The Malfunctioning Fuel Line

[World Quest: Personally End the Cybertron Machine Lifeforms 5/20]

Having inadvertently completed a quarter of his mission, Russell decided to keep a low profile and avoid getting involved in the conflict between the Autobots and Decepticon as much as possible, just to be on the safe side.

On the deck, Ratchet is assembling Optimus Prime's body. Although Cybertron's medical technology is not simply laser welding, but a near-perfect body reconstruction, Ratchet says that after the body is damaged and rebuilt, Optimus Prime's overall strength after being resurrected will definitely be significantly reduced.

The ambulance couldn't determine whether the AllSpark Key, with its limitless power, could make up for this. If not, perhaps only the resurrection of Ultra Magnus could make the revived Optimus Prime's strength increase rather than decrease.

"Mr. Russell, we are very grateful for your help to the Autobots. Now we should head to Egypt." Ironhide stood aside, watching Optimus Prime's body being repaired piece by piece, and was filled with emotion.

This time, the Autobots are facing an extremely powerful enemy. Megatron has been resurrected, the Fallen, and the Decepticon are very likely to launch a full-scale attack. Their savior, Sentinel Prime, whom they placed their hopes on, not only failed to bring hope but also stabbed them in the back.

The Fallen, Megatron, Sentinel Prime, Shockwave, Soundwave, Starscream...

Can we really win this war?

Even a veteran like Ironhide, with his strong mental fortitude, couldn't help but feel despair when faced with the enemy's powerful lineup.

"Egypt..."

Russell frowned. Heading to Egypt now would be suicide. Optimus Prime's body had been taken by the Autobots, and the Decepticon would definitely make targeted preparations.

Especially the Fallen, in order to prevent Optimus Prime from being resurrected, he may have already assigned Soundwave a mission to monitor every move around Egypt via satellite. Rushing there rashly would not be a wise move.

"Ironhide, Ratchet said that Optimus Prime's strength is likely to decline after his resurrection. We need to find a way to help him return to his peak condition."

"Do you have any good ideas?" Ironhide was overjoyed upon hearing this, and subconsciously thought of Russell's identity as a magician. He had used the Internet to collect a lot of information about magicians and found that it was a profession with no scientific basis and powerful abilities comparable to gods.

Russell raised an eyebrow. "Do you know about Skyfire?"

"Skyfire, I know him..." Ironhide frowned in thought, and after a moment said, "He's one of the oldest Transformers, even from the same era as the Exclusives. He's a legendary figure, his power is no less than that of the leaders, but... he's a Decepticon member!"

Hearing Ironhide say this, Russell breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that Optimus Prime had not come into contact with this legendary figure during his search for the key. "A Decepticon is tired of war and longs for peace can also help Optimus Prime. Let's go find him now."

"But they are still Decepticon!" Ironhide emphasized again, expressing his complete lack of affection for the Decepticon.

"Trust me! Besides, there's no other choice now. Optimus Prime, whose strength has declined, can't the Fallen, Megatron, and Sentinel Prime. You don't want to see him being destroyed again after his resurrection, leaving only the windshield. Maybe this time, all that's left is the windshield wipers."

Ironhide: "..."

Without agreeing or disagreeing, Optimus Prime chose to believe Russell, and could only respond with silence.

"Major, do you know which museums house the retired Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft of the United America?" Russell asked, turning around. The major from the Nest unit became Russell's liaison with the military.

"Please wait a moment, I'll go check the information." The major turned and left, returning to the deck shortly afterward with the printed documents.

Russell took the document and began to read it. The SR-71 Blackbird was a long-range, high-altitude, high-speed strategic reconnaissance aircraft of the US Air Force. A total of 32 were produced. Apart from a few that were mothballed and two that were still being used for flight research, the remaining aircraft were retired in three phases and all of them were permanently displayed in various museums or air force bases.

These places are known as the Blackbird Nests!

Apart from one at the Imperial War Museum in Britain, the remaining Blackbird Nests are scattered across major museums and air force bases in the America, with more than 20 nests in total.

The Air Zoo in Portitch, Michigan! Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio! Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon! Barksdale Air Force Base in Bosier City, Louise! Robins Air Force Base in Georgia! The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum New York

Russell recalled the plot, compared it with the pictures and text in the document, deleted them one by one, and finally confirmed the location where Skyfire was sleeping.

Located in Washington, D. C., the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum is the world's largest museum of flight, a privately-run institution dedicated to museum public works!

"This is it. Let's go find the Skyfire..."

At the naval base, a military transport plane loaded Optimus Prime's body, and the Autobots transformed and hid themselves before boarding the plane, heading to Washington as Russell had requested.

The major brought bad news to the Autobots: Sam may have been exposed because the Decepticon were acting very strangely, occupying a pyramid as a base and openly amassing troops.

The Egyptian military was forced to rebuild, and the America Pacific Fleet suffered heavy losses. Under pressure, Egypt defected and became the Decepticon's lackeys.

"Shortsighted bastards, this is a repeat of Munich. They will be destroyed by invaders just like Britain and France." The major cursed angrily. Now Egyptian airspace is under full martial law, and the sky is full of Decepticon. They can hardly move and have no way to send Optimus Prime there. Resurrection is even more absurd.

"Actually, I would like the Decepticon to have as many settlements as possible. I don't believe their shields can withstand a nuclear missile."

"But... that's a pyramid after all."

"This is something the Egyptians should consider!"

"That's right. For the sake of world peace, someone always has to make a sacrifice."

The soldiers of the Nest Army chatted amongst themselves, trying to figure out the fastest way to save the world. In the end, they concluded that this task would most likely fall to the America, since the United Nations headquarters was located in New York!

Russell took the document and glanced at it. The situation in Egypt was dire; calling it a disaster wouldn't be an exaggeration. Massive numbers of Decepticon were gathering, and meteors were constantly falling from the sky—their military strength was terrifyingly exaggerated.

But seeing the pyramids put Russell at ease. Sam hadn't revealed his location; the Decepticon did this to prevent Optimus Prime from attacking the Energy Matrix after his resurrection.

Without the AllSpark, the Power Cube is crucial; the Space Bridge can transport them to Cybertron, but that doesn't mean it's all over. The Decepticon still struggle with the survival of their race, and in this situation, the strategic significance of the Energy Matrix surpasses that of the Space Bridge.

With this in mind, Russell closed his eyes and began to rest. There was still some distance to Washington, and he needed to conserve his energy for the upcoming battle.

Washington!

The military received intelligence and made arrangements. The Blackbird reconnaissance plane that Skyfire transformed into was towed out of the museum and placed in the military base. Because of the Decepticon insignia, a group of long guns and short cannons were pointed at it, waiting for the Autobots to arrive.

The transport plane arrived in Washington, and under Russell's orders, Optimus Prime's body was dragged out. The Autobots and he came to the Bird Reconnaissance Plane.

Ironhide and the others took out their weapons and prepared for battle at any time. The human side also established an encirclement around the perimeter, using heavy firepower based on their experience in fighting the Decepticon.

"How can we wake him up? He looks exactly like Sentinel Prime." Ironhide tapped Blackbird with his hand, then gestured to the cannon barrel on his arm, pondering how to wake up this Decepticon veteran in a way he was familiar with.

Russell didn't speak, but moved closer to the blackbird's belly and placed his palm on it.

He has been studying the AllSpark fragments for some time. Although he is just a transmission tool and cannot control the flow of information, he has learned a lot in the process. He can't revive Optimus Prime when the AllSpark is extinguished, but waking up Skyfire in a deep sleep is not difficult for him.

Buzz!

A ring of Cybertron script spread out from beneath Russell's feet, enveloping the Skyfire like Magic Circle. Ironhide was startled and quickly retreated, raising his weapon in defense.

A chaotic current flickered in Russell's palm, and a blue halo spread out, sweeping across the entire Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft.

Click click click!

The sound of the transformation wasn't as smooth as other Transformers; it sounded more like rusty metal rubbing together, making your teeth ache.

As the Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft slowly transformed, the metal parts of the fuselage shifted, and to the astonishment of Jazz and the others, large pieces of metal clattered to the ground. The hunched figure, leaning on a cane, stood up shakily.

"Damn it, where am I? Who turned off the lights?"

The old, mechanical voice rang out, Skyfire seemed to realize something. He grunted and punched himself in the face, violently ripping off his rusty mask. After doing this, he was almost exhausted. He pressed his hands on his cane and let out heavy, panting breaths.

Compared to Transformers like Optimus Prime who are over 8 meters tall, Skyfire is considerably shorter, but that's because he's old. If Skyfire could straighten his old arms and legs and throw away his cane to stand up straight, he would definitely be a head taller than Optimus Prime.

"Ptooey!"

Skyfire surveyed his surroundings to assess the situation. Despite being surrounded, he showed no fear, opening his mouth to spit out an old tooth—the one he had knocked out when he punched the face earlier.

Who are you?

"Skyfire, put down your weapon... uh, put down your cane."

After saying that, Ironhide lowered the cannon barrel on his arm because he saw the oil pipeline of Skyfire. The poor old man had lost control of it and was leaking oil onto the ground.

Ironhide immediately judged that Skyfire posed no threat to him. He did hate the Decepticon, but he was also a proud and self-respecting warrior. He simply couldn't bring himself to point a gun at an old soldier whose oil pipeline had malfunctioned.

"You... you dare to underestimate me? Damn brat, I challenge you to a duel and show you the Eternity glory of Skyfire!" Skyfire didn't care that Ironhide was really respectful of his elders. When he saw the other party move the cannon muzzle away, he immediately flew into a rage.

Skyfire was old and had quite a temper. He angrily picked up his cane and took two steps toward Ironhide, then... stopped and rested on the spot.

"You little brat, show me your weapon and come face to face with me!" Skyfire took two more unsteady steps, then slipped on kerosene and fell flat on his back. He grunted and continued, "Who do you think you're fighting? Wait till I get up, I'm going to teach you a lesson!"

Ironhide: "..."

Ambulance, fix his fuel line, otherwise I can't bring myself to do it.