Meanwhile in a different part of the world, in the desert, a US Army base was winding down for the night. The base had tan tents, reinforced sandbags, and steel shipping containers, all inside a perimeter of razor-wire fencing. There were rows of Humvees and M1A1 Abrams tanks. Massive floodlights on towers were patrolling the area.
A man dressed in full military combat gear walked through the base. He had a tan tactical load-bearing vest and various pouches. He had a visible American flag patch and a unit insignia present on his right sleeve with a shemagh scarf around his neck. "We are done for the day," he said. "Still alive Epps," he added.
"I'm telling you, Captain Lennox," Epps grumbled. He was wearing his military uniform with a digital camouflage pattern. He had a bright red beret. "When I get back, I'm spending forty-eight hours in a pool. Not a shower. A pool. And I want someone to throw ice cubes at me periodically," he said. "Dont you think, Donnelly?" he asked.
"Ice cubes? Look at you getting fancy," Staff Sergeant Donnelly chimed in. "I just want a burger that wasn't cooked in a microwave or a sandstorm. Is that too much to ask for, Cap?" he asked.
"Donnelly, after the way you drove that humvee today, you're lucky I'm even letting you have a seat on the plane. You hit every crater between here and the border," Lennox responded.
"Tactical evasion, sir," Donnelly grinned.
"Tactical evasion my butt," Epps responded. "I thought I was going to lose my lunch," he added. "What about you, Captain? What's the first thing on the list? A steak? A nap?" he asked.
"I've got a daughter I haven't even met yet. I think I'll start with holding her. Then maybe the nap," Lennox responded.
"The 'Dad' talk. Here we go," Epps teased. "Better enjoy the silence now, Cap. Once that baby starts crying, you're gonna be begging for a quiet desert patrol," he added.
Lennox chuckled. "Maybe," he chuckled. At that moment, he stopped. The air around them suddenly hummed with a strange, low-frequency vibration. "You hear that?" Lennox whispered as his hand went to his sidearm.
They could all hear a helicopter.
At that moment, in the air traffic control tower, the radar pinged an object. A sergeant leaned in and squinted at the green sweep. "I've got an inbound MH-53 Pave Low. Tail number 4500X," he said.
The controller frowned. "Check that again. 4500X was shot down over Afghanistan three months ago. There are no survivors," he responded.
"Where is it going?" one soldier asked.
"It is landing," the controller responded.
Below, the massive helicopter touched down on the pad. It didn't power down. The rotors kept spinning and kicked up a blinding grit that forced the ground crew to shield their eyes. Military police vehicles sped toward the craft.
"Identify yourself! Shut down your engines now!" the loudspeakers blared.
The helicopter sat in eerie silence. Then, the mechanical screaming began. His body parts start to change. He transformed into a heavily armored and mechanical body, featuring dark metallic plating with green and silver patterns. His face was sharp and angular, with glowing red eyes. The figure's head was crowned with jagged, spiked plating, and its body was covered in complex machinery, including cables, gears, and vents. The robot's shoulders were broad and armored, with various mechanical components extended outward. Blackout stood forty feet tall.
"What is that thing?" someone screamed.
"EMP," Blackout said as he launched a localized EMP blast. At that moment, the base went dark. Lights flickered out, and the hum of computers died.
Lennox, Epps and Donnelly watched from behind a concrete barrier as the mechanical body hummed.
Blackout turned his attention to a line of parked F-22 Raptors. His right arm shifted, the metal plates slid and locked. "Heavy Cannon Salvo," Blackout commanded as the gears in his forearm rotated and revealed a dual-barrel thermal cannon. The muzzles began to glow. He fired a series of piercing thermal rounds which erupted from the cannon. It sliced through the air with a screeching hiss. Each round hit the jets and destroyed them. There was a large fireball and explosion which shook the base.
Lennox popped up from cover. He aimed his gun and pressed the trigger. He unloaded the entire magazine into the giant's armored shin. "Epps! Use the flare! Give the boys in the air something to look at," he ordered.
Epps was fumbling with his gear. "I am on it," he replied as he threw the flare.
Blackout noticed the stinging fire at his feet.
"Rotor Blade Cleave," Blackout said as the massive helicopter blades on his back detached and spun forward and. The blades through the base's water tower and the control tower's support beams in one motion. They both fell over and were destroyed. There was a massive explosion which rocked the base. Black smoke was emitted from the burning wreckage.
"We can't stay here," Lennox yelled over the roar of the fires. "He's leveling the entire grid," he added.
Blackout stood in the center of the inferno. He looked at the command center and walked towards it.
Inside the command centre, there was chaos. "He's hacking the mainframe," a technician yelled. "It's not a standard breach, it's like it's talking to the computer," he added.
On the screen, a progress bar crept forward. There was an image flickering through. Then a name appeared. "Project Iceman."
Outside, Lennox looked around. "Epps! Get the SATCOM! We need to warn them!" he shouted.
"Everything's fried, Cap," Epps shouted back as he dived behind a humvee.
Blackout leaned over the command center, his massive claw-like hands ripped the roof off the building.
"They're hitting the firewall," the technician cried out. "I'm cutting the hardlines! It's the only way," he said. He swung his fire axe and cut the cables. The download stalled at 97%.
Enraged, Blackout let out a mechanical roar that vibrated in the soldiers' marrow. He deployed a small, metallic creature from his back, which dived into the sand.
"Move, Move," Lennox barked as they raced towards the perimeter. "We stay in the dunes! If we stay on the base, we're dead," he added.
As they sprinted into the dark desert, Lennox looked back. The base was in flames. The giant remained and its glowing red eyes searched the horizon. "Deceptions, we need to go there to find more," he said.
"I am on it," Goddess Barracide responded.
Blackout nodded. He started to transform back and flew away.
On the other side of the world, the air cracked with a violent discharge of energy. There was a bright light and a silhouette of people appeared. As the light faded, the group staggered, the world around them was blurring. There was a high-pitched ringing in their ears.
"Everyone okay?" James asked.
Rei stumbled. "Why is this always so difficult," she muttered.
"I can almost handle it," Jasmine remarked. She blinked rapidly to clear her vision.
Musubi swayed left and right. She panted and put her hands on her knees. "My head is spinning but I did not fall down," she said.
Lefi stood a few feet away and crossed her arms. "A clumsy way to travel," she huffed as her tail flickered.
Saeko put her hand on her katana. Her vision had cleared and she looked toward the end of the suburban street, where the sound of a lawnmower and the distant bark of a dog could be heard. "Danna-sama, we are here," she said.
Lois stopped forward and looked around the corner of the alley. She could see a quiet neighborhood. "Looks like America," Lois commented.
James looked around as well. They were standing in a quiet, sun-drenched cul-de-sac. There were neat lawns, two-car garages and double storey houses.
Rei took a step forward. "Tranqulity," she read on the sign.
"We're in the right place," James said as he spotted a familiar, beat-up yellow Camaro parked down the street. "This is Sam Witwicky's neighborhood," he added. He looked at the Multiversal Remote. The holographic display read, Universe: Transformer - 2007 Timeline.
"There is one issue," James said.
"What is it?" Rei questioned.
"Musubi can solve problems," Musubi said as she clenched her fist.
James chuckled and patted her head. "We can punch ourselves out of this one," James responded.
Musubi felt her head being patted and smiled. She leaned into it.
Rei, Lefi and Saeko look at her. They all wanted it as well.
"The issue is this universe does not have the female transformer," James responded as he let go of Musubi. "But," he added as he opened the faceplate. He saw another silhouette. It was a broad-shouldered alien covered in armour plating on his back, shoulders, and the backs of his arms. It had four claws on both of his hands. "Not this one," he remarked. He thought he had not used Cannonbolt in a while. He did remember when he did it he got a big hug from everyone.
James turned the faceplate to see the silhouette of a large muscular man with a big chest. He looked like he had a six-pack. His hair was in a ponytail. His lower body looked like a cloud of mist.
"Dost thou intend to warp the fabric of existence again?" Lefi questioned.
"Like the time before," Rei remarked.
James nodded.
He smiled and slammed down the faceplate. His body was engulfed in a brilliant, pulsating light. The air crackled with energy. James' body distorted, his limbs elongated. In a surge of radiant energy, James` features reshape. His fingers morphed into three large fingers. His black hair tied into a ponytail. His chin got larger and he grew a beard. His chest got larger and a six pack formed. James`s skin turned green. He wore a red sash and gold earring. His pants became green as well. The Ultimatrix symbol appeared on his chest.
"Genie," Genie said.
Lois, Jasmine, Saeko, Musubi, Lefi, Rei saw James had transformed into a ;large green muscular man. They could see it was James but not James.
"We have seen him before," Rei remarked as she looked at his muscles.
Lefi nodded. "He is, in sooth, most puissant," Lefi said. She knew what he was capable off.
"He is good on the eyes," Lois commented as she saw his bulky body.
"All of them are bulky," Rei said.
"Someone is looking very closely," Saeko said as she licked her lips.
"You are practically drooling," Rei said as she looked at Saeko.
Saeko wiped the drool off her face with her hand.
"James is amazing," Musubi said as she punched the air.
Jasmine smiled. "There are fluffy ones," she remarked.
Genie sighed. "I wish for the Female Autobots to be brought to this world and bound to James Everhart. Let them be made compatible in every way for intimate and close relationships, joining his harem as devoted partners. I wish for them to have the ability to conceive and bear his children," Genie said.
Rei, Yuriko and Lefi looked at him as he said those words.
"He is not even going to spare them," Rei commented.
"We knew that was coming," Jasmine said.
A blinding green light erupted, not just from the horizon, but from the very atoms of the atmosphere. It engulfed the world in a green light. It stretched across the solar system, the sun's gold was eclipsed by a green flare that raced past the planets like a solar gale. The very ground beneath them trembled violently. The planetary shudder that was mirrored on every moon and tectonic plate across the galaxy, as if the universe itself was bracing for a fundamental change.
The intensity of the moment stretched into an eternal heartbeat. The light pulsed and grew, thickening until the vacuum of space seemed to hum with raw power. Then, as quickly as the reality-warping surge had arrived, it vanished. The blinding green light snapped back into the void, leaving a deep, unsettling silence that hung over the cosmos for a fraction of a second.
Then, the universe exhaled. On Earth, the stillness shattered as the mundane world rushed back into life.
Then, without warning, a sharp red flash started to appear on the Ultimatrix. The familiar sound of the Ultimatrix timing out followed. In a burst of red light, Genie's towering form dissipated, shrinking down into the all-too-human form of James.
"Again," James muttered to himself. He glanced at the Ultimatrix, which was red. He'd only seen this with Genie. He thought it does really use this much power. He could feel the entire universe shake for a nano-second.
"James, are you okay?" Rei asked.
James smiled back. "I am but like last time, the Ultimatrix, might have used more power," James responded.
"Verily, I dost agree, it hath the power to alter reality," Lefi said.
"Wow, that's incredible," Musubi said.
"Did you know what James did?" Jasmine asked.
"Nope," Musubi replied confidently and smiled.
Lois giggled.
"That is not something to be happy about," Rei remarked.
"Shall we proceed?" Lefi asked.
"Yes, we are going to need some supplies," James responded.
"Supplies?" Rei asked. "What type?" she questioned.
"Specifically, we need to find a heavy-duty lead-lined box," he responded.
They all nodded and headed into a massive local hardware store.
"We have put the weapon in the bag," Rei said.
"I still have my lasso of submission," Jasmine remarked.
"My fists are my weapons," Musubi said as she skipped on the road.
"Yes but Lefi looks a little different," Rei said.
"We will just say she is cosplaying," James responded.
"Will that work?" Rei asked.
"People will believe pretty much anything," Saeko responded.
Lois and Jasmine looked around.
"Are we looking for something back in your home?" Jasmine asked as she looked at Rei.
James responded, "Yeah and it's there." They looked to see a hardware store. The group entered the store.
"A lead-lined storage chest? In a place that sells lawnmowers and birdseed?" Rei asked as she looked at a display of garden hoses. "James, why on earth would a normal store like this even carry something like that?" he asked.
James shrugged as he pulled a heavy, reinforced lead box from a bottom shelf near the welding equipment. "In America, you'd be surprised what you can find in a place like this. Survivalists, X-ray hobbyists, or people just paranoid about the end of the world,. there's a market for everything," he responded.
"The American way," Lois proudly said.
Lefi looked forward. "It is a box," Lefi remarked. "Why must we carry this dead weight?" she asked.
"Insurance, Lefi," James replied. "Your magic is powerful but we always need a back-up plan," he replied.
Musubi beamed. She held the heavy box with one hand. "I will take care of it," she said.
The clerk at the counter looked at them. "You are strong," he muttered.
"I have got this," Lois said as she paid for the box.
Musubi and Lefi's stomach then rumbled. Lefi blushed.
"Let's go and get something to eat," James said.
They all headed to a Diner and walked in. The smell of grease and coffee was in the air.
They took a large corner booth and sat around. 'Tis but a reflection of the world we hath left behind," Lefi said.
"From Monster Masume, yes," James responded. "Even Sekirei was similar," he added.
"Once my world was like this," Rei said as she looked out the window.
James moved and held Rei`s hand. He smiled at her. "We will go and save her," James responded.
"Danna-sama sees someone to join him," Saeko teased.
At that moment, a waitress approached them. She had her notepad ready, but she froze when her eyes landed on the dragon girl. "Oh, wow honey, those are some amazing prosthetics," the waitress said as she leaned in to get a closer look at Lefi's horns. "Is there a convention in town? The detail is incredible," she added.
James smiled at the waitress. "Something like that. She's a dedicated cosplayer. We're part of a... promotional tour," he responded. "We'll take the 'Grand Slam' dinner for everyone, and whatever the largest dessert you have," he added.
"Right away, handsome," the waitress chirped as she leaned over the table just a bit too far and gave James a playful wink.
The atmosphere at the table shifted instantly. Saeko narrowed her eyes as she glared at the woman. Musubi simply beamed at James with a bright smile. Rei, however, didn't say a word and stared at him with a flat, unblinking expression that screamed, 'Don't even think about it.'
"Well lets dig in," James said.
After a few hours, they had finished dinner and headed towards a local hotel they had scouted.