Chapter 1- Before, Began, Begone

Before time began, there was the Cube. . .

We know not where it comes from,

only that it holds the power

to create worlds and fill them with life.

That is how our race was born.

For a time, we lived in harmony,

but like all great power,

some wanted it for good, others for evil.

And so began the war,

a war that ravaged our planet

until it was consumed by death,

and the Cube was lost

to the far reaches of space.

We scattered across the galaxy,

hoping to find it and rebuild our home,

searching every star, every world.

And just when all hope seemed lost,

message of a new discovery drew us

to an unknown planet called Earth.

But we were already too late. . . .

A pair of Osprey military helicopters flew high over the hot desert sand in Qatar. One carried a seven-man special ops team.

"Oh, man, after five months of this," one of the men, Figuero, or fondly called Fig, said, "I can't wait to get a little taste of home. A plate of mama's alligators étouffée." He scrunched up his face at the thought of his mama's home cooking, "Mmm'hmm."

Will Lennox, the captain of the team, looked over at Fig in disgust as he chewed his gum.

"You've been talking about barbecued 'gators and crickets for the last two weeks," Robert Epps told Fig, pointing at him warningly, "I'm never going to your mama's house, Fig. I promise."

"But Bobby, Bobby," Fig protested. "'Gators are known to have the most succulent meat," he said before he started rattling off in Spanish.

"I understand," Epps said rolling his eyes as Figuero was talking rapidly. Epps mumbled some nonsense that sounded like Spanish before rolling his eyes again. He cut off Fig, who was still rambling, "English, please."

"English," Lennox said with finality in his hoarse voice. "I mean, how many times have," his voice cracked and he winced at the sharp pain in his throat. He shook his head repeatedly and finished, "We don't speak Spanish. I told you that."

"Why you got to ruin it for me, man? That's my heritage," Fig said defensively before once again launching off.

"Okay, go with the Spanish," Lennox said, waving his hand dismissively, "Whatever."

Turning his head from Fig, he caught the smiles and laughs the other men, Don, Rodney, Wayne, and Jim, were trying to hide. Will had to stifle one of his own. It was way too easy to mess with Fig. Way too easy.

"Hey, you guys remember weekends?" Don asked in his New York accent, smacking his gum. He grinned at his teammates despite his filthy face "Huh? The Sox at Fenway. Cold hotdog and a flat beer."

"Perfect day," Fig said, almost to himself. He looked over at Lennox, "What about you, Captain? You got a perfect day?"

Lennox leaned his head back against the metal siding of the chopper, looking up. A grin came over his face and he opened his mouth to answer.

"I think I know what his idea of a perfect day is," Epps said slyly, cutting him off. Epps raised and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at his captain. Will looked around at his men, dreading their answer.

"Jennnn," Fig drew out her name as the rest of the men laughed. They had somehow gotten in their thick heads that he liked Jenn more than an brother-sister in arms relationship like the rest of the team. They teased him about it mercilessly, but never Jenn. They wouldn't dare.

"Jennifer and William sitting in tree-" Jim and Rodney started to sing in the back of the chopper.

"Ah, shut up!" Will growled out. He felt heat rise in his ears as they began to turn red.

"Oh, look at him," Don said, pointing at Will and cackling with laughter, "he's blushing!"

"He's adorable!" his men all cried. Will felt heat rise in his face. The men in the aircraft laughed, including the two-man crew of the chopper. More heat rose onto his face.

"Alright, alright," he grumbled hoarsely, his throat hurting again, "enough!"

"Hey, you remember Jenny flew out this morning," Epps said after they had all quieted down.

"Yeah, that's right," Rodney said from the back, "What was it she said she was going home early for?"

"She wanted to surprise her brother. Took her weeks to convince Colonel Sharp to let her go with the early transport. And that's only because she didn't go home last time we all did," Will told them, looking out the window, silently begging for them to arrive at the base faster. He had been embarrassed enough.

Later in the day, a black helicopter hovered along in a empty desert. Over in the command station at SOCCENT airbase, 10 miles away, a operator leaned back in his computer chair and faced his colonel.

"Colonel Sharp, we have an inbound unidentified infiltrator, 10 miles out," he said. Colonel Sharp walked over and leaned over him to look at the blimps on the computer screen. The colonel put his headset microphone to his mouth.

"Unidentified aircraft, you are in restricted US military airspace. Squawk I-dent and proceed east out of the area," Sharp said into his mic.

He walked over to a desk and picked up a radio, holding it up to his mouth, "Raptors one and two, snap to heading two-five-zero to intercept. Bogie is in the weeds ten miles out, not squawking." Almost instantly, two military fighter jets took off the runway.

A tense minute passed in the command station as the blimp on the radar screen blinked closer.

"Unidentified aircraft," Colonel Sharp continued, "we will escort you to US SOCCENT airbase. If you do not comply, we will use deadly force."

One of the Raptors sent back the identification of the helicopter. Another computer operator in the command center walked up to the Colonel. "Sir, says here 4500 X was shot down three months ago. Afghanistan."

"That's got to be a mistake," Sharp mumbled. "Check again, then recheck," he ordered, handing the paper back.

"I did, sir," the operator confirmed, then continued, "A friend of mine was on that chopper," he said looking down sadly.

The Colonel put his headset microphone back to his mouth, "Unidentified aircraft, we will escort you to US SOCCENT airbase."

"Radar, where's the inbound?" he addressed the first computer operator who had been constantly watching the aircraft's blip on his screen come closer to the base.

"Bogie's five miles out, sir," he told the colonel.

A chat screen popped up on a older model of a laptop in a rather empty room. The computer let out a series of alert noises that triggered a young, brunette woman to bolt up in her bed. She scrambled off, kicking blankets and sheets in every direction, and startling a little dog. She skirted around her unpacked military backpack, jumped over a still stuffed duffel bag, and fell into her computer chair. She rolled in it across the room until she stopped herself with her arms on her desk. She hurriedly clicked the 'Accept' on the new window that said 'Video-Chat request from SOCCENT Military Base'. Immediately, the sweaty face of a young and handsome black man popped up on her screen.

"Epps!" she exclaimed excitedly, waving.

He smiled slightly and said, "Hey, Jenny! How was your flight home?"

"Eh, I give the pilot five stars, but not yet worthy of a pair of Air Force wings," she finished with a mockingly serious tone.

Epps chuckled at her and opened his mouth to say something else, but he was suddenly pushed out of view and replaced with another handsome sweaty face of an Air Force soldier with a backwards baseball cap on his head.

"Ah! My lady!" Will Lennox grinned at her, mockingly bowing his head.

"Hey, soldier," she simply stated before Epps's head popped back up in view of the camera.

He glared at Lennox with a joking glint in his eyes, "You're gonna regret that one."

"Whatever."

Epps picked himself fully off the ground with a grunt. He started to walk away backwards, talking at the same time, "I'll talk to you later, Jenny! Love you!"

On the small screen, Jennifer smiled at the two. "Later, Epps. Love you too, you big oaf!"

He flashed her and Lennox a sly grin. "You two have fun, now...I'll be outside, guarding..." he trailed off and then dropped the camouflage material behind him. Will, ignoring him, stared ahead at the computer screen which showed Jennifer shaking her head.

"Hey," she suddenly exclaimed, pointing at his head, "Is that my hat?"

"Oh, this?" Will spoke slyly, easing the cap off his head and waving it in front of the camera. "Mahfouz gave me this after I got back today. Said you left it early this morning."

Jenn shot him a look, following one of her favorite caps with her eyes. Abruptly, Will jerked it back onto his head, putting it on backwards again.

"Don't worry," he assured her over dramatically, knowing how she was about people messing with her stuff, "I'll take good care of it and return it safely to you."

"I'm not worried about loosing it," she mumbled, trying not to smile, "I'm worried about you sweating in it!"

"Already took care of that," he commented pleasantly, turning the cap around and propping his chin on his hand to look at her more comfortably. He took pride in the way she immediately rolled her eyes a little at his antics.

"So, how was you guys' mission?" she asked before a concerned look crossed her face, "You're kinda hoarse. You okay?"

"I'm good, just a dry throat. Everything went fine on the escort. Ran into a few strays on the way back to the pick-up site, but nothing serious," he shrugged, "How was the two days on base without your favorite group of men? Nobody gave my lady a hard time?

Jenn rolled her eyes again at his fake inflated ego. "Eh, not that much action. I stayed around Mahfouz more than anything else. That boy plays a mean game of hopscotch, by the way." Will laughed at the thought. "Helped with gear some. Just some basic jobs. Anything to keep away from the Lagoon," she finished, shuddering. Will had to chuckle at her again.

"How was your early flight home this morning then?"

"The flight was fine. Security was a headache, as always. I swear that they checked every single pocket on both me and my bags," she complained.

Will nodded understandingly and leaned forward on his crossed arms. "Oh, right, and dodging both grenades and gunfire is barely a hassle," he said sarcastically.

She gave him a look and the two held a short stare-down before Will's face broke into a crooked smile and they both started to laugh.

"4500 X. Something's not right," Colonel Sharp said out loud as the helicopter expertly landed on base.

"Bogie's on the deck," came a voice from the radio.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the computer operator who had constantly watched the radar said. He tried clicking in a few computer commands, "Radar's jammed." He tried a few more clicks and the screen went haywire.

"It's coming from the chopper," he stated grimly and picked up his phone, preparing to send the alarming message.

Suddenly and without warning, all the power went out in the computer command center.

Jennifer slapped her computer a few times as the picture blinked, "Will?"

"Jenn?" she heard him say on the other end of the line. His own confused face flashed before her a few times before flashing back to a fuzzy screen.

"Hey, Jenn! If you can hear me, we'll be going home in a few days. See you soon! Lo-" she heard him yell over the connection before her chat screen went completely black. Jenn slapped her computer a few more times before giving up.

"Great," she muttered under her breath. She leaned back in her squeaky computer chair and surveyed her room. Her eyes landed on her bulging military backpacks and duffel bag.

She pursed her lips, 'Well, they aren't gonna unpack themselves,' she thought. She continued to move her light sea-green eyes around her room until they landed on an adorable chihuahua.

"Hey, Mojo," the small dog perked up at his name, "you wanna unpack my bags for me, baby?" Mojo settled back down on the foot of her bed and closed his eyes.

"Right, didn't think so," she smiled fondly at him.

Someone pounded on her bedroom door. "Jenn? Sweetie, you up?"

"Yeah, Dad," she said loudly through the door.

"Your coming with me to pick Sam up from school right?" he asked her, peeking his head in.

"Yeah, but," she glanced over at him conspiratorially, "You got your cash?"

He looked at the floor and raised one finger, warningly, "The deal was only if, he gets his A. Only if."

"Come on, Dad," she chuckled, "You know as well as I do that this is more than just a car for Sam," she stood up and moved over to her bed, picking up a sleepy Mojo and cuddling him close.

"Yeah, I know," he had to agree with her, "I know."

She handed the chihuahua over to him and patted her father's arm, "Give me three to get changed and I'll meet you downstairs."

"MH-53 pilot, power down now," Colonel Sharp said into his microphones as he stared at the grounded and surrounded chopper, "Have your crew step out or we will kill you."

The helicopter's top propeller suddenly stopped moving and all the props folded back. Then, for a few heartbeats, nothing moved.

"Hold your fire! Stand by to engage!" came a command from the soldiers surrounding the aircraft.

The black military helicopter suddenly folded in on itself and tucked in parts while other gears and joints pushed out. Whirling and pressured air noises came from the moving, living, conglomerate of metal parts. Before all the soldiers' eyes, it transformed. The soldiers began to fire madly at the monster as it stood up and began to fire back at them. It began to flip tanks with its arms and bright red eyes scanned the entire base.

Epps came running out of nowhere, flinging his arms wildly and screaming like a mad man to anyone who would listen, "They bombed the antenna farm! We're under attack!"

The metal creature released an energy wave of sorts. Tanks, aircrafts, and jeeps all flipped through the air as glass on all the buildings and vehicles shattered. Soldiers ran like ants, some grabbing guns and ammo; others running for cover. They attacked in groups, but other than that, no order remained on the airbase.

Lennox gathered his men in a rush. They all grabbed their always ready guns and supplies and followed him, running for cover. Epps, however, tripped and laid on the dusty ground right in front of the walking monster. He aimed his camera equipped hand-held sight up at the metal monster's face.

Will corralled his men and Mahfouz behind a few tanks, "Here, hide here," he ordered breathlessly.

"What the..." Epps started as he looked through his sight. He scrambled off the ground and took off running as he saw one of the monster's guns aimed right at his face.

"Epps, let's go!" Will yelled as he grabbed onto his friend's shirt and drug him into the dark desert, away from the deadly chaos.

"Okay, Mr. Witwicky, you're up."

Toward the back of the class, Sam slowly rose to his feet and scrambled, trying to open his bag. He approached the table in front of the class and dumped his bag's contents on it. Several old instruments tumbled out and he timidly looked up at the class to find that all eyes were on him.

"Sorry, I gotta a lot of stuff," he mumbled, shuffling papers and objects around on the table.

"Watch," the teacher monotonously commanded his students from the sidelines.

"Okay," Sam started, setting his shoulders back, "For my family," he was cut off by a paper football flying up and hitting him in the face.

"Who did... Who did that?" the history teacher gaped from his desk, "People! Responsibility," he scolded his class, half heartedly.

"Okay," Sam started again, determined, "So, for my family genealogy report, I decided to do it on my great-great-grandfather, who was a famous man, Captain Archibald Witwicky. Very famous explorer," Sam held up a finger, "In fact, he was one of the first to explore the Arctic Circle, which is a big deal. In 1897, he took 41 brave sailors straight into the Arctic Shelf." Sam then ditched his report and went on with the real purpose he had in mind, "So that's the story, right? And here we have some of the basic instruments and tools used by 19th-century seamen."

The class laughed when he said 'seaman' and Mr. Martin held up a sign that said in bold, black letters 'QUIET'.

"This here is the quadrant, which you can get for 80 bucks," he said, holding up an instrument for the class to see, "It's all for sale, by the way," he motioned at the table. He picked up another instrument, "Like, the sextant here. $50 for this, which is a bargain." He picked up a fragile pair of glasses, "These are pretty cool. These are my grandfather's glasses. I haven't quite gotten them appraised yet, but they've seen many cool things."

"Are you going to sell me his liver?" his teacher commented, "Mr. Witwicky, this isn't show and sell. It's the 11th grade. I don't think your grandfather would be particularly proud of what you're doing."

Sam looked over at him, "I know, I'm sorry. I just, you know, this is all going towards my car fund." He turned back around to face the class, "You can tell your folks. It's on eBay. I take . Cold hard cash works too. And the compass makes a great gift for Columbus Day, -"

"Sam!" Mr. Martin warned.

"Sorry," he mumbled before continuing on with his actual report, "Unfortunately, my great-great-grandfather, the genius that he was, wound up going blind and crazy in a psycho ward, drawing these strange symbols and babbling on about some giant ice man that he thought he'd discover-"

The bell rang. And the class instantaneously stood up and made their way out the door.

The teacher finally stood up, "Okay. Might be a pop quiz tomorrow. Might not," he called after them, making his eyes wide, "Sleep in fear tonight."

Sam followed the crowd of high-schoolers toward the door, still trying to get some bids, "Here, you want? Here, 50. 40? 30?"

"Sam?" the teacher asked him, getting his attention.

"Yeah. Sorry, sorry," he apologized again, "Okay. Pretty good, right?" he smiled sweetly, trying to get a smile out of his stone-like history teacher.

"I'd say a," he paused, "a solid B minus."

"A B minus?" Sam squeaked out, deflating as his hopes washed down the drain.

"Yes! Yes, yes!" Sam yelled, running wildly down the short hill to his father's green car. He threw on his brakes as he noticed a young, jean-clad woman leaning over the passenger side door, talking to his father.

Sam, automatically jumping to all sorts of conclusions, took on a defensive tone, "Hey, lady, why don't you go talk to a single guy. I don't know how, but this guy is already taken."

The woman turned around, crossing her arms. Her face had taken on a 'Are-you-talking-to-me?' expression that only people from the military possess.

Sam felt his eyes widen at the sight of her face, one which he instantly recognized. "J-Jenn?" he gaped, still not believing what he was seeing.

She cocked an eyebrow. "Hm? Did you say something to me?" she took a step forward, intimidating him further.

"Yes, I mean... No!" Sam stammered, backing up. He was confused on what to say, "Uh...um, welcome home?" he squeaked out, as he spread his arms wide open with a cheesy grin on his face.

Jennifer lunged forward and hugged his neck. "I missed you, Sammy," she whispered as she felt his own arms tighten around her. Tears pricked her closed eyes at seeing her little brother in person for the first time in months.

"I missed you too," he said, tears welling up in his own eyes. Not that he would admit that, of course.

She pulled back and held his shoulders out at arms' length. "I had no idea you were coming home," he said smiling at her.

"I flew early in this morning and Mom and Dad picked me up after you were at school. I wanted to surprise you," she explained, smiling back at him.

Sam leaned around her and stared at his father, "You knew about this?" he hissed, pointing at Jenn, "And you didn't tell me?"

Ron shrugged at his son, smiling, "I'm still surprised your mother was able to keep it secret."

"How long exactly?" Sam continued to interrogate his father.

"Three weeks," Ron answered him. Sam's jaw dropped again and he turned to face Jennifer.

"So," he began, putting it all together, "you knew you were coming home when you helped me with my report over video chat a week and a half ago?"

"Yep," she confirmed, popping the 'p', "Like I said, I wanted to surprise you."

Sam put his hands on his hips and stared at the ground, wondering just how his parents, Ron and Judy Witwicky, kept this big of a secret from him. And how he hadn't found out about it.

"C'mon you two," Ron said, waving his hand, "Get in the car."

Sam headed to open the passenger side door, but Jenn shoved him toward the backseat. "Nuh-uh, kid, I'm home, I get shotgun."

Sam sighed as she slid into the passenger seat but plopped himself down in the back anyway. He strapped himself in and slung his bag and backpack on the floor of the car.

"So?" Ron provoked his son as he pulled away from the school.

"A minus," Sam held up a paper in front of his face, grinning at it, "It's an A, though."

"Jenn, look and see. I can't look."

Sam waved the paper wildly in front of her face excitedly, "See, Jenn? See!"

"Wait, wait, wait...I can't see. Sam! Hold it still," she commanded, fumbling for the paper, "Ah! It's an A, Dad."

"So I'm good?" Sam questioned, leaning up between the two.

"Yeah, you're good," Ron almost regrettably told him as his two children slapped each other several high-fives. Jennifer noticed the look on her father's face and punched him lightly on the shoulder. He shot her a warning look, but continued to drive.

Tell what you think! Would you even be willing to read this thing further?

DISCLAIMER: Transformers and all other associated characters belongs to Hasbro. If I owned it, Jenn would be in the movies. I only own my OC, Jennifer Witwicky.

This chapter was edited and re-uploaded on: July 4, 2014.