Earlier that day after Bludgeon and his crew made their raid, the girls all packed their things that they had took over to Applejack's, and loaded them into the trunks of their Autobot partners. The Autobots had offered to do the luggage carrying, especially from all the fighting that had just occurred at Applejack's farm, no less. In all the recovery, they were able to wrap up Fluttershy's wounds, and patch up Trailbreaker a bit. He was still functioning, but he needed to get some more repairs back at base from Rest-Q.

"So guys, I know I was only gone for a day--"

"--technically a couple of hours!" Pinkie interjected.

"--but you haven't even told me, what happened since I left?"

"Its an awful lot, Sunset," Jazz called, just as Pinkie Pie closed the door on the shotgun side for her luggage. "And I think it'd be better if you heard it from all of us."

"That's kind of vague, isn't it?" Applejack observed.

"I'm just sayin', its pretty bad."

"Well, lets get going then."

"Right!" Wheeljack replied.

He tapped a control console on the side of his arm, entering in the commands to go back at The Ark. Just then, a Groundbridge appeared before them, ready to go back home. The girls sat in the shotgun seats of the cars, and once they were all strapped in, they were ready to go. And as smooth as butter, the Autobot guardians passed through the portal, vanishing from Applejack's homestead.

On the other side, there were a few Autobots waiting for them. Sunset instantly recognized them; Arcee, Strongarm, Hoist, Grapple, Bluestreak, just to name a few. All of them looked a little displeased, and even a little mad. She could only imagine because of Jazz's group's sudden departure without letting any of them know.

"Whoa, talk about small. Is this really all that's left?" Rainbow Dash asked before Sideswipe's door opened up. Sideswipe transformed first.

"That's not it, but there isn't really many of us left, I can guarantee that," Sunstreaker answered.

Everyone transformed and the girls all stepped out.

"Hey guys, we're back!" Rainbow hollered.

The five Autobots standing before them didn't change their faces. For about two seconds.

"You're back!"

"Welcome back girls."

"Great to see some familiar faces again."

The girls walked up and shook hands with some of their old friends, greeted with some friendly smiles and warm welcomes. Sunset couldn't help but smile too. It was nice seeing them still being friendly to each other, even after all those years.

"Sunset, you're back early. Shouldn't you be on vacation? Or are you just here for a visit?" Hoist asked.

"Guys, I'm afraid vacation's cut short," Sunset said. "You can thank the three Decepticons who attacked us a few hours ago."

The Autobots stopped.

"Who exactly, attacked?" Strongarm wondered.

"Thunderblast, Bludgeon, and I have a strong feeling the third one is someone else we know. Now... I'm not going to ask why they're out of jail, I just want to know how," Sunset said with some disappointment.

"You want to know how?" A new voice interrupted.

Arcee and Strongarm moved out of the way, letting Mohawk pass through. Being such human size, the tiny two-wheeler was just face to face with Sunset when he got her attention.

"We got our cans handed to us, that's what happened. And in a few hours, I've lost three of my best friends to a psychopath!"

Sunset stopped. "Wait, what? What happened while I was gone, what did I miss?

"What didn't you miss?" This time, Blitzwing was the one to step forward. And almost immediately his face changed to complete rage."You bitch! You leave for one day and everything falls apart! We lost seven teammates, the Decepticons got away, and the compounding clunk that's leading them is one of your own who we thought was dead!" Then switched over to crazy. "But at least with you back, we'll have better help taking down a zombie uprising! AHAHAHAHA!"

Sunset raised a finger, and let it droop.

"Um... I'm sorry?"

Spitfire pushed some of the Wonderbolts out of the way, only to be right up in Sunset's face with a face of rage. Skin was turning red and her hair was on fire.

"Only after a few hours when you left did things fall apart! First off, we've lost a lot of people! Inferno, Roadblock, Berserker, Dive-Dive, a lot of them! Not only that, but a new threat has their hands on a few dangerous Decepticons!"

Sunset flinched from her yelling. "H-How many of them?"

"FIVE OF THEM! ... Okay Steve's actually not that dangerous, he's actually okay--FOUR! FOUR DANGEROUS DECEPTICONS!" Spitfire started up again. "And on top of that, our new recruits that arrived did a pretty damn good job of making sure they escaped! Their interference led our negotiations to just die, and they made sure the enemy got what they wanted, and we couldn't even save their hostage!"

"Who, what--who were they holding hostage?"

"How the hell should I know!? It's not my kid!" Spitfire continued to scream. She was only getting more and more riled up. "All I know is that those Decepti-punks now have a freakin' eight-year-old kid as a hostage, and they still have him!"

The girls gasped.

"WHAT!?" Pinkie Pie gasped.

"And on top of all that, the shuttle that came down here has taken out our only means of communicating with Optimus Prime, Heatseeker's missing, Ironhide is dead, we have no special cargo, and I had to deal with an out of control psycho woman who wants to go on a killing spree! all of this went down in the few hours you left, and in other words; WE ARE ALL SCREWED!!!" Spitfire yelled in the biggest yell she could possibly let out. She yelled so much that if glass could shatter, it would. And it actually did, the windows hanging off of Strongarm's back shattered to broken glass. She jolted from surprise,.

A blanket of silence was dropped. Now that Spitfire had let everything out, she was just trying to take a few deep breaths to calm down from her rage. Sunset couldn't believe her eyes. All of this? One day, one day and everything was starting to fall apart. This was too much for her to handle.

"Oh, no..." Sunset put her face in her palms.

"Spitfire, hey, come on, that's not completely necessary," Wheeljack spoke up.

"YES IT IS!!!" Spitfire shouted.

"Enough," Jazz boomed. "We all agreed that Sunset needed a vacation, and it was the right thing to do. Sunset needed a break, and guess what; none of us knew this was going to happen. We never know when something bad is going to happen, not when Megatron returned, not when Galvatron came down on us with an entire army, and certainly not here."

Spitfire's arms crossed.

"You know we're not denying anything that's happening, do you?" Tracks asked.

The captain's eyes rolled in the back of her head. Right now she just wanted to throw herself into something comfortable and just forget all her issues right here and now.

Twilight however noticed that Sunset wasn't exactly taking it all in so easily. She looked distraught, like someone had just rejected a gift, or yelled at a child. Eyes were blank, but her jaw was hanging a bit, just trying to let everything sink in.

"Sunset? Are you okay?"

Sunset didn't say anything. Instead, she just walked away. She walked straight into a different room, and closed the door behind her. Twilight and her friends couldn't say or do anything but just watch her step away.

"I think the poor darling needs some time alone," Rarity observed. "Perhaps we should give Sunset her space until she's completely recollected."

"Agreed," everyone chimed.

"Wait, where did Applejack go?" Fluttershy asked.

---

When the news struck about Ironhide's demise, Applejack almost immediately went to look for him. It didn't take long, as he was found just resting dead inside the medical ward. Rest Q was hesitant, but allowed her to come inside so she could see him. Applejack had no words when her eyes were dead set on the deceased Autobot in front of her. She couldn't comprehend it, the fact that Ironhide was... dead. He laid cold as ice before her eyes, and there was nothing she could do or say to bring him back. He was completely offline, and now was in the well of the Allsparks.

Applejack's eyes closed, and she took her cowgirl hat off her head. She placed her hat over her heart, and closed her eyes. But they didn't stay closed for long, with the pat on her shoulder. She looked up; it was Trailbreaker.

"I'm sorry Applejack. I really am."

Applejack couldn't help but sigh. "I just... I can't believe he's gone. My best friend is... just gone like that."

Trailbreaker nodded. "Neither can I..." But he looked to Applejack with a small but friendly smile. "But you know, I have a feeling that if he was here... he'd be proud knowing how far you've come."

Applejack's hand patted the fingertip of Trailbreaker. "Yeah. I guess so."

Trailbreaker kneed down, trying to move closer so he could get face to face. "And I know it's hard. Really, I do. But if you ever want someone to talk to... I'll listen."

Applejack smiled. "Thank you."

Half an hour passed since Sunset went into her own room, and she still hadn't left her room. The girls waited, hoping she would step out, but she hadn't. Twilight in particular wasn't going to sit and wait anymore at this point. She had to know she was okay, she just had to--

"Twilight."

The girls looked at Spitfire. She sounded a lot more calm than she did a few minutes ago, and she was now talking normally without any rage or anger in her voice. Her words were sounding more genuine now.

"Wheeljack caught me up on what happened. If you girls need to stay here, then we'll provide any accommodations we need. But I think right now, Sunset needs some time alone. And maybe some sleep."

"Sleep?"

Spitfire shook her head. "That girl never sleeps. Almost every night I swear she gets up in the middle of it, and never goes back. But with you all here... maybe she'll finally get some rest."

"Well I'm checking on her anyway," Twilight said, almost ignoring Spitfire's warning.

Sunset sat in silence, sitting on the edge of a step in her room. A few pictures and memories laying all about, cluttered. Some piles of paperwork scattered about on a desk next to a personal computer, a few trunks laying with some of her clothes, and so much more. It'd be hard to try and find anything in that mess of a room.

In one of her fingers, she was twirling around a pen, something she always did to keep her fingers occupied.

"Sunset?"

Twilight walked into the room and sat next to her friend, observing her down state. She patted her shoulder.

"Sunset, I know that's a lot to take in. But its not your fault."

Sunset sighed heavily. "But it is. Its my responsibility to make sure nothing goes wrong, but... I let it happen. Seven of our friends are dead, we have a new Decepticon menace who now has his or her hands on bunch of convicts, and a child's life is at stake!"

"Sunset!"

Twilight turned Sunset around to look her in the eye, holding her shoulders. Twilight didn't reply with much anxiety as Sunset was showing. In fact, she didn't look anxious at all, she seemed more calmer than ever.

"I know you're worried. I am too. But you've handled situations like this before, and you've always succeeded, haven't you?"

Sunset nodded.

"And we faced bigger challenges before, didn't we? Remember when we first met Optimus Prime and the others?"

Sunset couldn't help but smile. "And we had all those issues trying to blend in with them..."

"Or what about when the Shadowbolts joined us and Starscream took over as leader?"

Sunset chuckled. "The looks on their faces when the Shadowbolts came..."

"Or even... Unicron?"

Sunset's smile faded.

"It took all our willpower to take him down, I didn't even think we would make it," Sunset's head lowered.

"But we did. And you know something? If we can handle all of them, then I'm sure we can face them too. I know we wanted to go our own ways, but maybe just this once we can..." Twilight stopped. "Sunset?"

She looked down and listened to a soft snore coming from her. She almost sounded like a horse when she snored, so cute! But Twilight couldn't get mad. She remembered Spitfire's warning. And so carefully, she lifted up Sunset and tried to push her onto the bed, giving her a more comfortable place to lay down.

She smiled, pulling the covers over her, and gave a brief hug. "Sleep tight, Sunset."

She got back up, quietly walking out of the room, and closed the door. On the other side, she saw her friends waiting.

"Is Sunset okay?" Fluttershy asked.

"She is, but I think its safe to say she's tuckered out."

Applejack shook her head. "Sleepless nights, that'll do a number on you."

"Right. But I think we should let her sleep. From how quick she fell, it sounded like she hadn't slept in days."

"Well how can you? You've got a big super-duper responsibility running everything at a secret base that can't be known to the public eye, because if it does, then the entire world goes into super-duper freakout mode, and then Sunset will never be able to sleep again knowing that she couldn't protect the biggest secret of the planet, and then the Autobots are all going to be hunted down by the military who hates all machines, and then Optimus Prime will go into super rage mode over the loss of his friends, and then they'll start acting like how the public is going to view them, and before you know it, the entire world spins into complete chaos!" Pinkie Pie rambled.

Everyone blinked.

Pinkie's head sunk a bit. "I uh... I think a lot."

"Well, what do we do now? I mean, we can't back out there with those Decepticons out there," Fluttershy said.

"And we can't just stay here either. I don't know about ya'll, but I've got a feelin' whoever's leading these Decepticons are after somethin' big. Remember the news a few hours ago? Sour Sweet's home destroyed, Indigo and Hound chased out of the military cause of a 'mysterious helicopter'? Someone out there, is huntin' down our closest friends and Autobots like poachers in Africa," Applejack replied.

"But if we can't leave or stay, then what do we do?" Rarity wondered. "We have families that need us, we can't just abandon them!"

"We're not going to. But if we don't stop these Decepticons, then we won't be safe again."

"What are you getting at, Twilight?" Rainbow asked, leaning against a wall.

Twilight took a deep breath and looked at everyone in the eye.

"We stay, and we fight."

"WHAT!?" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"I know we all wanted nothing to do with Decepticons anymore, and there's nothing wrong with that. We just wanted to live in peace, but the only way we can is if we take them down." Twilight spoke. "I know its a lot to ask. And no one has to say yes. But I have to, Sunset needs my help, and I can't let her do this alone."

Everyone looked at each other, sharing a glance or two. Some of them looked a little concerned with the overall idea, especially knowing they would have to go back into the world of fighting and possible death. But this wasn't new to them. These were the same kind of bots they battled all those years ago.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on. You're not going to take all the glory, are you? We're in this together!" Rainbow Dash smiled.

"We've always got each other's backs," Applejack grinned.

"Indeedy!" Pinkie Pie smiled, popping from underneath one of the grates in the floor.

Rarity smirked with a battle-ready smile. "I am ready to save our planet once again!"

"Yay," Fluttershy squeaked.

"Then its settled! Tomorrow, we get back in the field and take down the Decepticons!"

Everyone let out a cheer, accompanied by a few laughs and smiles. They were ready to get back in action, and save the world once again!

---

The Kansas plains at night were lively with tons of lush green and farmland. The sounds of crickets filled the air as far as anyone could hear if they walked. Only one car was driving late at night, the 1940s World War jeep that disguised Autobot Hound. He had been driving non-stop since the attack on the early sunrise, so much so he didn't take a chance to stop. Not once. He had been so focused on trying to get as far as he could he didn't even think about how Indigo Zap was. But even she didn't question him. Most of all, she was just worried about her friend. But she was slowly drifting away.

Indigo Zap held an arm up to the side of her face as Hound's engine roared on the open road, the wind blowing through her hair. She was slowly dozing off, almost ready to go to bed. But she knew falling asleep in that car was unlikely. She never slept in a car, she never was able to anyway.

"Hey Indigo? You hungry? There's a town a few miles ahead, we can take a rest stop."

Indigo's head jolted up, from Hound's sudden response. The first thing he said since they arrived in Kansas in fact.

"No, its okay. I'm not hungry," Indigo said, looking into the rear-view mirror.

"I'm pulling over anyway. I need to stretch."

Hound's wheels turned to the right, and drove through a cornfield. Just up ahead, Hound could see a farm house, standing there. A sign was perked in front of it, for sale. Checking all around, Indigo and Hound looked to see if there were any humans nearby. Not a thing. And there wasn't any cars parked around near the house. Seemed to be safe for now.

Indigo jumped out, and Hound transformed into robot mode. "Ah, finally..." He raised his arms up, cracking his knuckles and servos. He shook his legs and tilted his head around in all directions. When he opened his eyes, he could see Indigo standing still, staring off into the distance, over a fence that was blocking off a section of the field.

Hound walked over to where Indigo stood, and took a knee out so he could get down close to the ground. Indigo's face was just pointblank neutral, gazing off at the horizon.

"Admiring the scenery?" Hound asked.

Indigo didn't answer his question. "Hound. Are you alright?"

Hound stopped. "What? Well, aside from a few of the shells still stuck in my armor, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

Indigo looked up to her military friend with a frown. "You didn't say a word since we left Colorado."

Hound's spark sunk. Now he understood. The veteran sighed, and put a hand over Indigo's shoulder, patting her.

"I don't really know Indigo. I mean, I didn't see it happen, but... something inside me just feels wrong. What if Ironhide did die? That's not something the Decepticons joke about."

"You don't believe that Decepti-creep, do you?"

Hound sighed. "I don't want to. But I'm also scared to find out if its true or not..."

Indigo blinked. "Then what if we go back to Nevada? We find Team Prime, and join them once again."

"We're too far out. Any more hours we spend trying to go back to Nevada, another Autobot or close friend of ours could be the next victim. And I have a good feeling that Blackout is not alone."

"Well, what do we do then?" Indigo asked with a yawn.

Hound looked to Indigo and ruffled up her hair a bit. "I'll figure something out. You should get some sleep." Hound reached into his back, pulling out a few of the bags that was just thrown into his trunk. Indigo, despite being tired as she would get out, managed to set up a cot and winded up falling fast asleep as soon as she laid down on it. Hound just smiled and put a blanket over her.

"See you in the morning, partner."

Indigo didn't hear his statement. She was already leaving straight into the dreamland for a nice peaceful rest. A sight that Hound found admittedly adorable.

A few minutes was all it took for Hound to finish up setting up some covers to keep Indigo Zap warm, the covers set up like a tent. Once she was all secure and safe for the night, Hound stood back up and stared off into the stars. A finger tapped on the side of his radio frequency, and he began to speak.

"Calling all Autobots. This is Hound. I have reason to believe we are under targeted attack. If there are any Autobots out there, anywhere in the world, find any surviving Autobot within proximity, and keep in close contact. Best of all, do not let the Decepticons hunt you down. Stay safe, Autobots."

And when his transmission ended, he just stared off into the night sky. Blissfully waiting, and hoping that somewhere out there, the Autobots would hear his call...

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