Transformers: Survival of Defective Products

Chapter 172 The Youngsters

The vector stood in the center, glanced at the regrouped battle lines, and then switched to a lower-level channel: "Black Widow."

A rustling, gnawing sound came from underground, and the Black Widow's voice, mixed with static, rose up.

"Finally remembered me?"

The vector slashed through the execution hook that was thrusting from the side: "Progress."

"Eight minutes left."

The vector rises to the top.

In mid-air, the Red Spider, carrying a search line, grazed beneath a broken beam, its missile shattering the upper turret. Below, the Knight of Law seized the opportunity to take another step closer.

"How's the progress?"

"The support columns, bottom traction frames, and stabilizing locks on the inside of the main beam are almost done." Black Widow's tone sounded relaxed and pleasant. "One more kick and it will be very entertaining."

"Wait for orders."

Black Widow smiled. "I can distinguish between what's important and what's not for now."

Vector felt this statement lacked credibility and simply said, "Keep the withdrawal line."

"I'm not here to die with this courtroom."

Before the channel was disconnected, another heavy thud came from underground, and the area beneath the courtroom shook slightly.

The curator looked down at the ground and finally realized that something was bypassing its trial process and was dismantling the courtroom from below.

The vector didn't give it any more time to react: "Dawn."

Having just dealt with a troublesome oddball, Tongtianxiao turned around to fill the gap for the Knight of Law: "Here."

Index vector: "Second stage preparation".

Tongtianxiao did not hesitate.

"All informed squads, move to Phase Two preparation. Maintain current firepower, compress the enemy's area of ​​operation, and do not dive without authorization."

BICk0's voice then came through: "Underwater environment parameters have been sent in batches, and unauthorized channels have been blocked."

AZ also spoke up amidst the noise: "I've laid out two fake crocodile spirit dispatch lines and one weirdo communication line for you. Anyone who insists on wandering off should remember to write their own will."

Crystal Prism's voice was calm: "Crystal City relay communications are switching all machines."

Amidst the background noise of the explosion, the jack yelled, "You only just remembered to do the watertight check? Don't cry later, I don't have time to fix it!"

Shockwave: "Shark semen synchronization rate continues to rise. Control source remains invisible."

Megatron was engaged in close combat among a group of shark demons, and a brief puff of white vapor escaped from his snorkel: "Don't let them merge."

The Decepticons immediately intensified their firepower.

The shark demons, who had intended to converge from the rear entrance and the central passage, were cleanly cut off by Megatron and Ultra Magnus on both sides. As the Knight of the Law moved forward, the Decepticons' artillery fire picked up from the other side, without any pleasantries or unnecessary communication.

When the same group of enemies rushed forward, their cannons finally aimed in the same direction.

Upon witnessing this scene, the vector paused for a brief moment.

She just said too much. Talking about anger, apologies, and the sky on the battlefield doesn't sound reasonable.

But she no longer believes in things like "we'll talk about it later".

She didn't want to wait for the next time she spoke or the next time they met.

So when she could speak, she would speak, even if it was just one sentence, even if she had to continue firing the next second after speaking.

A shark-like creature lunged over the shattered support structure.

The vector punched it in the abdomen, sending it flying and crashing into the crocodile demon behind it. The restraints fell off, creating a short circuit on one side of the witnessing area.

Several young Autobots rushed out from that side.

Bumblebee was the first to see her; his optical scope lit up instantly, and his voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"Chief Justice!"

Hot Rod caught up and almost shouted out, only to be pounced on by a shark demon. He fired backhand, the barrage piercing the demon's entire body.

"Wouldn't it seem immature to shout now?" Hot Rod asked.

Hengpao leaped over a broken beam and sliced ​​through the shark demon's leg joints with his double blades: "You've already said half a sentence."

"That doesn't count!"

Bumblebee didn't argue with them. He raised his gun and shot back one of the Crocodile Demons, then whispered, "We just... made things worse."

Sideswipe paused, and Hot Rod's excitement froze.

They all remembered wavering within the Quintessons' narrative, being led astray by the so-called "origins," "judgments," and "creators." When they looked at Optimus Prime, their hearts were filled with unwarranted doubts.

But in the end, they themselves pulled the trigger.

The vector looked at them, recalling the records he had seen earlier.

Bumblebee's courage and perseverance, Sideswipe's drive and passion, Hot Rod's recklessness and confidence, and the brightness that hasn't been completely worn away in the long war.

"Low-frequency cognitive interference does not mean weak will."

Three young Autobots were looking at her at the same time.

"The important thing is that you've been trying to stay awake."

Hot Rod opened his mouth, and with a swift motion, his right arm pulse cannon pierced through a shark demon that lunged at him from behind.

"Save your guilt for now and channel it into firepower."

The thermally activated optical mirror, lighting up again: "I can do this!"

Hengpao twirled the blade in his hand, his voice impassioned: "Yes, sir!"

Bumblebee nodded and was the first to rush out, his speaker emitting a series of overly excited "beep" sounds, so much so that Vector couldn't hear what he was trying to say.

The youth's firepower is rapid and bright, carrying a fierce determination that refuses to admit defeat.

The vector pulls back its gaze and continues to advance towards the center line.

On the other side, the Decepticons' lines are also reforming.

He knocked down the crocodile demon's massive teeth with a gear saw, glancing with annoyance at the splattered slime on the ground.

"I've said before that this place has a problem with its aesthetics, and now even the floor is starting to look disgusting."

The barricade rushed past him, its shoulder armor shoving aside a shark-like creature: "Stop complaining."

"I'm just maintaining my mental state."

Deadfire raised his gun to finish off the shark demon that was trying to get up from the ground, and said with a laugh, "Your mental state has never been very good."

He knocked her down and turned around: "Who gives you the right to talk to me like that?"

Not far away, the heavy firepower of Skyquake and Haunted Wing arrived almost simultaneously, blocking the entire row of shark demons back to the entrance. Chaos swooped down from the edge of the torn dome, followed by Sky-Shattering Thunder on the other side, and the missiles and the upper passage that Red Spider had just blown open formed a temporary air line.

Red Spider sneered in the channel: "Finally, the machine knows where to fly."

Thunderclap: "You're blocking my way."

An uproar ensued: "Wow! He said you're blocking the way!"

Red Spider: "I heard you!"

On the other side above, Skyfire flew in from the edge of the breach, blocking a lock-on for Starscream. The air strike followed closely with a dive, severing some of the search lines chasing Starscream from the side.

Red Spider instinctively wanted to taunt, but then realized that the two attacks were indeed well coordinated.

This briefly annoyed him: "Don't hold me back."

Tianhuo's voice was calm: "You fly your way."

Air raid: "We have no intention of appreciating you."

Red Spider scoffed, "That's your loss."

Even so, when he turned back the next time, he still made room on the right side of the higher ground.

The skyfire followed, and the air raids flew like acrobats in the gaps he left behind.

Several flight paths briefly intersected high above, the search lines lost their target and instead became entangled in the giant metal restraint frame that the Quintesson itself had raised.

The sound wave immediately invaded the control terminal, and the BICk0 side was simultaneously marked.

"Upper protective frame malfunction, record."

"Record my foot!" Jack shouted from the other side. "Can it even explode?"

Shockwave: "Okay."

Red Spider: "I'm going to blow it up."

Air raid: "You've already bombed too many times."

Red Spider: "That statement is meaningless."

Skyfire: "Target: Top right."

"I saw it!"

The missile exploded high above, and the Autobots and Decepticons unleashed their aerial firepower simultaneously.

The eccentric judge could no longer deliver his verdicts from his superior position as he had in the past.

It attempted to regain control of the shark spirit group, but was repeatedly disrupted by the combined forces of Soundwave, BICk0, and Crystal Prism.

The curator's disguise had long since cracked on the floor, crushed into tiny pieces by the chaotic shark demons.

It stared at the gravitational vector: "You think you can escape judgment like this?"

The double-edged sword with magnetic force parried a trap device, and the magnetic attraction acted like an invisible yet deadly aura, constantly suppressing the enemy.

"I thought you had finally figured out the problem."

The curator's face contorted: "What's the problem?"

Vector chuckled, "This is no longer your courtroom."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ultra Magnus broke through the central flank defense, and the Knights of Law took the opportunity to arrive at the foot of the judgment platform. Alita led the elite guards to push outwards from the edge of the witnessing area, while Bumblebee, Sideswipe, and Hot Rod followed on the flanks to finish off any sharks that slipped through the net.

Megatron unleashed his full firepower, preventing anyone from entering through the rear entrance. Barricade and Deadfire caught the scattered enemy horde, taking down a reluctant Autobot who was shielding it from the barrage of fire while hurling insults. In return, Ratchet casually retorted.

There was no talk of cooperation or reconciliation; in fact, many of them glared at each other while firing.

But the lines of fire were overlapping, the shield arrays were gradually merging, and the flight paths at high altitudes were intersecting more and more seamlessly.

Cybertronians are no longer being divided into two opposing factions as they were during the war.

Another muffled thud came from the lower level, even shaking the judge's bench below the five-faced freak judge.

The curator tried to re-lock the main beam with the frame, but failed.

At the same instant, Black Widow chuckled in the channel: "Five minutes."

The vector immediately switches to the entire team.

"All teams are being reconfirmed."

Tong Tianxiao: "Home team received."

Alita: "The front line of the witness zone is stable."

Megatron: "The Decepticon defenses are intact."

Sound wave: "Interference maintained."

Red Spider: "The top is mine."

BICk0: "Dive parameters have been sent."

AZ: "The fake line can hold out for a while, don't waste it."

Crystal Prism: "Crystal City relay is now fully connected."

In the distance, the jazz's reply finally came back, a single confirmation signal.

Next up is Optimus Prime.

Both signals are pointing downwards, indicating no exposure.

The vector shows that the two points slowly sink at the edge of the inner screen, and the underwater line enters the predetermined path.

Then she looked up and saw the five-faced judge looking at her, his expressions—angry, suspicious, smiling, and sad—all extremely unpleasant.

He gripped the double-edged sword tightly, drawing his own vector.

"Hold on for five minutes."

"Then change battlefields."