Chapter 184: Arc 5: Chapter 27: Terrible News

During the Kree war a few years back, the higher-ups of Earth knew that the cruiser missiles launched by the Kree starships were makeshift nuclear bombs.

It was clear that the Kree far excelled in the use of nuclear energy than Earthlings.

Their nuclear weapons were all rounded, be it by weight or by power, they were far better than Earth's nuclear arsenal.

The force of the Kree nukes was fairly concentrated, thus there was little pollution upon exploding and the radiation would weaken over a short amount of time.

It was because of this trait that Earth's scientists focused on reverse engineering this part of the Kree cruiser missiles.

But this was no easy feat.

Even after 3 years, there had been little progress. After SHIELD's scientists realized that they could not reverse engineer the Kree missiles, they placed their attention elsewhere.

Since atomic radiation was inevitable, then why not make the size smaller and reduce the radiation to make a 'harmless' nuclear weapon.

Eventually, the scientists succeeded.

They created the nuclear missile that was launched using an electromagnetic cannon.

The force of its explosion was equivalent to 500 tonnes of TNT, it was easy to carry and caused little pollution. But even so, this was still categorized as a nuclear weapon and was something delicate.

So after its creation, the WSC had ordered for it to be sealed and locked up.

If Pierce had not acquired solemn proof of the existence of mechanical lifeforms, the WSC would not have authorized SHIELD to utilize such a weapon. And even if utilized, very few shots were allowed.

This was to be kept under wraps, for a new storm would arise should the people know of this.

But these had nothing to do with Merlin.

He hovers in the air, and through the sharp senses brought by Merlin's second sight, he could see how the missile exploded.

It accurately pierced into Dropkick's core, and the fuel in the missile head was ignited, then the Isotope within began to fissure, creating both heat and light.

In less than a second, Dropkick lit up like a lightbulb.

First, it was a blue light, then it was a yellow one, and eventually, it became a bright purple light that signaled the end of everything.

It was the eventual destruction...

Compared to Dropkick's 6-meters height, the needle-like missile had a force beyond Merlin's imagination, he had seen what a tactical missile's explosion looked like, and the explosion now was not as majestic when compared to the explosion at the Malfoy Manor.

But the destructive might that comes from the same source gave Merlin goosebumps.

It was like hell's gate had been opened.

Threshing fire burst and began to spew out like lava, the explosive force of the missile head burst outward from within Dropkick's body.

It was as if an invisible giant was venting its anger, it reached out to grab Dropkick's body and began to tear it apart.

Merlin even felt as if he could hear the sound of metal being ripped apart.

The scattering metal shards were melted and distorted by the explosion several times hotter than fire. The burnt scrap began to destroy everything within a few thousand meters as they were pushed by the kinetic force of the explosion.

Looking from above, it looked like a hand had wiped everything off.

Be it dirt, tree, rock, or metal.

Everything was wiped out.

After the threshing heatwaves dissipate, Merlin descends onto the ground.

He could feel faint radiation that prickled his skin, making him feel uncomfortable, but the stinging sensation lessens after casting Protego.

The ground Merlin stood on was still emitting heat.

What appeared in front of him was a large crater with metal scraps scattered everywhere.

It was like standing before a miniature volcano.

And shockingly, at the very bottom of that giant crater, Dropkick was still alive.

It was hard to imagine that the Cybertronian warrior was still alive after taking such a hit to the face...but that was it.

The lower half of its body was utterly torn apart.

Its legs were stuck into the ground in a distorted manner like two metal rods, his upper torso was in an even more miserable state.

Merlin had seen Cliffjumper who was almost sliced in half, and at that time, he thought that it was a miracle that Cliffjumper had survived.

But when he looked at Dropkick, Merlin realized that Cliffjumper's previous shape was nothing to a Cybertronian.

One could tell from seeing Dropkick now.

Some parts of its body had melted with the rest of its body shattered, the humanized expression on its originally majestic face was nowhere to be seen, and in replacement was a distorted metal face that looked creepy and sinister.

And at the position of which the missile had exploded, its body was nearly blasted in half, and under that messy metal exterior were threads of torn wires and blown circuits with sparks still flying about.

Looking like a dismembered corpse.

Its sound collector had been completely destroyed, it's become deaf, mule, and blind after being tortured, 

It lies in the burning crater, waving its arms around difficultly in an attempt to escape this horrifying hell.

"Shwa"

Merlin waves his finger outward as the Berserker baton appears in his hand, he descends into the crater and lands on Dropkick's still heated body.

He looks at the miserable Cybertronian and feels that he should give it a swift death.

Then, Merlin takes off his glove and grabs the Berserker baton.

Upon contact with skin, a red glow emits on the silver baton, Merlin's strength is enhanced as he bends his waist and thrusts the baton into Dropkick's chest.

"Bam"

The tough metal is pierced through, Merlin felt as though the baton had pierced something hard, and in front of him, Dropkick struggled like a dying man before all the lights in its body slowly dissipates away.

It's dead.

It died on the primitive Earth.

It died at the hands of an Earthling it disdained.

It died miserably without a proper will.

It died like an insignificant ant.

Without dignity...

An aggressive Cybertronian, dead just like that.

---

"Bam"

The sealed-off cave is opened, and young Charlie hides behind Bumblebee's head while holding a wrench as she looks at the light shining into the cave.

And only after seeing the calm Merlin, does the young girl, who was frightened by the explosion and vibrations, stands up.

It was at this time did she notice a person behind Merlin.

"This..."

An astonished Coulson looks at the two giant mechanical lifeforms lying together in the cave and was stunned.

He knows their targets this time were metal lifeforms called Cybertronians, he even killed off a Decepticon warrior with Melinda's help just now. Yet as he saw two mechanical lifeforms that looked fundamentally different from the ferocious Decepticons, such astonishment was inevitable.

"Keep what you saw today a secret! Got it?"

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Merlin tells Coulson:

"Don't tell anyone."

"Err...not even Director Fury?"

Coulson asks cautiously.

Merlin glares at him and lowers his voice:

"This is SDOLD's internal affair, Fury must not know of this without my permission. Of course, I'll tell him when it is necessary, this much you can not worry about."

"Mmm."

Coulson seems hesitant, but eventually, he nods his head.

"Merlin, have you dealt with the Decepticons?"

Charlie looks at agent Coulson behind Merlin curiously, she looks at the young man's odd hairline and quickly turns her gaze to Merlin before he notices, she then asks:

"What was that explosion just now?"

"We destroyed one of them."

Merlin pats Charlie's shoulder and says with a gloomy expression:

"But the other seems to have sensed its companion's death and has not returned since...things have changed, we have no idea where that Decepticon called Shatter is or where she's hiding."

As he spoke, Merlin looks at the two Cybertronians connected via cable and asks:

"How's their condition? How long will it be until they awaken?"

Charlie helplessly points at the miniature computer on the table that was taken from Bumblebee, saying:

"It's just at 38%, with this speed, it may take them another 5 hours."

"5 hours?'

Merlin shakes his head:

"That's too long, I'm worried that the cunning Decepticon may use some way to call for more of its companions to Earth, or find some random place to conduct a massacre, so we have to find it before she causes further destruction."

"Oh."

Charlie understands what Merlin came back for.

The young girl points at the miniature computer on the table and says:

"Cliffjumper taught me how to use this, it's too advanced, and it can directly search through our communications systems, I'll help you. Please wait a moment."

As she finishes, Charlie sits by the table and begins working on the miniature computer that had no keyboard.

This was a certain device in the Cybertronian's body, but in terms of technology, this piece here was multiple times more advanced than the most advanced supercomputer on Earth.

If not for Charlie needing a computer to observe the progress of Bumblebee's restarting process, Cliffjumper would not hand over such a thing to Charlie so easily.

And now, this device was finally put to use.

As Charlie searched for Shatter's whereabouts, Coulson follows Merlin as they circle around the two large mechanical lifeforms, he even reached out and stroked Cliffjumper's horn ornament.

"How does it feel?"

Merlin asks.

"It looks very astonishing at close range."

Coulson replies honestly:

"It's hard for me to believe that such an incredible lifeform would exist in the universe...are they really alive?"

"What do you think?"

Merlin shakes his head, he leans against Cliffjumper's metal arm and tells Coulson:

"You're curious about them, aren't you? Do you want to know more about the affairs and secrets of these mechanical lifeforms? You've always been interested in these kinds of things since you were small."

"Since I was small?"

Coulson looks at Merlin with confusion and asks:

"How do you know that? Sir."

"Err, I guessed it."

Merlin spilled the beans for a brief moment, but he continued with a poker face:

"You can't hide that curiosity in your eyes from me. Do you know why I brought you here? Coulson."

Coulson shakes his head, to which Merlin tells him:

"It's time for SDOLD's affairs to be systematically divided."

"I plan on putting Melinda into a team that specializes in tracking and monitoring irregulars, you will be responsible for affairs regarding Cybertronians and Project Monarch, while Ross and Jimmy will each act as your adjutants respectively. As for the action team, I'll lead it for now then pass it to Sharon when she's ready, her attitude fits to be on the field."

"I'm absolutely fine, sir!"

Coulson straightens his body and says to Merlin seriously:

"I won't let you down!"

"Mmm, I know you won't."

Merlin waves his hand and tells Coulson:

"But remember what I just told you, don't tell anyone of Cliffjumper's existence. Shatter may not be the only Decepticon hiding in our world, and with Bumblebee exposed, we need a Cybertronian to act as our trump card in the shadows; when necessary, it will be of great help to us."

"What of the after affairs of B-127?"

Coulson quickly clears his thoughts and asks with a frown:

"Do we reveal it to the higher-ups? Or do we proceed with monitoring it?"

"That's for later."

Merlin looks at Bumblebee, who's in standby mode, curiosity and wariness flash in his eyes as he says:

"Cliffjumper told me that Bumblebee came to Earth with a mission given by its leader. I'm very curious as to what that mission is..."

"Merlin! I found it!"

Young Charlie lets out a scream as she tells Merlin with a horrified expression:

"Shatter is in Los Angeles! She's occupied a signal tower!"

"Almost all of Los Angeles knows her now...also, the soldiers of the DoD are trying to stop it!"

"They're exchanging fire as we speak."

Merlin's expression turns ugly, he grits his teeth and says:

"You got to be kidding me."

"Let's go, Coulson, bring along the 'pin', let's go have a little chat with...Miss Shatter."

 

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