Excavating a Decepticon Outpost

"Host, I compared the data I downloaded on Cybertron. While I can't provide clear, specific evidence, the Decepticons did indeed establish similar outposts throughout the universe. My estimate is that prehistoric Decepticon warriors came to this planet, invented or enslaved a group of primitive humans to help them extract new energy sources, then used some kind of myth to glorify their image in those humans' hearts!"

This was the conclusion the Ever-Changing Steel System had drawn by piecing together all the available clues, and it was probably very close to the truth. After all, when those human soldiers had seen the Decepticon insignia on Starscream's chest, the worshipful gleam in their eyes had definitely been genuine.

"Fine! You lot, lead the way. Take me to see those ruins. That should be your honor, shouldn't it?"

Starscream still did not quite understand the humans' language. In any case, as long as he put on the manner of a master dealing with servants, that should be enough.

"Honored lord, it is truly my greatest honor to guide you. This way, please! This way!"

Just as expected, once these soldiers who called themselves Huns received Starscream's order, every one of them stood ramrod straight with incomparably proud smiles on their faces. They formed a neat formation, mounted their horses, and rode at the front.

Although these humans moved exceedingly slowly in Starscream's eyes, fortunately, the excavation site was not too far from the tribe. It did look rather large, though.

The moment Starscream saw the site in its entirety, he was somewhat surprised. It looked like an archaeological dig. There were tens of thousands of slaves tied up and forced into labor by these people alone, and their hair colors varied greatly, though most were young and strong.

"My lord, how did you get here? And might this lord be..."

The person presiding over the excavation appeared to be some sort of priest—the kind who muttered incomprehensible incantations and wore bizarre clothing. To Starscream, all these humans looked pretty much the same, but the metal rod in front of this priest caught his attention.

It appeared to be a metal rod driven deep into the ground. It was absolutely not something that could have been forged using the technology currently available on this planet. Moreover, after the Ever-Changing Steel System scanned it, faint electrical currents seemed to be flowing across its surface. It appeared to be something like a sensor.

"What is this? Where did you find it?"

Starscream did not bother being polite with these people and directly asked about the rod's origins. Seeing that the great god before him had addressed him, the Hun priest immediately began gesticulating in wild excitement.

"My lord, we excavated this divine pillar only today. According to the historical records of our tribe, this should be the legendary Sky Pillar, left behind by the heavenly gods before they ascended. Might you, divine envoy..."

Although Starscream seemed completely unfamiliar with the scene before him, these Huns remained deeply respectful toward the giant. The Ever-Changing Steel System could even detect from the other man's tone that dopamine secretion in his brain was rapidly increasing. These people probably found seeing Starscream more heartwarming than seeing their own relatives!

"Move aside. I need to check whether this thing still works. I really don't know why those old geezers left such an ancient contraption on this planet!"

At Starscream's command, the surrounding Huns all crossed their hands over their chests, lowered their heads, and slowly backed away step by step. They truly regarded Starscream as a god.

"Bzzzt! Bzzzt! Bzzzt!"

Once he saw that no one was interfering, Starscream extended his mechanical right hand. A gleaming silver needle emerged from his mechanical index finger and pierced directly into the point of the rod where the electrical current was most concentrated.

"Beep! Beep! Beep!"

A series of electronic sounds, like a siren, rang out. Upon receiving the signal, the electronic probe in Starscream's hand entered the rod directly. Then countless blue-and-white alternating data streams resembling binary code slowly flowed through Starscream's mechanical palm and into his data conduits. The dazzling colors left all the surrounding Huns staring in stunned silence...

"Host, this seems to be a voyage log, but it is incomplete, and a considerable amount of time has passed since it was recorded. It appears to be an old record left by some Decepticon lord. Also... there seem to be traces of metal beneath the ground in this area. We will only know what it is after excavating it. Perhaps that thing can help replenish our energy!"

All right! So a Decepticon predecessor really had come to this planet long ago. Whether that fellow later left or died of old age on this planet was impossible to say.

But one thing was certain: that old Decepticon must have had a master-servant relationship with the ancestors of these humans. The history book in the Huns' hands had most likely been written by that old Decepticon. Yet Starscream's database seemed to have no information on him. This was truly strange!

However, the Ever-Changing Steel System also brought good news. Beneath this grassland seemed to be a machine belonging to some Transformer, and it was very likely that the thing could help Starscream solve his pressing energy shortage. That was certainly good news!

"Beep!"

After reading through the information, Starscream retracted his probe, and the scene of streaming data vanished with it. But when he looked around, all the Huns had already fallen to their knees. The few leaders were even excitedly singing some sort of song?

Could this also have been the handiwork of that old Decepticon from back then? Who knew what kind of brainwashing he had inflicted upon these ordinary humans' ancestors, making these people so excited even after hundreds or perhaps thousands of years. These lower lifeforms were truly laughable.

"You few, come here. I have a task for you. From now on, focus your excavation work within the area I designate. There is an important divine artifact beneath it. Dig carefully. If you uncover any traces, do not act rashly. Notify me immediately. Do you understand?"

The reason Starscream told these humans to handle things carefully was mainly because he feared they might sever some wires while digging.