"Whoa! What the hell are these things?!"
Just as he put away the fire extinguisher, Sam turned around only to be tripped by something small and fast. He looked down and found his bedroom swarming with tiny robots—a pack of Mini-Decepticons!
"Da-da-da!"
The little monsters screeched gibberish, firing tiny, high-frequency projectiles at Sam. Two of them even brandished a fork and a steak knife, charging at him with feral intent.
"F-word! Where did these guys even come from?!"
Though the Mini-Decepticons' firepower was too low to be lethal, they were annoying enough to send Sam scrambling. After a chaotic game of hide-and-seek, Sam saw an opening and lunged for the bedroom window.
In the yard, Ronald was carrying two cans of gasoline toward the front when he heard the commotion upstairs. He looked up just in time to see his son tumbling out of the second-story window.
"Sam! What are you doing? What happened?!" Ronald shouted in a panic.
"Dad, get down!"
Sam didn't have time to explain. He landed on the porch roof and slid down to the lawn. Before he could catch his breath, the Mini-Decepticons came pouring out of the window after him like a metallic waterfall.
Whiz—BOOM!
A spinning micro-missile whistled past Ronald's ear. He dropped the gas cans instantly, performing a desperate combat roll behind the yard's only fountain.
"What are those things, Sam?!"
"I think they're the kitchen appliances!" Sam yelled from behind a flowerbed. He turned toward the garage and bellowed at the top of his lungs: "BUMBLEBEE!"
VROOM!
The roar of a high-performance engine tore through the air as a brand-new Camaro smashed through the garage door. Before even reaching the center of the yard, the car shifted and expanded into its robotic form.
"Ugh... a bunch of disgusting little pests!"
Through his radio-voice, Bumblebee sounded genuinely annoyed. He deployed his plasma cannon and began a systematic purge of the tiny Decepticons, who didn't even rank as Basic-tier warriors.
BOOM!
With a series of precise shots, Bumblebee made quick work of the kitchen horde. However, the price of victory was a yard riddled with craters, and a stray shot had unfortunately scorched Sam's bedroom wall.
Looking at the blackened, flaming wreckage of the second floor, Sam felt like crying. "Bumblebee! You blew up my house!"
"They weren't even as tall as your knees! Couldn't you have used a flyswatter or something?!"
"What's going on?! What happened—AH!"
Judy came rushing out of the house, only to trip over a fresh crater in the walkway. She went flying, landing flat on her back.
"Sam, call the fire department!" Ronald shouted, rushing to Judy's side.
"I already did!" Sam grabbed his head in frustration, looking at the mess. "Bumblebee, maybe I shouldn't have called you. Get back in the garage, quick!"
Bumblebee shrugged, pointing at the scorched house and the ruined yard as if to say, Collateral damage is part of the job.
"Garage! Now! They're coming!"
Sirens wailed as fire trucks turned onto Crescent Drive. Right behind them was a red motorcycle, ridden by a woman in tight black leather, her silhouette cutting a striking figure against the chaos.
Before the firefighters could reach the door, Sam sprinted into the kitchen. He found the AllSpark shard on the dining table and, using a pair of tongs, carefully dropped it into a heavy glass jar.
"Hurry up! What are you people waiting for? My house is melting!" Judy screamed at the firefighters, clutching Mojo and Frankie—whose doghouse had been vaporized in the skirmish.
Mikaela pulled into the yard and pulled off her helmet, letting her wavy auburn hair cascade down.
"Hi, Mikaela," Judy called out, breathless. "Sorry you have to see the Witwicky disaster show. You're just in time for the fire."
"It's fine, Ju—"
"Hey, Mikaela! Over here!" Sam poked his head out of the house.
Mikaela gave Judy a sympathetic smile and ran toward Sam. "Sam, what happened?"
"The house is on fire," Sam said dismissively. He pulled out the jar containing the shard, his face turning grim. "Listen, Mikaela. I need you to take this. I'm going to college. I can't have this on campus."
Judy marched up to them, looking furious. "Sam, we need to talk."
"Yeah, one sec." Sam shoved the jar into Mikaela's hands and pushed her toward the street. "Put it in your bag. Keep it safe. Do not lose it."
"Sam, if you go, he goes too!" Judy snapped, pointing at the garage. " I won't have a neurotic alien living in my garage after what he just did to my wallpaper!"
"Shh!" Ronald appeared from nowhere, grabbing Judy and pulling her into a corner. "Keep it down, Judy. This is a matter of national security!"
Ronald lowered his voice, trying to soothe her. "I'll have Sam handle the alien. If we act like this was just a normal grease fire, the 'special people' will pay for the repairs. I already told the firemen it was an old toaster. This is how we get the government to pay for that backyard pool you wanted."
Judy hesitated, then nodded. "Fine. But I want an open-air pool. And a new bathtub."
"Done. I'll make the call."
...
Inside the garage, Sam led Mikaela to the yellow Camaro.
"Bumblebee, we need to talk about college," Sam said directly.
Mikaela looked at the car, then at Sam. "I'll wait outside, Sam."
Once outside, Mikaela unzipped her leather jacket to reveal a white sundress. She pulled a small bouquet of purple flowers from her bag and began rehearsing her goodbye.
Inside, Sam paced for a moment. "Look, Bumblebee... I wanted to tell you sooner, but... you know. Freshmen aren't allowed to have cars. If it were up to me, you'd be in the dorm, but it's not."
"You're an Autobot. You shouldn't be rotting in a suburban garage. You've been a great bodyguard—the best. But look at me. I'm safe. The Decepticons have forgotten about me. You should go back to your team, Bee. I just want to be a normal kid. I want the real college experience."
"Fine, Sam. I get it," Bumblebee beeped, shifting into his robotic form. He looked genuinely dejected, his head slumped. He realized he had become a burden to the boy's life.
Seeing the sadness in the scout, Sam walked over and patted his metallic leg. "It's not like we're never going to see each other again. Don't be like that, buddy. You're making me feel like a jerk."
After a long talk, Bumblebee finally agreed. He slipped out the back door of the garage, took one last look at Sam, and transformed.
VROOM!
Watching the Camaro disappear into the sunset, Sam whispered, "I hope I'm doing the right thing."
...
Sam walked out to find Mikaela waiting with the flowers.
"Whoa," Sam smiled, pulling her into a hug. "You're full of surprises today."
Mikaela looked at him with an expression that was part-smug, part-allure. "You think you can handle college without me, huh?"
"No," Sam shook his head. "Without you, everything's going to be boring as hell."
"And?" Mikaela's eyes softened.
"I love you."
The two silhouettes merged under the setting sun.
...
With the mess handled, the pickup truck carried the Witwickys toward Mission City University. Mikaela put her helmet back on, preparing to head back to her shop.
As she kicked her motorcycle to life, a small four-wheeled toy car rolled out from under a bush. A red camera lens and a radar dish popped out of its roof. The lens zoomed in, locking onto the glass jar inside Mikaela's handbag.
[ Lord Fallen, the shard is with the woman. ]
[ Good. Wheelie, follow her. Forget the boy. ]
30+ chapters are available now and daily updates! @patreon.com/AgentTwilight