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Over in Chicago, hours before (YN)'s group departed Cape Canaveral, Mikaela was being dragged about by Gould towards the Jewelers Building on North Wabash Avenue, the wonderfully elaborate 40-story tower in its splendour. A bunch of trucks had arrived to the building and the people have a bunch of Sentinel's pillars. When they arrive inside, they go into one of the elevators, as well as with one of the pillars.

As they went up, Mikaela now began to think about what's going on and started to realise something.

Mikaela: "They said they were here for our resources. To rebuild their planet." She said softly. "But they don't mean us, do they?"

Gould: "Yes. They really need one resource in particular. One unique to our planet." He mused as he eyed at Mikaela.

Mikaela: "Our planet itself." She muttered. Gould grabbed her arm and dragged her over to the balcony before them on the top floor.

Gould: "You're very smart for a concubine. You see, you can't rebuild without a slave labor force. How many rocks up there in the universe offer six billion workers?" He asked, gesturing to the setting sky above.

Mikaela: "What are you talking about? We can't transport people." She scoffed.

Gould: "They're not shipping people." Here shook his head. "They're shipping their planet HERE." He now turns Mikaela around to see Sentinel Prime on the top floor with them, now getting the pillars ready.

Mikaela: "Oh, my God. What's Sentinel doing here?" He gasped.

Gould: "Watch. They're spreading hundreds of those pillars around the globe right now." He explained to Mikaela as the pillars floated to each cupola. "In just a few hours, they're going to launch them into orbit, and bring Cybertron into our atmosphere. The red one there controls the rest." He pointed to the control pillar on the right cupola as it was placed inside. "He triggers that, it starts the whole thing."

Megatron: "Begone, insect operative. Your work is done." He waved off to Gould.

Gould: "Your Excellency." He bowed back, then he began to drag Mikaela away to his personal apartment at Trump Tower. "He's such a dick." He muttered under his breath.

Mikaela: "You want THIS to happen?" She argued.

Gould: "I want to survive, I want 40 more years." He scoffed as police helicopters flew around the building, the sounds of sirens down below. "You think I asked for this? I inherited a client."

Mikaela: "Yeah, sure. And when Cybertron's here and we're all their slaves, I guess they'll still need a human leader." She scoffed.

Gould: "Don't jinx me. You want to survive, you listen to me." He ordered as they enter the elevator.

As they made their way out of the tower to go forth to get to Gould's apartment, police officers and vehicles drove up to the tower to deal with the Decepticons that have appeared as all the civilians were running. However, it will all be in vain.

Sentinel: "It is time for the slaves of Earth to recognise their masters." He declared, looking to the setting sun and the city around before turned to Megatron.

Megatron: "Yes." He growled lowly. "What would you have my army do?" He inquired, turning to Sentinel.

Sentinel: "Seal off the city." He ordered.

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In just a matter of hours, Decepticons and ships arrive in Chicago and begin their attack on it. They spend all night terrorizing the city, shooting at buildings and also killing humans, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians in the attacks on the city. The city suffered extensive damage and left most of its population dead. Those who survived the attack were either terrorised by the Decepticons or abandoned the city.

Down on the streets, the Decepticons, led by Starscream, shooting at everything and everyone. They used their disintegrator ray guns to obliterated the humans from left to right, leaving behind little more than a handful of bones and some empty clothing.

Starscream, however, was enjoying every bit of it, unleashing his machine gun and missile launcher to causing major damage to a city block, laughing at the destruction he is causing, killing humans and destroying buildings nearby.

Starscream: "Run insects! RUN! Nothing can save you!" He laughed maniacally. "Decepticons, lay waste to the city!" He commanded.

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Gould brought Mikaela to the balcony to see the destruction the Decepticons are making. It was a nightmarish site to see.

Mikaela: "I guess they didn't tell you about this part, did they?" She breathed.

Gould: "You think I'm at every meeting?" He retorted simply. "Look, I'm safe. They said I was safe." He left the balcony and went back inside.

Mikaela stayed at the balcony and looked over at the destruction around her. She felt her voice hitch in her throat as she saw the chaos and death all around her. She has seen what the Decepticons are capable of, but she was more afraid than anything, though not just for her.

Mikaela: "I hope you're alright, (YN)." She muttered quietly, her hand inadvertently against her stomach. "Please hurry."

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Epps drove off of the base and headed for the highway. (YN) did not question where he was going, and they sat in companionable silence. After about 40 minutes in the car, Epps pulled up outside a rundown house that looked more like a shack than a house. A large man answered the screen door.

They hug one another in that manly style, clapping each other on the back and gripping hands in what was a cross between a handshake and an arm-wrestle. Through the night, they picked up three more of Epps's old NEST friends, and they all got into their heavy duty trucks and continue to drive forth towards the North.

Epps: "We had a signal earlier." He announced softly. "It's not working."

(YN) quickly looked down at his phone. He could no longer see the map of Chicago they had used for a guide. Epps drove out of the tunnel that led to the city, just as the sun was rising.

Vanessa: "Oh, God..." She mumbled under her breath.

Confused, (YN) looked up from his phone and up ahead, his breath hitched at the sight.

The sight greeted them has shocked every single one of them to the core. It was an apocalyptic scene: rubble littered the streets, and every now and then. Flames danced on debris, cars were flipped over and abandoned, dust covering the road in a thick layer.

<|>This is a national emergency broadcast. Chicago has suffered a massive attack.<|>

(YN) sees small clusters of bodies clumped together. He never looked long enough to see if they were alive or dead. (YN)'s eyes landed on a small child crying for her mother, she was lost and alone in the crowd of broken people, her cries going unanswered. He could barely recognize the city in front of him.

Civilians: "Wrong way!/ Get out of here!/ Go back!" They screamed in despair, waving their arms frantically in a desperate attempt to stop the group.

However, their pleas were ignored. Nothing could stop them. But then, (YN) looked up. In the air, there were a hundreds of colossal Decepticon ships, positioned strategically. Tiny specks darted across the sky, and loud screams and explosions reverberated through the air. The cries and begs for the group to leave soon fade away, and the group was left with the horrific sounds of death as they drove into the city.

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The room was filled with people simply trying to figure out one thing: what in the world was happening in Chicago? Something big was happening. The Decepticons were there and had, essentially, taken control of the entire area. They had no other information, however and it frustrated Mearing.

Morshower: "There's a ring of alien ships around Chicago. Our high-level bombers were just knocked out of the sky." He stated. "They can't get through enemy air defenses over the city. Our satellites have been jammed. We have no way to monitor the enemy's movement."

Lennox: "Our NEST teams are on stand-down holding at Grissom Air Force Base." He informed Morshower.

Bishop: "We're about ten minutes from the battle zone." She added. "We have Special Forces trying to gain access to the city, and infantry is staging at the perimeter."

Simmons: "Excuse me. Excuse me." He interrupted, rolling into the room. "It doesn't make sense. Can't we get any eyes in there at all?"

Mearing: "They keep shooting down our drones." She answered quickly.

Morshower: "They want us blind." He added. "But we do have a couple of mini drones we're going to try."

Simmons: "Besides all that, whoever's manning these UAV drones, can we try to redirect them toward Trump Tower? The kid, Witwicky, was on his way to Chicago. Said some point man, human op is there FOR THE DECEPTICONS." He remarked as he stared at the other people. "Listen, if I know anything, I know this. That that kid is an alien BAD NEWS magnet."

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The cars slowed down to a stop, and they got out, and (YN) stared to look out at the heart of the city. The road ahead was blocked. They would have to continue the journey on foot. The inner city was Michael worse than the outskirts. A train had crashed onto its side of the tracks, fire ablaze on it. Buildings were on the verge of crumbling down onto the streets, and smoke wafted into the air through the haze. The sky had turned into sickening gray. The only signs of life were the few injured survivors who managed to escape the Decepticons, sprinting in the opposite direction of the city. They did not dare to look back.

(YN) took a step away from the car and followed the group. His boots crunched loudly against the gravel-like debris on the rails that ran through the streets. Jake and Vanessa quickly joined his side. Vanessa's her eyes full of distraught. She nearly burst into tears when she saw a group of children run by, wailing and shrieking in terror.

Epps ran ahead to asses the situation as he climbed up the wreckage of the building wall, staring out at the city. The former NEST Troopes, Jake, and Vanessa, were armed to the teeth with assault rifles, handguns, knives, even their bulletproof vests. Though, they would perhaps be useless when fighting that many Decepticons. They were going into the city blind, defenseless against the enemy.

Thunderous roars filled the sky, catching the attention of the group. Three F-35 fighter jets flew over the city, just as two Deception Assault Carriers rise from behind a towering, cracked building slammed rounds of explosives onto the jets. Parts of the jets were blown away, left to burn as they crashed into the ground before the third jet began to spin uncontrollably and smashed into the remains of the building. The two Assault Carriers withdrew their weapons and quickly retreated to another location.

Epps: "My God." He breathed out at the sight of the destruction before them. "We came here to find her in the middle of all that?" He questioned, looking down at (YN) with disbelief and hesitance.

Stone: "Hey, are we really going out there, Epps?" He asked hesitantly, eyeing the sky for more Decepticons.

Hardcore Eddie: "I'm not going in." He declared, refusing to go into the city.

Epps: "No one's going in." He stated as he looked back at the group.

(YN) gave Epps an incredulous look. Merely hours ago, Epps was the one who told him he would not be going alone, now he was backing out. With a determined expression, (YN) looked up at Epps defiantly.

(YN): "If you're not, then I will." He countered. "Sorry I brought you here guys." He checked his MK 48 and then continued forward.

Epps: "You're gonna get yourself killed, (YN)." He exclaimed as he looked at (YN). "Is that what you want? Is that what you want?!" He questioned as he quickly climbed down, running after him. "You came all the way out here to get yourself killed? Huh?" He caught up to (YN), but (YN) was not willing to stop. "Listen to what I'm saying!" He gabbed (YN)'s shoulder, yanking him to stop.

(YN): "She's here because of me, Epps." He snapped firmly. "Ever since Optimus touched down and found me, she's been involved in all of this. I already lost most of my family today, I'm not losing anyone else. I never asked you to come, any of you! I just came to get my wife and to snap Gould's neck. You wanna leave? No one's stopping any of you! But none of you are stopping me from getting Mikaela back." He spun back around, continuing his course to the city.

Epps: "Listen, if you go in this building, that's IF she's still alive, there's no way you're gonna be able to reach her!" He pointed out, holding out a hand to the city in front of him.

(YN): "I HAVE TO TRY, EPPS!" He shouted firmly, making his voice echo. Tears filled with anger and frustration were licking from his eyes. "What do you suggest I do?" He questioned. "Leave her there, held hostage by Gould, surrounded by Decepticons and do nothing?"

Epps could see the emotions that were running across (YN), like he's seen it in so many soldiers and even in himself. Sometimes, emotions make people do crazy things, forget all about common sense, and sometimes, that person would succeed and sometimes they wouldn't. He knew that if (YN), if any of them went in there, they would be blasted right on the spot.

Epps: "It's over." He whispered, deceitful. "I'm sorry, but it's over."

(YN): "No." He whispered sadly.

Hardcore Eddie: "Whoa! INCOMING!!!" He exclaimed quickly.

Everyone within hearing range whirled around to face the incoming Decepticon Assault Carrier. Explosions erupted all around the group and survivors, with bloodcurdling screams soon following. (YN) and Epps toppled to the ground, losing their balance as the Assault Carrier used its cannons to disintegrate a few humans right next to them, leaving nothing but skulls and bones.

Jake: "Get out of there!" He hollowed from a safe distance with the others. "Move!"

(YN) and Epps ran to their position away from the Assault Carrier, their hearts raced with trepidation as the screams around them started to fade. The Assault Carrier disintegrated a few more humans until it hovered above (YN) and Epps, forcing them to drop to the ground once more. The ship flipped itself to face the other way, nearly hitting the two humans on the ground. Its weapons withdrew from the front and swung down like a pendulum, ready to fire at will. The two humans had to cover their eyes to pervert debris from blinding them.

(YN) and Epps clambered up into a sitting position, their eyes never leaving the Assault Carrier. They watched as it flew off to end the lives of the humans. Then, it spun around to face them. It had discovered them. As the Assault Carrier was about to disintegrate (YN) and Epps, loud gunshots rang out, each bullet piercing its side as it spun out of the control. Crashing into the ground, ship showered the street with sparks and dirt. (YN) and Epps covered their heads to avoid being hit by anything.

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(YN) and Epps uncovered their heads and watch as door of the ship was blown off, and a Decepticon Protoform growled and struggled to climb out, no doubt injured from the crash. Light vibrations now shook the ground, and a huge bronze bullet casing passed over (YN) and Epps's heads. They looked back and were sure they had seen a ghost.

There, walking towards them, with a look of grim determination on his faceplate and armed with his blaster was the mighty leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime. Alive.

Optimus: "We will kill them all." He seethed, his optics glowing with anger at the sight of the ruin city.

The Decepticon saw Optimus with shock optics and aimed his blaster at him, but then Ironhide appeared from behind Optimus and fried his right pulse cannon directly at the Decepticon's weapon, destroying it.

Ironhide: "Too slow, Decepticon." He growled.

The sound of engines roared in the distance, and the group turned to see three Armored NASCAR Chevy Impala stock cars speeding down the road towards the Carrier, and they all transformed into their robot modes.

Leadfoot: "Wreckers, kill it!" He commanded. He transformed his right hand into a large hammer before bashing it into the Decepticon's head and grabbed its arm. Topspin and Roadbuster seized the Decepticon.

Roadbuster: "This is going to hurt! A LOT!" He jeered as he and Leadfoot ripped off the Decepticon's left am and leg while Topspin kept a tight hold on it, restraining it.

The Decepticon kicked Topspin in the faceplate with its last leg, only for Topspin to grab with his left hand and kick the entire leg off at the joint. Roadbuster laughed loudly as he and Leadfoot finished tearing the Decepticon apart, leaving it in wrecked scrap metal.

Topspin: "That's gonna be all of you for what you've done!" He scowled.

Ironhide: "For a bunch of engineers, they sure know how to fight dirty." He smirked at the Wreckers's performance.

Optimus: "Your leaders will now understand. Decepticons will never leave your planet alone." He stated, looking down at the humans below him. (YN) and Epps quickly stood up to their feet, staring up with shock and awe at his appearance. "And we needed them to believe we had gone. For today, in the name of freedom, we take the battle to them!" He proclaimed, jabbing his finger at the city.

(YN) smiled as he then saw Bumblebee and the rest of the Autobots driving up and transform into robot mode, looking down at them and smirking. Elita ran up and she hugged (YN) close to her, and (YN) hugging her back. Wolfang runs towards (YN), rubbing his head against him, (YN) patting and rubbing his head. He then stepped back to smile at his Autobot family.

(YN): "Wait. I don't understand. I saw your ship blew up!" He realised. "How are you still alive?"

Roadbuster: "The ship?" He scoffed, making the group turn around to look at him. "We were never in the ship!" He ripped the Decepticon's arm in half. "We designed the damn thing, didn't we!" He reminded them.

Leadfoot: "We were 'idden in the first rocket booster to separate. Splashed down in the Atlantic, just as planned." He added, tossing the Decepticon's head to Wolfang, who chewed on it, then spit out a piece of metal. "We ain't going nowhere."

Vanessa: "So, you deceived the Decepticons into thinking you all died." She realised. "That's pretty sneaky."

Ironhide: "Do you really think that Sentinel could banish us from home?" He scoffed, smirking. "Well, he has just made a grave mistake."

Cliffjumper: "Ain't no way we're gonna do what they say." He agreed with Ironhide.

Brains: "Yeah, no one's exiling us!" He added as he climbed up on top the hood of the car.

Wheelie: "The Autobots are staying right here." He added as he skated across the hood beside him. "We're gonna help you win this war."

Optimus: "They're surrounding the city to make a fortress, so no one can see what they're doing inside." He spoke up, pointing at the city. "Our only chance is the element of surprise."

(YN): "I think I know where to look. Mikaela is being held hostage in the Trump Tower by Gould." He explained to Optimus. Optimus nodded, and turned to address his fellow Autobots.

Optimus: "Autobots, Ratchet, Ironhide, Warpath and myself will divide from the main party. We will create a diversion in order to distract the Decepticons so Bumblebee and (YN) can get up to Trump Tower to rescue Mikaela." He addressed. "Longarm, see if you can repair that Assault Carrier."

Longarm: "I'm on it." He nodded, and jogged over to the fighter.

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It took a while, but they finally managed to get a view of Chicago through a remote control drone. Unfortunately, their first view of the windy city was not very promising to say the least. Destroyed buildings, empty streets, and Decepticon vessels occupying the skies, the desolate sight took up almost every screen in the room. And there was not a sign of human life anywhere.

Mearing: "Are you telling me that (YN) was headed there?" She whispered, her voice filled with shock and grief at the sight.

Simmons: "Poor kid." He sighed, shaking his head sadly. "Probably never got even close."

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(YN): "Is it okay?" He asked Longarm, who is inspecting the Assault Carrier.

Longarm: "Well, Optimus just barely missed the engine. Which is good in our case, but some of the wires are fried." He answered. "And the weapon systems should be okay." It took a while for him to reroute the wires that were damaged. "Okay, that should do it." He stood back up and looked down at (YN). "She's ready to fly." He declared. (YN) smirked and climbed on top of the fighter and he saw Bumblebee walk up.

(YN): "Bee, do you know how to fly this thing?" He asked, and Bumblebee gives him the so-so hand gesture. "I guess '50-50' is gonna have to do." He muttered. "Time to fly in a questionably-safe vehicle and save 'Mikaela from Gould."

Wheelie: "Well, I'm coming with you two." He remarked, rolling forward.

(YN): "What?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at Wheelie statement.

Wheelie: "No one messes with my Warrior Goddess and gets away with it." he explained, stubbornly. "We're busting her out, (YN)."

Brains: "I want in on this action, too." He jumped in. "That mo-fo is about to learn a lesson about taking a man's wife."

As much as Wheelie and Brains get on his nerves, he knew that they did care about Mikaela. So, (YN) gave a smirk.

(YN): "Alright, get on." He urged, and Wheelie and Brains hop on the ship. He turned back to face Epps, handing him a Glock 17 pistol.

Epps: "Just in case. We're gonna be right behind, brother." (YN) took the pistol, and he and (YN) bro-hug each other before (YN) gets in the Decepticon fighter with Bumblebee. "Alright, we're going in!" He ordered.

(YN): "You ready, guys?" He asked, and Wheelie, Brains, and Bumblebee nodded. "Alright, let's go get Mikaela!"

The fighter soon takes off and (YN) clutches onto Bumblebee as they shoot forward and take to the skies, going forth into the battlefield of Chicago, their rescue plan in motion.

To Be Continued...