7. Pretender

It was later in the week that preparations were being made. The ground bridge could be remade, but the supplies needed were running low. They were ready to move to an unknown location. Where they would sleep, no one was sure. They weren't exactly outdoors experts, but they knew it would be only two hours before they had a plan.

Optimus came into the hanger with the equipment from one of the nearby bins. He scanned the room to take in the action inside. Ratchet and Bulkhead were trying to repair the ground bridge the best they could. Hope, Bruce, and Bucky were going over the plan on what needed to go through first. Cliffjumper and Arcee were rearranging the load they planned to haul through the vortex when the time came. Loki and the transtechs were sitting idly by on the couch with Bumblebee watching over them.

Optimus approached Ratchet and set down his load. "Where are the other children?"

"Inside the house," Ratchet answered. "Hopefully, they will be ready to make a big move. I know that the rest of us are not."

Opitimus nodded. "Have we yet discovered Peter's location?"

"Not likely," Ratchet said. "But the Nemesis still lacks access against the shield's defense. Thank Primus that they hadn't found any weak spots against it."

A hacking sound echoed through the room. Everyone looked up to find Bruce coughing dramatically while holding a Styrofoam cup. "What is this crap?" he rasped. "Are you trying to poison me, Barnes?"

"That's coffee," Bucky pointed out. "A mix of my own blend."

"It tastes like a monkey's butt stuffed in a blender with worms and bananas," Hope said.

"Hey, now. Back when I was your age—"

"Ack! I'm not listening!" The young woman covered her ears and sang off key to block it out.

"I'd rather hear that than Cliffjumper's engine," Loki grumbled.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree," Brains said.

Cliffjumper yelped, "Ah! And I was starting to like you, man!"

"Um, Cliff? I think that maybe you're overreacting," Bulkhead voiced his concerns.

"I am reacting at a reasonable rate!" Cliffjumper protested. "There is no such thing as overreacting. He just called me an obnoxious engine!"

"You done crying, my dear?" Arcee teased.

"At least I remembered the day Jack was brought into this world at a young age," Cliffjumper spat at her.

"One time I did!" Arcee retorted. "And besides, respect the mothers. They're the ones who brought the children into the world. They can take you men out."

"What have I gotten myself into?" Hope muttered to herself.

The monitors nearby started to beep. Ratchet groaned as he got up to his feet. He went over to see what the systems had picked up.

"What is it?" Optimus inquired, walking up behind him.

"We're receiving a signal on a restricted band," Ratchet spoke. "It appears to be coming from a starship inside the solar system."

"Is it the Decepticons?" Wheelie asked, worried.

"Oh, no," Ratchet waved it off. "I certainly don't think they would want to contact us with this kind of programming." He tapped at the keyboard and froze.

"What's up?" Cliffjumper wondered.

"It's an Autobot identification beacon," Ratchet revealed.

"There's more of you?" Hope asked.

"You think we're the only ones?" Brains was baffled. "Well, now I'm insulted."

Loki cackled.

"The masses scattered in the galaxies during the Great Exodus," Arcee explained. "This was when Cybertron went dark. But the Cons have been known to bait traps with fake beacons."

"Okay. How do we know this one isn't?" Bruce drawled out.

"There is only one way to know," Optimus said. He pressed a button and spoke, "Unknown vessel. This is team Omega One. Identify yourself."

There was a crackle of static.

"I've had warmer welcomes from Decepticon brigades," a male voice drawled.

"Wheeljack?" Bulkhead exclaimed incredibly. "You ol' Con crusher! What are you doing all the way out here?"

"Bulkhead? Is that you? What's with the security around this old dirtball and the multiple signals?"

"This place is near crawling with Cons," Bulkhead told him. "How soon can you get here to even the odds?"

"Sometime tomorrow, if I can put the metal to the pedal," Wheeljack smugly replied.

"Wheeljack," Optimus hummed. "I have known him only by his reputation. Can you verify his voice print?"

"He is one hundred percent the real deal," Bulkhead nodded.

"Very well then. We will be sending you landing coordinates, Wheeljack," Optimus said. "Safe journey."

"See ya soon, buddy!" Bulkhead called. "I'll make sure you get a proper welcome!"

And the communication link went off.

"You seem pretty excited," Hope pointed out.

"Yeah, who's the boyfriend?" Arcee teased.

"Me and Jackie go way back," Bulkhead gave a low laugh. "We were part of the same war unit — the Wreckers. Which means the Cons are gonna wish they never found us."

Bucky sat up suddenly, alert and afraid. "Um, Prime?"

"Yes?"

"How secure was that transmission?"

Megatron was grinning as he listened to Soundwave play back the transmission between the Wrecker and the Autobots. Now this was something he could use to an advantage. Before he wasted away the resources he had, he wanted to track them through the network of both human and Cybertronian origin. This was all he needed.

"Soundwave," he barked. "Call Starscream and have him dispatch a unit to locate the Wrecker and alert Makeshift at once."

Soundwave nodded and Megatron watched as his screen lit up. He turned away and strolled out of the room. He grinned as if victory was his at last. He couldn't wait to see the look on his rival's face when he attacked them. What was that saying Optimus loved to say in battle?

"One shall stand, one shall fall."

"Today, Optimus, I will be the one to stand while you fall," Megatron laughed to himself. It was only a matter of time.

"Jack! It's like seven in the morning. Can we kill him now?" Adam yelled from his room.

"I'm thinking about it," Jack groaned.

He threw the covers off of him. He swore the former Wrecker had to have been active all night inside the larger building outside. The green Autobot had to have been super hyped up about seeing Wheeljack after all those years. Ratchet had threatened to lock him up in vehicle mode to prevent him from keeping them up the entire night. He still kept them up half of the night from bouncing off the walls.

Literally, I think.

"You think he's here to visit?" Raf asked.

Hope dished up breakfast for him, using the eggs they had to take from the hens. "Only one way to find out."

"Maybe he'll stay," Miko chirped.

After they ate and the dishes were done, they set out to finish their work. Jack went into the shed to get as much of the seeds and equipment as he could. As he did, he noticed something gleaming in a corner. Looking up, he set a bag down and headed toward the corner. He moved the stuff surrounding it out of the way and his breath hitched in his throat.

Picking it up, he realized it was his mother's first helmet. She had worn it when she started her career as Binary. Running a hand over its smooth surface, he wondered what it was like. The first battle, the first time working with a team, and the events that led to the Avengers Civil War. He tucked it underneath his arm as he dumped the goods into a wagon and dragged it to the hanger.

"Wheeljack's ship is approaching the landing zone," Arcee announced.

Ratchet started up the ground bridge so they could get said Wrecker.

"Ground bridge cycling up," he said proudly. Then it began to spit out sparks. Ratchet snarled and pounded a fist into the controls. "Blasted chompazoid! Equipment hasn't been the same since he wrecked havoc on this place."

"You should have gotten insurance for it," Adam stated.

"So, Wheeljack's going to land on the moon, and then you'll bridge him here?" Jack asked.

"I do not wish to do so, but we cannot risk revealing our location," Optimus told him. "Just in case the Decepticons are tracking Wheeljack's ship and our location."

"Dude, I've never seen you so stoked before," Miko said as Bulkhead paced around.

"Oh, you're gonna love Wheeljack," Bulkhead giggled. "We were like brothers, and tonight we're gonna party!"

"Sweet!" Miko cheered.

"Not around the animals," Ratchet said. He frowned at the screen. "That's odd."

"What?" Cliffjumper looked up. "Something funny with the screen?"

"No, but I'm detecting more than one signature at Wheeljack's location," Ratchet informed.

"Con scum!" Bulkhead snarled.

"Autobots, roll out!" Optimus ordered.

Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee zipped through the vortex, leaving the rest of them behind.

"Why do the Cons ruin everything?" Wheelie whined.

"I don't know, but it's getting old," Cliffjumper deadpanned.

"How did you survive with them?" Adam asked Jack.

Jack just shrugged. "I've been living with them since I was practically a little kid. They've been like family to me. So, I was pretty much used to it by now."

"But not her," Adam gestured to Miko.

"She's kinda different."

Bulkhead and the others ran in right as the ground bridge gave a sinister sounding snap and closed. The boys craned their necks to look at the newcomer. One word popped into their minds: samurai. Sword handles were resting on his back. He was white with red and green decals. His black helmet had two rectangular horns on the side.

"So, this is the infamous Wheeljack," Adam said. "Fascinating."

"Jackie, meet my other buddy Miko! She can wreck with the best of us!" Bulkhead introduced his human friend.

"Hiya," Miko waved.

"You keeping Bulkhead out of trouble?" Wheeljack asked.

"I try," Miko sighed with a grin. "But trouble always finds us."

"Wheeljack, I welcome you to our family," Optimus greeted. "What have you to report from your long journey here?"

"Been bouncing from rock to rock, searching for sign of friend or foe," Wheeljack replied. "Now, I find both."

"We are few but strong," Optimus responded. "We have suffered losses, but we have grown. And we will relish welcoming a new member into our fold."

"I would be honored," Wheeljack accepted the offer.

"Then let's get this party started!" Bulkhead crowed, slapping Wheeljack on the shoulder. Wheeljack pitched forwards before turning around and chest bumping his team mate.

"Oh, joy," Ratchet grumbled.

"The moment Makeshift passed through their ground bridge, we lost his tracking signal."

Logan stiffened as he recognized the voice. For the last few weeks he had been prowling the halls for a way to escape the ship. So far, there was nothing for him to accomplish that plan with the Decepticons at every corner. However, there were still numerous ways to get back to Earth without getting caught.

"The shields are no doubt heavily concealing the Autobots' location," the air commander concluded.

Logan slowly backed into the shadows. Heavy footsteps found him feeling the floor vibrate from underneath them as the Decepticon warlord and his second-in-command trekked down the hall, Soundwave in tow.

"No matter," Megatron replied. "I have complete faith over Makeshift. He wasn't called that for any other reason."

The former X-Men member quietly followed them towards what was believed to be the brig. The doors opened up to reveal another Cybertronian shackled from the ceiling.

"Well, Wheeljack," Megatron sneered. "What brings you here to these parts after all these years?"

"You guys can go slag yourselves if you think Bulkhead can't sniff out an impostor," the Autobot spat out.

"Ever so valiant as always," Megatron praised mockingly. "It would never matter either way, Wheeljack. Still, I think you will be of use besides our human prisoners. Besides, Makeshift is very good at keeping up with appearances. He needs only to fool your Wrecker friend long enough to find the shields' activation site and shut them down so I can enter Earth's atmosphere and send my battalion upon them to stain the very earth itself with Optimus' energon."

Miko's music rocked the atmosphere. They had yet to finish packing up. All that was left was loading the animals into the trailer.

"We're going to have to make a few trips for them," Hope said. She gestured at the pastures, where the cows were grazing peacefully. Her eyes never left the tablet in her hand. "Even if Optimus' trailer is big enough to fit the entire livestock, we need to avoid risk of overcrowding them."

Jack shooed the last of the chickens in the pen before closing it. "I agree," he said. "I don't want to leave all of them behind anyways."

"No, because we all know how much you love your chickens," Hope smirked.

"C'mon, Jackie," they heard Bulkhead taunt. "Show me what you got!"

They looked at each other before heading back into the barn. A big blur of metal streaked across the room and slammed int Bulkhead.

"Ha ha! Nice lob!" Bulkhead chuckled, hurling the metallic ball towards Wheeljack.

"What the heck are they doing?" Bucky asked.

"It's called lobbing," Brains explained. "The favorite pastime on Cybertron. Especially among the warrior class."

"Come on, Raf!" Miko yelled over the game. "Show us some moves."

"Ooh, I brought a CD that has some dance songs," Adam realized. "I just need to find a stereo."

Jack chuckled to reply. He felt a finger tap on his shoulder. He looked up to find Loki behind him.

"Where's Optimus?" he asked.

Jack looked around. There wasn't a sign of the Autobot leader anywhere. "Um, Arcee? Where did Optimus go to?"

"For a drive," Arcee shrugged. "Primes don't party."

Jack looked up at her. "Why?"

Arcee stiffened.

"My name is Sue! How do you do?! Now you're gonna die!" Optimus hiccuped. He looked down from the barn's rooftop and smiled drunkenly at the infuriated medic below him. "Hiya, Ratchet!"

"Optimus Prime! You get your intoxicated aft down from there right now, or so help me I'll come up there and get you down myself. And this. Won't. Be. Pretty! Do you hear me? DO YOU HEAR ME?!" Ratchet shouted as he heard the others cackling.

"Good question," Arcee replied.

"Coming on you!" Bulkhead announced, throwing the ball again.

Jack watched and realized Bulkhead's trajectory was off. The ball skimmed past Wheeljack's fingertips. Bruce had to grab the other kids and yank them away as it went sailing over them, slamming into the walls and onto the controls, causing them to spark violently.

"So, that's where all the stupid went," Bucky mused.

"You know, I am attempting to perform sensitive calibrations here!" Ratchet snapped.

"Sorry, Doc," Bulkheqad apologized. "Guess we were a little charged up."

"A little too charged up," Arcee snorted.

"You built this out of scratch, huh?" Wheeljack asked in mild interest.

"I did," Ratchet replied.

"That's quite a feat of engineering," Wheeljack nodded.

"Yes, it is," Ratchet harrumphed.

"Something wrong with it?"

"I didn't care for the way it sounded at the last jump, so I put it in shut down."

"Puts it to good use," Cliffjumper nodded.

"Won't be for long," Ratchet said. "We'll be relocating soon enough, so it'll have to go with everything else."

A frustrated look crossed Wheeljack's face before it morphed into confusion. "What do you mean relocating?"

"We're moving," Cliffjumper answered. "This place ain't safe for all of us. Which is why we need to have someone stay behind to make sure we get there in one piece.

"What if you need to use it?"

"Oh, the doc can't disrupt the process without causing irreparable damage."

"How long will that take?"

Ratchet glared at him. "Why are you so interested in this?" he questioned.

That caught Jack's attention as he eavesdropped on them.

"What? Since when is it a crime?"

Ratchet stared at him, studied him. He turned back to the structure and continued, "A few hours, if I get lucky enough. We would have Loki do us the honors, but I don't trust him enough to even get us to our destination. And he'll need time to rebuild all of that energy."

"So uh, how long would that take?" Wheeljack asked.

Jack tugged at his jacket nervously. He didn't know why, but something about this conversation didn't seem right.

"Hard to tell with him," Ratchet muttered.

"Huh," Wheeljack humphed, walking away.

Jack watched his every movement. Something wasn't right, and he was determined to find out what it was. He focused his attention on the small crowd that gathered around Bulkhead, who was telling them one of his stories from his days as a Wrecker.

"So, there we were — no communications, low on energon, and surrounded by the Cons. So, what does Wheeljack do?" Bulkhead grinned at his buddy.

"What I do best," Wheeljack gave a soft laugh.

"What's that?" Adam asked.

"He chucks his only grenade, straight into the primary heat exchanger," Bulkhead continued.

"Yeah," Wheeljack added. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"The place went supernova!" Bulkhead finished, spreading his arms out.

"Awesome!" Miko breathed.

"Yeah, and I'm still picking out shrapnel," Bulkhead said.

"Wouldn't find it that surprising," Bucky snorted.

Bulkhead leaned down and pointed at Wheeljack's waist. "There it is — Jackie's signature. One grenade, one shot." He gave Wheeljack his biggest grin yet. The green giant frowned and waved his hand in front of Wheeljack's face. "Hey, you all right?"

"Huh?" Wheeljack looked up.

"You don't seem like yourself," Bulkhead said.

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno. You're just kinda quiet."

"Ah, I just had too much on my mind," Wheeljack dismissed. "I should go topside before I go stir crazy."

"And break up the party?" Bulkhead asked, offended. "Come on. The gang's loving you! You gotta tell 'em about the Battle of Darkmount Pass."

"Why don't you tell them?" Wheeljack offered. "You're better at it. How about one of your friends here show me around?"

Jack tensed. That did not sound right.

"I'll do it!" Miko volunteered. "Do you play any instruments? Can you fly? Have you thrashed more Decepticons than Bulkhead?" When her voice barely became audible, Jack looked up to Bulkhead.

"Um, Bulkhead? We should probably check to see if any of the livestock have gotten out. I thought I heard something."

"Huh? Oh, sure." Bulkhead stood up and followed Jack outside. The latter could hear Hope speak until it sounded like they couldn't hear her.

"Okay, what's the deal?"

Jack nearly stumbled. "What do you mean?"

"Jack, come on. I know you long enough to know that when you ask someone to help, there's something on your mind," Bulkhead said. "Is something wrong?"

Jack fidgeted in his spot. He hated it when the Autobots were right on knowing him well.

"Bulkhead, I don't know what it is about him. But there's something about Wheeljack that just makes me feel unsure about him," Jack admitted.

"You too, huh?"

Jack glared at him. "What?"

"I don't know what it is either, but there's something about him that just doesn't seem right either," Bulkhead stated.

"Right about what?"

Bulkhead and Jack turned around. Arcee and Cliffjumper were coming up to them.

"Hey, nice to see you two," Jack sheepishly pointed out.

"Right," Cliffjumper said. "You two okay?"

Arcee frowned. "What did you boys do?"

"Nothing!" Jack nearly shouted. "We were just talking about Wheeljack, that's all."

"Don't tell me you're jealous that he's getting attention," Cliffjumper smirked.

Bulkhead snorted. "Give me a break, Cliff. I'm actually happy that he's making friends. Something's just not right."

"Really?" Arcee asked. "He's traveled galaxies; you haven't seen him in centuries. He could just be rocket lagged or something. People change over time, you know."

"Not Jackie," Bulkhead growled through gritted teeth.

The real Wheeljack was struggling to break free from his restrains. Annoyed, the guard stormed up to him and aimed his blaster at him. "Do not think you're going anywhere, Autobot scum — Hrrk!"

Wheeljack blinked. He watched as the guard dropped the floor, a small figure bent over on the back. He wrenched his claws free from the metal carcass before retracting them.

"You're welcome," Logan deadpanned.

"Um, thanks. Now, any chance you can get me out of these?"

Logan huffed. He looked around, hoping to find the controls to free him. He found the panel up above. Quickly thinking, he marched forward and slammed his claws again into the sides. Wheeljack found himself free from the chains at last.

"Oof, you don't talk much."

"After getting stuck in places like this for a long time, why would I?" Logan responded.

Wheeljack nodded, understanding. He went over to the guard to gather his belongings. "I'll be taking them."

"Great," Logan said. "Now, let's get out of here before they realize we're gone."

"Look, I know Wheeljack a lot better than anyone here," Bulkhead argued as they walked back to the hanger. Cliffjumper held up his hands in surrender.

"Fine, fine. Say what thou wilt, but thou shalt not throw thy wrath onto me," Cliffjumper joked.

"You think I'm that paranoid?" Bulkhead growled.

"Hey, there," Wheeljack greeted as he and Miko walked in. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Um, you two," Jack replied quickly.

"Yeah, the good old days," Bulkhead nodded. Then an idea popped into his head. "You know, like the Battle of Darkmount Pass?"

"That is a heck of a story," Wheeljack agreed. He didn't regard to Bulkhead narrowing his optics.

"Yep. So, why don't you be our guest and tell it?"

"Blah, blah, blah," Miko groaned. "How about after we go off-roading?"

"Miko, stay out of it," Jack snarled.

"Jack," Hope warned.

"I'm not sure—" Bruce started.

"BANNER!"

The Avenger was taken back by Bulkhead's sudden roar. Then the green Wrecker turned to his friend. "Well, you gonna tell it or not?"

"Okay, okay," Wheeljack growled. "All you had to do was ask nicely."

"Get ready," Jack whispered to Raf.

"To do what?"

"Trust me. I know what I'm doing."

"The Wreckers were trapped between the Decepticon patrol and the smelting pit," the face began the tale. "The Cons were vicious, bearing down on us with everything they had. Me and Bulkhead engaged the enemy, leaving them for scrap. Then I made us a way out by using their backsides as stepping stones across the molten metal. Right, Bulk?"

"Yeah," Bulkhead sighed. "That's exactly how it happened."

Jack was disappointed. A wave of shame washed over him.

"Except for one tiny little thing," Bulkhead stated with narrowed optics. "I wasn't there!"

Everyone glared at the two Wreckers. Or one, if this Wheeljack was fake.

"Wheeljack knew that I joined Optimus' crew at the time," Bulkhead explained. "But you wouldn't have known that if all you did was access Jackie's public service record."

"Um, Bulk?" Miko asked. "What does that have to do with — Ah!"

Bucky had rushed forward and pushed Miko to the side. Wheeljack, if it really was him, ended up grabbing him and lifting him up in the air.

"James!" Bruce cried.

"Stay back, or I'll squeeze him to a pulp," the fake snarled.

A low snarl ripped through Jack's throat. He didn't move, even though he wanted to. He was just glad that he didn't have Miko, even though Bucky was part of his family. He had sworn to himself that he would care for Miko until they were old enough to look out for themselves.

"Wheeljack! What are you doing?" Miko shrieked.

"Decepticon coward," Bulkhead growled. "Let him go and face me!"

"Don't fret," Makeshift chuckled in his real voice. "There will plenty of fighting to come soon." He pulled one of the swords from his back and glared at Ratchet. "Now, open the bridge or your friend gets it."

"Is there a real Wheeljack?" Adam demanded.

"Probably where the Cons are," Jack growled.

"Oh, indeed. And I'm pretty sure Lord Megatron is making sport of him right now," Makeshift sneered.

"Are you certain that these are the coordinates supplied to Makeshift?" Megatron glared down at the seeker before.

"Yes," Starscream confirmed nervously. "I'm positive that we're there."

"Then what is taking him so long?" Megatron hissed.

"Why don't you go ask him when you join him in hell?"

Megatron and Starscream looked up. Wheeljack was walking towards them, his swords ready to be stained with Decepticon energon. However, what shocked them the most was the Wolverine standing in front of him, supplied with a mask.

"What? How did you manage to escape?" Megatron shouted.

"The same way you're gonna go," Logan said.

"Do you not see that you are vastly outnumbered?" Starscream said.

"All I see are a bunch of fellas who might vastly enjoy watching me pound some dents into you," Wheeljack brushed off the seeker's threat.

"Destroy them both!" Megatron commanded.

Wheeljack and Logan stood their ground, blocking and dodging attacks while counterattacking their own. Logan noticed a swirling arch of color appearing. Looking between them he make a break for it.

The console beeped, signaling the ground bridge was ready.

"About time," Makeshift snarled, pulling the lever. He started backing towards the tunnel, daring them to attack.

"Hey! At least let me go!" Bucky shouted.

Logan had landed on the other side of the portal and into an old building. He could hear various noises going on. Looking up, he saw what looked like Wheeljack backing up with a familiar figure in his grasp.

"Let's get this party started," he chuckled.

Not today. Logan quietly let his claws slip from between his knuckles once more. Once the clone was close enough, he swung his arm and sliced the exposed wires he saw. The clone gave out a cry and nearly lost his grip on the man. He turned around to see the mutant glaring up at him.

"Logan?" Hope squawked in surprise.

The surprise left them unaware of a second. Wheeljack leaped through bridge and slammed into the Con, knocking Bucky out of his grip and into Bulkhead's awaiting hands.

"I'd shut that hole before the stink comes through," Wheeljack said nonchalantly.

Ratchet nodded and cut the bridge off. The white Wrecker's optics grew cold as the duplicate stood up.

"You," Wheeljack snarled. "I hope you've prayed to Primus today, because you're gonna be meeting him soon."

"I was going to say the same about you," Makeshift taunted.

The two identical mechs circles around each other like cats, swords raised and optics closed in on their target. Bulkhead slammed his fists together as the Decepticon passed him. Wheeljack stopped him with a tap of his blade.

"Ugly's mine," he growled.

And then they jumped at each other, twirling their blades in a storm.

"Which one's the real Wheeljack?" Raf asked.

Miko's eyes flickered between the two fighters. "I lost track!"

"That one," Loki pointed to the real one.

Wheeljack disarmed the guy and kneed him in the helm, knocking him flat as he placed his blade on his throat.

"That's my Jackie," Bulkhead preened.

"You," Wheeljack pointed to Ratchet. "Hit the switch so we can take the trash out."

Ratchet responded with a nod. He quickly typed in the command and allowed another ground bridge to appear. Both Bulkhead and Wheeljack grabbed hold of the imposter and dragged him to the vortex. Bulkhead swung and hurled him through before it closed.

"Nice lob," Wheeljack smirked.

The next morning, they all had a little party to celebrate Logan's and Wheeljack's return. Optimus watched as the children had some fun dancing to a song from the music playing from Adam's laptop. Bumblebee had gotten Cliffjumper to join him, and the two turned out to be pretty good at it.

"It's like a recurring nightmare," Ratchet bemoaned from the ground bridge controls.

"Welcome back," Bruce said to Logan.

"I've been in too many clubs enough to be invited," Logan brushed off. "I just don't understand why that punk's here himself."

"It's a long story," Bruce sighed.

"Now that you're a part of Team Prime, we need to pick out a vehicle mode for you. I have some ideas," Bulkhead said to his friend.

Wheeljack sighed. "Yep, since the Cons managed to help themselves to everything."

"How long do we have to wait for everyone to find it funny before we tell him the truth?" Wheelie whispered to Brains, holding up a bunch of cable wires.

"I think we'll know when we get there," Brains said.

"Wheeljack, know that you'll always have a haven here on Earth," Optimus said.

"Jackie never usually stays, but he always comes back," Bulkhead grinned.

"Okay, guys," Miko spoke, whipping out her phone. "Say cheese!"

The camera flash blinded them all. But at least Miko had something to remember this moment by.