get it out of the city. Turning sharply, his tires squealed a bit as he came to a stop. He was transforming out of his alt mode even before he completely stopped. Their war had gone on long enough, Optimus was ready to end it.

"Megatron!"
"Prime!"

Their greetings exchanged, Megatron wasted no time in transforming and speeding towards him. Taking a few steps forward, Optimus was ready as he got a good grip on one of the Decepticons wings. He barely adjusted his grip in time to prevent himself from falling as Megatron spun, knicking the corner of one building before they crashed through another. Landing on the street, the two leaders rolled as they grappled with each other. Moments later, they came to a stop, and Optimus found himself pinned down, Megatron straddling him, holding his arms down as he leaned over to snarl in his face.

"Humans don't deserve to live."

"They deserve to choose for themselves." Working his left arm free, Optimus grabbed the larger mech's face, shoving him away.

"Then you will die with them!" His arm slapped away, Optimus had no time to react as a clawed hand grabbed his chest and he was flung away. Ignoring the screams of the few humas in the area, he scrambled to his feet.

"Join them in extinction!" Seeing Megatron combining his hands to form one of his favorite weapons, Optimus moved forward, swiftly grabbing the gun that had formed on his back. His shot was true, but Megatron simply stumbled back briefly before firing on his own. Hit dead center in the chest, Optimus found himself flying through the air before colliding with the building. Falling, he landed heavily on his back. His limbs protested with several creaks as he tried to sit up, only to fall flat again. A systems check revealed that a few programs were short circuiting, which meant he was stuck where he was for at least five minutes as everything rebooted. The blow hadn't been meant to kill him, but incapacitate him. If Megatron wasn't so intent on getting the Cube, Optimus was fairly sure that he would already be dead.

"Keep moving, Sam! Don't stop!" Seeing Starscream, Ironhide saw red. Both cannons fully charged, he blasted the slagger full force. He was going to make the scum pay. So focused on Starscream, Ironhide failed to notice Blackout until he was knocked off his feet. Starscream took that moment to transform and escape. His rage leaving him, Ironhide quickly searched for Sam. Seeing him unharmed, he struggled to stand. Ratchet seemed to be having similar trouble as well.

"Sam, get to the building!" That seemed to be all the encouragement the teen needed as he was once more on his feet running as quickly as his legs would carry him. They needed to get the Cube out of there. Once that was done, he could hunt down Starscream and tear the slagger apart and use the pieces for target practice.

Placing the truck in park, Mikaela rested her forehead against the steering wheel. What was she doing? Sam was risking his life trying to get the Cube out of the city and here she was hiding in an alleyway. Taking a deep breath, Mikaela shifted the truck into drive. Turning around, she met Bumblebee's gaze, somehow knowing the mech understood her determination. "I'll drive! You shoot!"

Receiving a nod, she wasted no time in slamming down on the gas, skidding out of the alley way. If she circled around, Bumblebee would have a clear shot at the tank from a direction it wouldn't be expecting. That just may give the edge he would need to take the tank down. Stopping the truck, she turned to look over her shoulder so she could better see where she was going as she threw the vehicle into reverse, slamming her foot down on the gas. "Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!"

He didn't know how it happened, but Sirius found himself taking cover with the others in the pawn shop that Lennox had gotten the radios from. The tank just didn't seem to want to die, no matter how many times they hit or how many parts they managed to knock off. Hell, he had even managed to hit it four out of five times now, a vast improvement from one out of fifteen shots.

"This isn't going well."

"I thought that was obvious by now. I've actually been able to improve my shooting so much that I'm able to actually hit something." The sarcastic comment slipped past his lips before Sirius even thought about it. Wow, he wasn't nearly this sarcastic before. Maybe it was the stress of being caught in the middle of an alien war.

Ducking back behind the thin column of bricks he was using for cover, Sirius muttered curses under his breath. Bloody hell did he wish he had his wand. Maybe then he could kill the bugger with some blasting hexes, or maybe some really powerful magical flames would do the trick. He would almost consider using Fiendfire if it wasn't so hard to control. He wanted to kill the bugger, not destroy the city.

He wasn't able to think about more spells he would use if he had his wand as the tank suddenly staggered sideways. Sticking his head out of the building, he caught a glimpse of Bumblebee moving towards them before he was dragged back inside by Epps. With Bumblebee's arrival, it didn't take long for the tank's head to be blown off. Mikaela didn't stop the tow truck until Bumblebee was right in front of the Decepticon's fallen body.

"Nice shot." Snorting, Sirius shot Mikaela a smirk. He didn't know her, but somehow he got the feeling that she would have done well in either Gryffindor or Slytherin, probably both. That was actually a scary combination, one he had realized fit his godson remarkably well.

"That tank is definitely dead now." Looking down at the head, Sirius gave a feral smile. It was most definitely dead.

"All right, let's go! We got business!"

Still able to feel the various Sparks, as well as the Cube, Harry tried not to panic. Optimus had made it to the city and had fought with Megatron for awhile, then something happened and for the last minute Harry hadn't sensed the Prime's Spark move from where it was. If it wasn't for that fact that he could feel Optimus' Spark, he would have believed the Autobot leader to be dead. Megatron's Spark screamed of anticipation and excitement, which didn't assure Harry at all as he felt him getting closer to the Cube. He was also able to feel a twisted sense of pleasure. Megatron was playing with his prey, allowing Sam to think he had a chance of escaping.

Hopefully, it would prove a mistake for Megatron, just like it had for Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Playing with their victims, that was one reason why he hadn't died sooner. In second year, 'Tom Riddle' had boasted about himself, how he had killed the boy that had defeated him. That had given Fawkes enough time to heal him with his tears. Then, in his fourth year after his resurrection, Voldemort had insisted on dueling with him. If he hadn't done that, he wouldn't have been able to escape from the graveyard that night with Cedric. And last, but not least, the Death Eaters had taunted them in the Department of Mysteries, and then they were upset over the fact that children dared to defy them. It had also led to the destruction of the prophecy, which had been the Death Eaters' main goal for being there. They had failed, and he just knew that the Dark Lord would not be pleased. Harry could only hope that it would be the same with Megatron. The Decepticon would not get the All Spark because he chose to play, giving either Sam the chance to get away or for one of the Autobots the time to interfere.

"Jazz, quickly transform. We need to get to the Cube before Megatron does." Seeming to decide that questions weren't important at the moment, Jazz transformed into the sleek silver Porsche in a whirl of metal and clicks. Diving into the passenger seat, the car was already moving before the door had slammed shut.

Using the All Spark as a homing beacon, Harry quickly directed Jazz through the various streets. Ignoring the police blocks, Jazz plowed right through them. Because he was focused on the Cube, Harry was able to sense it plummeting towards the ground. Realizing that someone had to have the Cube, most likely Sam or Sirius, Harry felt his magic surge towards the surface. Just when he thought he was about to apparate again, his magic slowly faded. Optimus had caught whoever held the Cube, but Megatron was also very close to the two. He couldn't relax just yet.

Once he was able to move again, Optimus was racing towards where Megatron was. He was nearly there when he was forced to ditch past a falling helicopter. "Hang on Sam! I'm coming."

He wasn't sure if the boy could hear him, but it didn't matter. Scaling the side of the building, he made it just in time to catch Sam as he fell. "I got you boy. Hold onto the Cube!"

Holding him close to his chest, his hand protecting the teen from being hurt too badly, Optimus twisted into a fall as his face plates slid into place, almost like a mask. Jumping between the two buildings to control his fall, he made sure that his hold on Sam kept the teen from getting hurt. He was almost half way down when Megatron landed on his back, sending the two spiraling down. Luckily, he landed on his back and managed to avoid crushing Sam between his hand and chest. Megatron had landed only yards away from him. Carefully, he moved his hand away, revealing Sam's curled, but uninjured form.

"Sam?" The teen looked up at him, still holding the Cube to him tightly in one arm.

"You risked your life to protect the Cube."

"No sacrifice, no victory." Staring at Sam, Optimus made his choice. They had failed in getting the Cube out. This war had to end.

"If I cannot defeat Megatron, you must push the Cube into my chest. I will sacrifice myself to destroy it. Get behind me."

With Sam safely off his chest, Optimus pulled himself out of the crater as he turned over, pushing himself to his feet. "It's you and me, Megatron."

"No, it's just me, Prime." Both of them were now on their feet.

"At the end of this day, one shall stand, one shall fall."

"You still fight for the weak! That is why you lose!" Flung into yet another building, Optimus wondered if there was any truth to Megatron's statement. He didn't think fighting for the weak made him lose, but was it a weakness of his own that would cause him to lose this fight? Even with how evil Megatron had become, a part of him didn't want to see the mech dead.

Running, Sirius kept pace with the others, only to come to a skidding halt as a helicopter passed by in front of them, transforming into the same robot that had attacked the base in Qatar.

"Fighter jets in sixty seconds." Glancing at Epps, Sirius began a mental count down. A minute may not seem long, but it was long enough.

"We got friendlies mixed with bad guys. Targets will be marked."

"Hey. Bring the rain. All right?" Staring at Lennox, Sirius cursed. The man was going to do something stupid.

"All right, let's kill these things." Following behind him, Sirius kept muttering curses. The man was most definitely going to do something extremely stupid. If it got him killed, Sirius vowed to find a way to bring him back to life so he could kill the man himself.

"Move, move, move!"

"Remember, aim low. Armor's weak under the chest." Sirius was wondering if he would be able to hit the mech in the arse when he saw Lennox climbing onto an abandoned motorcycle out of the corner of his eye. Damn, and he was accused of being reckless. That must mean Lennox had a death wish of some sort.

They had nearly twenty seconds left when the Decepticon noticed the green laser on it's hand. They no longer had the element of surprise, and now they were sitting ducks. "Move out!"

Scrambling behind some cover, Sirius felt his respect for Lennox increase as he watched the man slide on his back between Blackout's legs, getting off a shot even as a couple of missiles hit the robot right as he was sliding beneath it. Lennox had just gotten clear when it collapsed, dead.

"Run! Move!"

They were almost there when Harry felt Optimus and the Cube right next to each other before Optimus moved away and closer to Megatron. He had been right, Megatron had spent too long playing with his prey and now he was paying the price for it. Urging Jazz to drive even faster, they came to a stop just meters away from where Megatron and Optimus were fighting. They were standing in the middle of an intersection, punching and kicking each other. Weapons had become useless to them at that point. Harry was out of the car and running to Sam in seconds. Taking the Cube from him, he shoved the teenager into a crater before Megatron could squash him beneath his clawed hand. The two leaders were both down now. Optimus because of Megatron, and the Decepticon Leader because the Air Force had finally arrived, missiles slamming into the large mech even as Lennox and Epps, their team, and members of Sector Seven gave cover fire of their own. Sirius was there as well. Optimus was on his back, trying to get up as Megatron crawled towards him.

"I'll kill you!" Like he had never heard that before. Ever since he had started Hogwarts, someone or something had tried to kill him. At least a third to half of them were because of Voldemort.

"Mine! All Spark!" Wow, how articulate. Pondering his sarcastic thoughts, Harry was brought back to the current threat to his life by Optimus' shouting.

"Harry! Put the Cube in my chest! Now! Harry!"

Ignoring Optimus shouting for him to put the Cube into his chest, not to mention the gunfire and explosions, Harry surged forward and shoved it into Megatron's chest, screaming as the energy from combining the Cube and Megatron's Spark surged through him. Even when Megatron fell over dead and the Cube was no longer held in his hands, Harry still felt the energy coursing through him and intertwining with his magic. The sheer amount was enough to threaten his sanity. There was a reason why they said that power corrupted, and it wasn't just morally. Too much power would corrupt a wizard's sanity. One of reason why the Dark Arts were so dangerous. They gave a sense of being even more powerful. With one last hoarse cry, he collapsed to his knees and was only saved from falling flat on his face by large metal fingers carefully catching him. He caught a brief glimpse of Optimus and concerned blue optics and a figure that he thought was Sam before everything went black. It was actually a relief, considering just how the Cube's energy had him feeling as if he was suffering from magical overload. Being unconscious was better than feeling as if he was being burned alive as his magic absorbed the Cube's energy into itself.

Rushing forward, Sirius carefully took his godson into his arms, his body sagging with relief as he noted Harry's steady breathing and strong pulse. When he had heard the unmistakable sound of apparation, Sirius had felt his heart stop. The only thing that had kept him from full out panic was the current threat to his life, which had forced him to deal with the present situation. Once Sam had been sent away with the Cube, Ratchet and Ironhide providing cover for him, he had helped Mikaela to finish hitching Bumblebee to the tow truck so she could get the both of them away from the direct line of fire. Of course, she showed up minutes later with Bumblebee, the yellow mech killing the tank and saving their collective arses.

He had then been too busy worrying about Lennox getting himself killed to think about where Harry was. Not to mention the helicopter that had attacked the base in Qatar. Once he was dead, they moved to provide cover fire for Optimus and for a second time, he felt his heart stop as he caught sight of Harry taking the Cube from Sam and pushing the older teen into the safety of a crater, saving him from being crushed. When he had seen Harry lunge towards Megatron, Sirius had stopped breathing all together as he heard his godson's scream, even with all of the explosions and gunfire going on.

Hugging Harry close, Sirius was roused into moving by Lennox and Epps. Still cuddling his godson close, he found himself seated in the silver Porsche and driving out of the city minutes later, the other Autobots in front of or behind them. It actually looked like Bumblebee was sitting on where a trailer would be hitched on the flame decaled big rig, various sheets and tarps hiding the mech from view. It was also likely that Ironhide was carrying Bumblebee's legs in his bed, also likely covered.

"Bloody hell Pup, are you trying to kill me? What were you thinking, shoving the Cube into Megatron's chest? Were you even thinking? I could lock you away somewhere and you would still manage to find yourself in a dangerous situation. Then again, you would kick my arse if I tried. If I didn't know you Emeralds, I'd swear you were trying to give me a heart attack." Sighing, he slumped in his seat and shook his head. He really shouldn't blame Harry, it wasn't his fault that they ended up involved in an alien robot war.

"Ya do know he can't hear ya, right?" Slightly startled by the voice coming from the speakers, Sirius glared.

"Which is exactly why I'm talking. Harry will be feeling guilty enough over killing Megatron and destroying the Cube when he wakes up. He doesn't need to feel even more guilt knowing how worried I was. I'm venting my worries and frustrations now so I can be there for him when he wakes up. He'll need me to be calm, and I'll bloody hell will be before he wakes up." He may not act his age most of the time, but Sirius had grown up some while he was in Azkaban.

He had become even more mature since his escape and meeting his godson. Harry had taught him rather quickly that he wasn't a normal child and wouldn't be treated as one. It also probably helped that Moony had spoken with him during Harry's fourth year, the werewolf making it clear that Harry was mature for his age in some ways, and completely naive in others. Never had he seen the usually mild man so scary looking. Remus had out right threatened to tear him apart as slowly as possible without actually killing him if he were to somehow hurt Harry. Despite being a werewolf, or maybe because of it, Remus was rarely ever violent. Even when attacked, Remus would usually only defend himself. That more than anything had made Sirius grow up and truly start acting his age. At least, when the situation called for him to.

"Can I help?" Silently considering the offer, Sirius wondered if the silver Autobot could help him calm down faster.

A good shag, destroying a room with liberal use of curses, a bottle of firewhiskey, or taking a long drive on his motorcycle usually had him calm again within a few hours. He had also taken to speaking with Buckbeak to calm himself down, but the Hippogriff wasn't here in this world so that wasn't an option he could even consider. The first three options were out, since he wouldn't ask Jazz to help him find someone for the first, he didn't have his wand or a clue as to where he could find it for the second, and getting piss drunk was an extremely bad idea when he didn't have a hangover cure handy. His last choice was probably the best idea. Feeling the wind in his hair would help to relax him, which he could accomplish by sticking his head out the window while Jazz drove. It was better than pacing and ranting to himself.

"Yeah, you can. Take me for a bit of a drive. I'll ride with my head out the window. It won't be exactly the same as my motorcycle, but the wind in my face should help me relax. Getting drunk wouldn't be the smartest thing to do right now, since I'm not sure how long Pup will sleep. An hour or two with the wind in my hair and the scenery flying by will really help. I just need someone to watch over Harry just in case he wakes up before we get back, someone he would recognize."

"Ironhide. He's been around Harry the longest. Plus, I think he likes the kid."

"Fine. If something happens to Harry though while in his care, I'll turn him into scrap with my bare hands." Eyes like shards of ice, the underlying growl in his words would have even made Snape think twice about pissing him off. And the snarky potions master always looked for a way to aggravate him.

Watching as Ratchet repaired and reattached Bumblebee's legs, Ironhide made sure that his cab was warm, but not too warm to make the teen sleeping in his backseat uncomfortable. He had believed Sirius when the man snarled how he would be turned into scrap if something was to happen to his godson while Jazz took him for a ride so he could calm down. Once the man had been sure that he would protect his godson with his life, Sirius had quietly explained that it would be best if he was calm when Harry woke up. Ironhide had silently agreed with that reasoning. With no more inminent threat to his life, Harry now had a chance to fully process everything that happened in the last few days. Ironhide wasn't sure how the youngling would react, but he had a feeling that it would be rough for the teen he had ran over.

_Ironhide, why did you bring Harry with you?_ Wincing when he heard Optimus' question, Ironhide quickly steeled himself for what was not going to be a pleasant conversation.

=It was like he said. I ran him over, and couldn't just leave him there when he was possibly injured. I figured that Ratchet would be able to scan him for injuries, since the scan that I did only told me he didn't have anything life threatening. I was going to drive him home after we got the glasses.= Optimus seemed to deflate at his words, unwilling to be angry at him when it was clear he had the human's well being in his best interests.

_Be that as it may, I can't help but worry what will happen when he learns just how important the All Spark was to us._ Ironhide stayed quiet for a moment as he carefully pondered his words. He wasn't sure if the knowledge would ease Optimus' guilt, or just make it worse.

=Optimus, when we were driving to Sam's house, Harry asked about the Cube.=

_What!?_

=He asked if the Cube was what gave us life. Primus Optimus, the kid knew that if Megatron got his claws on the Cube, we would be fighting a lost war. When I told him that we wouldn't let him get his slaggin' claws on it, or the other Decepticons get it, he just stared at his lap sadly. He knew that we would destroy the All Spark before we would ever let Megatron use it to create an army!=

_What are you saying Ironhide?_

=Harry knew, he knew what he was doing when he destroyed the Cube. From what I heard Sam telling Mikaela before we left, Harry took the All Spark from him and shoved him out of harm's way. He stopped Sam from destroying the Cube, from being responsible for what will essentially be the extinction of our race. Optimus, he knew what he was doing, the consequences of his actions. He chose to not only destroy the Cube, but to kill Megatron as well.=

_Primus. How could I have allowed the children to become so involved in our war?_

Staring at the Prime, Ironhide revved his engine in slight anger. This wasn't something the mech could blame himself for and be guilty over. =Don't Optimus. Sam had the glasses, and Mikaela was with him when the Decepticon attacked him. Like you said earlier, it was an accident that intertwined our fates. Harry made his choice when he asked about the All Spark. He chose to help us fight our war. Don't you dare blame yourself for involving him in our war. If anyone is to blame for involving him, it should be me. I was the one that ran him over. I was the one that brought him to the alley where he learned about us and our war. I was the one that answered his question about the Cube. If blame is to be laid, then it should be placed on me and no one else.=

_No Ironhide, you are no more at fault than I am._ Content that he had managed to prevent Optimus from blaming himself for the burden that Harry now bore from destroying the Cube, Ironhide searched for a change of topic, only for Bumblebee to provide it.

"Is it possible for a human to sense Sparks?" Staring at Bumblebee, Ironhide was suddenly very glad that his cab was essentially soundproof as both Ratchet and Optimus spoke rather loudly.

"What!?!"

"Is it possible for a human to sense Sparks? When we were driving to Mission City, Harry told me to go faster because, in his words, 'Megatron's no longer a Popsicle.' When Sam asked how he knew, he said that he was able to feel our Sparks. He knew that you and the others were coming before you came into visual range Optimus. Is it possible that he can sense our Sparks?"

"I don't know." The admission from Optimus was a bit surprising. It often seemed as if he knew the answer to everything, or at least had a theory. For him to not know something was rare.

"Hmm, maybe his contact with the All Spark made it possible. We do not know how its energy would effect humans." Ratchet's theory seemed valid, but Ironhide quickly discarded it as he remembered the original scan he had done when he had first met the teen.

"No, I don't think it was because he had contact with the All Spark. Sam, and the humans that worked near it, should have been effected as well. At least, Sam should have because he also held it, and for a longer amount of time than Harry. Ratchet, do a scan to check his vitals."

"Why?"

"Just to confirm a theory, and to see if the scan I had performed hadn't been performed incorrectly." As far as Ironhide was concerned, there were only two possibilities. The scan he had performed had a glitch which caused it to present false information, or Harry had a Spark. And judging by Ratchet's wide optics, it was the latter.

"This can't be right. Ironhide, don't move." Doing as he was told, even though he hadn't been moving to begin with, Ironhide waited for Ratchet to run his scans before speaking.

"Ratchet, does he have a Spark?"

"My scans of his vitals says he does, but how? I don't understand, he is clearly human, but he has a Spark. And it isn't that of a newly onlined Sparkling. The Spark is at least as old as he is. A Sparkling in every sense of the word, but he's almost a human adult. I can't explain it, and every scan I've performed to check his vitals show that he has a Spark."

"If he has a Spark, is that how he is able to sense our Sparks?"

"It's possible Bumblebee. But it is still odd. The ability to feel Sparks without any sort of scanning or sensory program only occurs between a Sparkling and their caregivers, siblings, and Sparkmates. Primes are able to sense the Sparks of others to a certain degree, but not in the same way as those three. I don't think I've ever heard of a mech that wasn't a Prime capable of feeling the Sparks of others that weren't one of those three, not in the way that Harry seems able to. Then again, maybe Harry can sense our Sparks for an entirely different reason than because he has a Spark of his own. We won't know until Harry wakes up and we can question him."

"Which he won't be doing for a while Optimus. His body is recovering from a large shock to his system. It may be because of the energy from the Cube when he combined it with Megatron's Spark. It is possible that his body has shut down to keep itself from being fried while it recovers from the sudden surge of energy. It very well may be several days before he wakes. If he doesn't wake within two days, it would be in his best interest to have him hooked up to an IV and possibly placed in a hospital just in case he takes a turn for the worse."

Staring at Ratchet, Ironhide carefully pondered the teen that was currently sleeping within his cab. "The questions can wait Optimus. It has been quite an ordeal, we should let the youngling rest and recover. We also need to start making preparations of our own. Starscream is still out there, and once he gathers some Decepticons, he'll be back and the slagger will undoubtedly target Harry because he destroyed both the Cube and Megatron. We will need a base, especially if we are to make this world our home."

"You are right Ironhide. We will need a base, and a message will need to be sent out to the others. Until we have made progress in establishing a base, and a message has been sent, our questions for young Harry will have to wait."

After Mission City

The questions were going to wait for a long time. When Jazz returned with Sirius, he brought Keller with him, as well as an injured Frenzy restrained in duct tape and what appeared to be chains. Ratchet saw to it that Frenzy lived while Keller asked Optimus for help in moving the Decepticons onto trucks to be transported to a ship that would take them out to be entombed in the deepest trench in the ocean. With Sirius back, Ironhide was free to help him, Jazz, and the newly repaired Bumblebee to move the various mechs onto the waiting trucks in a matter of hours. Ratchet was the left behind to work on Frenzy as well as to watch over Sirius and Harry as they waited in the warehouse they had taken refuge in.

As Keller took care of transporting the Decepticons' remains, the Autobots found themselves settling into an old military base that was currently being used to store old, unused, or broken equipment until it could properly be disposed of. Now it would be converted into the Autobots new base of operations. During that time, Ironhide found himself driving Lennox home, having promised both Sirius and Harry to see the man home safely to his wife and daughter. Bumblebee returned to Tranquility to guard over Sam, as well as Mikaela to a lesser extent. The two teens had been involved and as long as Starscream still lived, they were in danger. Maybe not the same amount of danger as Harry, but still in danger. As for the green-eyed teenager himself, he as well as Sirius, lived on the base with them.

It had been decided that it would be safer for the two to stay. Sirius hadn't objected, and once he had woken after nearly three days of sleeping, Harry hadn't seemed to mind either. With Frenzy alive, the idea for the two humans to stay had nearly been scrapped until Ratchet had stated that the small Decepticon was in a self-induced stasis lock as his system went about ridding itself of the numerous viruses it had acquired while he had roamed the Internet. That combined with the fact that the small Decepticon was secured in a reinforced room had been the deciding factor that it would be safe enough for Sirius and Harry to remain with the Autobots on the base.

"Gentlemen, the President has ordered Sector Seven be terminated and the remains of the dead aliens disposed of. The Laurentian Abyss is seven miles below sea level, deepest place on our planet. The massive depth and pressure there, coupled with subfreezing temperatures, would crush and entomb them, leaving no evidence." His speech given, Keller couldn't wait to get home. He may not be able to take a vacation, but he was going to relax and spend time with his family for a couple of days. After the last seven plus days, he needed it.

It had nearly been little more than a week since Mission City when the Autobots found themselves in Tranquility once again. Ratchet was there to check up on Bumblebee, Jazz had come to help boost Optimus' signal, and Ironhide was taking Sirius and Harry to pick up much needed supplies for the two humans. While Ironhide took Sirius and Harry shopping for supplies, Optimus was finally able to send out a message that would hopefully reach all surviving Autobots that were out there.

+With the All Spark gone, we cannot return life to our planet. And fate has yielded its reward, a new world to call home. We live among its people now, hiding in plain sight, but watching over them in secret, waiting, protecting. I have witnessed their capacity for courage. And though we are worlds apart, like us, there's more to them than meets the eye. I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars. We are here. We are waiting.+

A/N: It's finished! :) Well, that's the last chapter of Barbequed 'Gators. And it's my second completed work of fiction, if I discount the one-shots, since it would be the fourth if I counted those. I would have had this posted yesterday morning, but I got a surprise visit from my grandfather. It was nice seeing him again, especially since he lives across the country at the moment. Anyway, when I tried to post this later in the evening, I wasn't able to upload the document, and I tried until about three in the morning of today before I crashed.
A quick note about the sequel. It is in the works, and I actually have sketched out a lot of ideas and a few scenes, but I'll still need time to connect everything and flesh it out. So, it will be a while before the sequel is up, and it will be following the general plot of the second movie, but I will put enough twists of my own on it that it will seem extremely different from the movie. I'll make sure that the wait for the sequel is worth it. With just the ideas that I have, as well as a few scenes I've sketched the bare bones of, I can say with confidence that the sequel will at the very least be double the length of this fic. And that isn't including the idea of having a seperate fic that will be a mini series about different events that happen during the two year gap, since the sequel will start two years after Mission City when Sam, and possibly Harry, go off to college. But, that mini series will probably come after the sequel and better explain any flashbacks that I'll have in the sequel.
Also, quick note about the ending. I know it feels a little rushed, but I spent a good amount of time trying different scenes, but the original one I had just fit the best, even if I tweaked it a little bit. Just so you'll have an idea of what I mean, I'll be posting the original version of Barbequed 'Gators. This was the complete story I had considered posting before I decided to add some scenes and rework a few others. You can call it the bare bones version, and it really is, especially the last two chapters. I'll be posting it as Barbequed 'Gators, The First Cut. I'm rather curious to see what you, the readers, think of it.
Anyway, I'd like to thank all of my readers and reviewers, especially if you stuck with it until the end. As always, reviews are very much appreciated, they always make me smile. Cookies to all of my readers, and reviewers get brownies too.