Alex had been right.
Beneath the surfaceâwhere no one could seeâthe undercurrents were already surging.
---
Yellowstone National Park.
On the rooftop of the Historic Heritage Museum, two colossal mechanical giants stood face to face.
One was a towering ten-meter-tall robotic warriorâarmor like jagged steel, eyes glowing with malevolent red light.
The other, bulkier and almost spider-like in design, looked twitchy, shiftyâscheming.
It was none other than Megatron, Supreme Commander of the Decepticons.
And the one reporting to him was his treacherous lieutenant: Starscream.
"Lord Megatron," Starscream said in his grating voice, "I've summoned all Decepticons scattered across the planet. Every last one is now en route."
Megatron's optics flickered with satisfaction.
"Good. There's no need to hide any longer. It's time the world knew we're here."
Starscream hesitated, then continued, "However⊠the AllSpark is still missing. Our scouts found traces of it in the facility, but by the time we breached the labâit was gone. The humans have hidden it again. We don't know where."
"Forget it," Megatron growled, waving a clawed hand dismissively. "That's why I called the army. If they won't hand it over, we'll take it by force."
Starscream instantly understoodâno more subtlety. It was time for brute force.
"And what of the human you spoke of?" Megatron asked, voice suddenly low and dangerous. "The one who dared stand against me."
That boy still lingered in his circuits. A lone human who had decapitated Decepticons as easily as breathing.
It was⊠unsettling.
Starscream responded quickly, "We've found only one match, based on the description: a mutant named Alex. He can fly, shoot lasers from his eyes, move at supersonic speeds, and his body is virtually indestructibleâŠ"
Megatron's eyes narrowed.
"That's no human."
Even he found it hard to believe. Compared to most Decepticons, the description made Alex sound stronger.
If he hadn't seen it himself, he would've crushed Starscream for talking nonsense.
Starscream pressed on, "But don't worry, my Lord. He's one of a kind. No other mutants are even close to his level. The rest are nothing."
Megatron finally eased.
One freak might be a problem. But an army of such beings would've been a nightmare.
Still, Alex alone wasn't enough to stop him.
"He can deal with three or four Decepticonsâbut thirty? Forty?" Megatron sneered.
No. This war was already his.
"Begin the attack," he commanded coldly.
Starscream's mechanical frame buzzed with excitement. "Yes, my Lord. Let's start right here."
He leapt from the museum rooftopâand opened fire.
---
North Atlantic Ocean.
U.S. Second Carrier Strike Group.
Eight ships in formation: a powerful aircraft carrier at the center, flanked by two guided-missile cruisers, a squadron of destroyers, two nuclear attack subs, and a pair of support ships.
It was a symbol of unmatched military might. A show of dominance on the high seas.
And thenâ
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
Blazing fireballs streaked across the sky.
They were massiveâclearly visibleâand should've triggered every early-warning system the fleet had.
But nothing happened.
No alarms.
No defenses.
And thenâit was too late.
BOOM!
Fire and fury rained down. The ocean was lit by a series of deafening explosions. Flames swallowed steel hulls whole.
In less than three minutes⊠the most powerful fleet on Earth had been obliterated.
---
Empire State Building.
New York City.
The tallest skyscraper in the world at the timeâstanding high above Manhattan's skyline. A landmark visited daily by thousands of tourists.
They came for the view, for the photosâfor the dream.
They didn't see the fireballs until it was too late.
BOOM!
Like meteors, the projectiles smashed into the tower.
The Empire State Buildingâonce a symbol of progress and powerâwas cleaved in half and came crashing down.
---
And that was only the beginning.
Across the country, iconic landmarks and strategic facilities were hit almost simultaneously.
The Golden Gate Bridge.
The Washington Monument.
Chrysler Tower.
Thompson Military Base.
Everywhereâflames and chaos.
The Decepticons had launched a full-scale assault.
---
Across the United States, panic erupted.
The government's earlier claimsâthat it was a "joint training exercise"âwere shattered.
Because now, the Decepticons were everywhere.
Civilians saw them with their own eyesâmechanical monsters rising from the streets, raining destruction on everything in their path.
The police tried. The military responded. But no human weapons could match their power.
Battles broke out in major citiesâbut most ended in disaster.
The Decepticons crushed resistance and moved on.
Fear spread like wildfire.
Some people rioted.
Others looted.
Some hid in terror.
Some fled.
Some marched in the streets, demanding the truth.
But the result was the sameâtotal chaos.
The great United States, once a global superpower, now found itself at the mercy of an alien invasion.
The world had changed.
And the storm had only just begun.
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