Los Angeles, Panda Plaza.
As the oldest and most central public square in the city, Panda Plaza was constantly filled with citizens seeking leisure and entertainment. It was late afternoon, approaching dusk, the liveliest hour of the day.
The square was teeming with people. Suddenly, a youth in a blue sun hat fell off his skateboard, drawing good-natured laughter from the crowd. However, the youth didn't scramble to retrieve his board. Instead, he pointed toward the sky, shouting in terror:
"Hey! What the hell is that?"
Most people in the square instinctively followed his gaze.
Whoosh—
Dozens of fireballs trailing long plumes of smoke roared across the horizon, looking like the harbinger of the apocalypse.
"Agh! Run!!"
The crowd shrieked and scattered in a panicked frenzy.
Boom—
The fireballs began to crash down in succession, instantly crushing those unlucky enough to be caught in their path. As the first metallic clang echoed from the crater of the initial strike, similar sounds erupted from the other impact sites. At the same time, a Cybertronian fighter jet shrieked across the sky.
"What a familiar scent!"
From the first crater, a figure emerged holding a long, black metal spear. "My brothers, I smell you. I have returned!"
As this figure appeared, the Cybertronian jet descended immediately. "My Master, you have arrived."
"Yes, my apprentice. I am here. I have come for my revenge."
The Fallen spoke with a sense of gravity, taking in the surrounding skyscrapers and the fleeing crowds. Millions of years ago, this species had been unclothed and lacked their own language; they had progressed significantly since then. Despite seeing them in recordings countless times, he was still surprised by the creative potential and developmental capacity of this race.
"My apprentice, where is the human boy?"
"Forgive me, Lord Fallen..."
A small Cybertronian assault craft descended over The Fallen's head, and Skygnaw transformed as he hit the ground.
Thud—
"Lord Megatron, Lord Fallen. The Autobots have jammed all signals. We have lost track of the human boy."
"Skygnaw!" Megatron roared before The Fallen could even speak. "Such a simple task, and you cannot even find one tiny human!"
"Lord Megatron," Skygnaw lowered his head slightly, affecting a tone of sincere apology. "Finding one person among billions is like searching for a needle in a haystack. With the Autobots providing cover, it is difficult to make progress in such a short time."
This, of course, was nonsense; Skygnaw hadn't bothered to look at all.
"Then force all of humanity to help us find him!" Megatron's anger softened slightly. "Now that my Master has descended, it is time for the world to know of our presence."
"You are right, my apprentice."
The Fallen took two steps forward and raised his right hand. A panicked scavenger, who had inadvertently run toward him, was hoisted into the air by an invisible force. The man was dressed in rags and clearly wasn't a local; he kept repeating phrases like "You can't do this to me, I'm a real American!" as if he felt no fear toward The Fallen. It was unclear where he found such courage.
Skygnaw watched the scene with interest. In the original series, The Fallen possessed telekinetic abilities that could lift dozens of tons. Skygnaw didn't understand the mechanics behind it; it seemed to be an innate ability of the Spark rather than the chassis. He did, however, recognize the metal spear in The Fallen's left hand.
That must be the Requiem Blaster scepter...
Skygnaw stole a glance at the relic. A divine weapon was called such not only for its "miraculous" functions but because its basic attributes, like sharpness and durability, far exceeded standard weapons. It was, in a word: powerful.
"No more hiding. No more lurking. And no more mercy!"
The Fallen walked toward the terrified scavenger, observed him for a moment, and then made a violent sweeping motion with his hand.
"AAAAAH!!"
Only a fading scream remained.
Thud—
The scavenger was slammed directly into a stone monument at the center of the fountain. The pool water turned crimson. As his pupils dilated, a hint of regret flashed in the man's eyes as he muttered one last thing: "The donuts were so good..."
Dozens of Decepticons stood in the square. Without orders from The Fallen, they remained motionless, yet their presence alone terrified the onlookers. The Fallen swept his gaze over the humans with disgust, then planted his scepter firmly in the ground, raising his hands high above his head.
Suddenly, a bolt of blue electricity shot from his hands into the sky. Every digital billboard on the surrounding financial towers flickered, and his face appeared across them all. Simultaneously, every satellite-linked device on the planet—phones, computers, and televisions—was hijacked by the same image.
The sight of that narrow, ugly mechanical head with its glowing red eyes sparked universal dread. Employees in offices, executives in meetings, diners in restaurants, pedestrians in shopping districts, students in classrooms—before any of them could process what was happening, the mechanical head spoke:
"Humans of Earth, greetings."
"You may be seeing me for the first time, but I have seen you since the dawn of your evolution."
"Your leaders have hidden the truth. You are not alone in the universe; you are not the only intelligent race."
"We have hidden among you, watching your every move. But no longer."
The mechanical head's expression turned ruthless. "Most of you may not understand our power. We can destroy your cities at will; our technology is vastly superior to yours."
"If you wish to avoid extinction, you must surrender this human boy!"
A photograph appeared in the corner of the screen, showing a young, slightly awkward teenager.
"If you dare to defy our orders, we shall immediately launch a war to destroy your planet..."
In that instant, the hidden truth was revealed to the entire world.
Then...
News Headlines: "Germany claims the broadcast was made through illegal satellite hacking..."
News Headlines: "Military experts state defense readiness has been raised to Level 3; war is a possibility..."
News Headlines: "President Mitchell has arrived at the UN Headquarters in New York; representatives from 176 nations have gathered to address the global broadcast..."
News Headlines: "The Bureau has launched an investigation into the boy identified as Sam Witwicky, claiming he holds the truth..."
News Headlines: "The Bureau, CIA, and Interpol are actively seeking international assistance..."
In an abandoned villa on the outskirts of Los Angeles, Leo watched the headlines on his phone, his mind reeling. He held the smartphone—a model recently released by Aura Group—with trembling hands. Back in the dorm, he had only wanted to watch the drama unfold; he never expected things to escalate to this.
Leo swiped the screen to see a video related to himself: "...we have established his general movements. He left school two days ago and has since disappeared. He is accompanied by his girlfriend and a roommate..."
Suddenly, Leo saw his own photo.
"Shit! I've been caught!"
"Sam, we're dead!"
Leo ran into the first floor of the villa, shouting at Sam and Mikaela: "Hey! You guys need to see this!"
Sam sat on a tattered sofa in the living room, his head buried in his knees. Mikaela was by his side. Since the battle two days ago, the three had been hiding here to avoid the Decepticons.
"Bro..." Leo ran up to them. "That ugly alien monster named you specifically."
"The Bureau and CIA are hunting us, and even the regular police are involved. We're finished..."
Sam looked at Leo for a moment, then stood up and walked toward the exit without a word.
"Look at this first, Sam!" Leo chased after him, holding out the phone. "The nature of the whole situation has escalated, right?"
Sam stopped, snatched the phone from Leo, and waved it in front of him. "Don't you realize the Decepticons can use this to find us?"
He threw the phone to the ground and stomped it into pieces.
"Oh, no..." Leo looked at the shattered device with heartache. "Don't they just track us via satellite?"
"You can't imagine what they're capable of!"
"Fine, whatever," Leo threw up his hands. "I'm not part of your crew anyway."
"Actually, I'm a hostage. I was kidnapped by you guys. I'm not going to fight aliens with—"
"Hey! Leo, how's it going!" Skids jumped out from nowhere, with Mudflap following close behind.