Chapter 697: The Far Side of the Moon

Transformers Begin : Table of Content/Chapter List

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The former leader of the Autobots, Sentinel Prime, was a figure whose reputation within the Autobot ranks could only be described as deeply polarized.

For some Autobots, their loyalty to him reached the level of religious devotion, almost regarding him as a deity.

Yet, behind closed doors, there were plenty of Autobots who referred to him as a dictator and a tyrant. This was because Sentinel Prime had always maintained strict control over the Autobots, using the coldest and bloodiest of methods.

The number of Autobots who met their demise at his hands, in the pursuit of molding peace-loving and non-combatant Autobots into capable warriors and soldiers, was not much less than that caused by the Decepticons.

This was undoubtedly connected to Sentinel Prime's past experiences. As a descendant of the royal Primus lineage who had ruled Cybertron for many years, Superior General Sentinel Prime was elected by the powerful nobility within the Council of Primes during the later stages of the parliament, gradually consolidating more power and eventually ascending to the throne.

From the very beginning, these nobles had sensed Sentinel Prime's extraordinary nature. He possessed a determination and ambition greater than any other Cybertronian born from the Primus lineage.

However, what the nobles valued most was his youth. They believed they could effectively control this young and ambitious new king using their seasoned political maneuvers, ultimately making him a puppet under the control of the Council of Primes.

In fact, in the early stages, the nobles succeeded quite well in their endeavors. For a long time, they exploited Sentinel Prime's youth and ambition, firmly holding him under the parliament's control.

The Council of Primes even managed to deceitfully take from the inexperienced Sentinel Prime the Sacred Artifact, the "All Spark," which had historically been safeguarded by the royal Primus lineage, as well as several other legendary Primus weapons, all in the name of the nation, and placed them in the Hall of Ancients.

The deception and manipulation by the Council of Primes served as a valuable lesson for the young Superior General, not only teaching him the art of cunning and manipulation but also leaving a permanent seed of distrust for others in Sentinel Prime's heart.

Subsequently, in his quest for revenge against the powerful nobles behind the Council of Primes and to reclaim his authority from their grasp, Sentinel Prime did not hesitate to cooperate with Megatron, a gladiator slave he despised. He first turned Megatron into a hero of the common people and gradually elevated the ambitious Megatron to the position of the highest commander in the military.

While Megatron indeed lived up to his expectations, the two of them, working together, ultimately overthrew the corrupt rule of the Council of Primes in the name of revolution.

However, before Sentinel Prime could firmly establish his authority, he preemptively formed the Skytiger Legion, sparking a Civil War between the Decepticons and Autobots, a move that caught Sentinel Prime off guard.

The Civil War that ensued lasted for millions of years, during which Megatron defeated Sentinel Prime on multiple occasions, pushing the Autobots under his command to a series of devastating retreats.

Seeing his own creation, a pawn he had nurtured, turn against him, Sentinel Prime's anger was beyond measure.

In the face of internal dissent among the Autobots, his response was always ruthless and merciless suppression.

Prisons for political dissidents were not exclusive to the Decepticons; during Sentinel Prime's rule, the Autobots also had their own special prisons.

Although his iron-fisted rule did succeed in uniting the loosely knit and non-militant Autobots to a significant extent, the voices of discontent suppressed by Sentinel Prime grew with each of his failures.

Bumblebee was among the many Autobots who were unhappy with Sentinel Prime's rule. The fortress where he resided had been surrounded and suppressed by the military due to the presence of organizations opposing Sentinel Prime's rule. Many Autobots familiar to Bumblebee had been sent to prison.

Even when Bumblebee applied to join the military, he was initially rejected because of his association with the fortress of his birth.

There were many Autobots who had experiences similar to Bumblebee's, and if it weren't for Leader Optimus Prime's deep respect for his mentor and Bumblebee's profound reverence for Optimus Prime, he wouldn't have wanted to take on this mission.

At least in Bumblebee's eyes, Optimus Prime was more suitable to lead the Autobots than Sentinel Prime.

Before long, Bumblebee had left the impact crater behind and was making a slow progress along a curved route on the far side of the moon towards the designated location.

From Frenzy, the Autobots had obtained a reasonably accurate coordinates of the spaceship crash site. However, it also included the coordinates of the Decepticon base established on the moon, which wasn't far from the spaceship crash site.

So Bumblebee proceeded with extreme caution, fully aware of the peril he faced as a lone intruder. If the Decepticons were to discover him, the consequences would be dire.

On his journey, in order to avoid the Decepticon Moon Base, Bumblebee's pace was not swift.

Frenzy's intelligence was quickly validated; at the very least, there was indeed a Decepticon base on the moon. Bumblebee discovered a significant number of Decepticon laborers, slaves from the Skytiger Legion, diligently excavating the metallic meteorites that had crashed on the moon's surface.

Bumblebee even stumbled upon several small factories established by these laborers. From his analysis, it appeared that the enslaved members of the Skytiger Legion were mining the moon's soil and heating it to extract a specific substance.

After a moment's thought, he figured out what the Decepticons were processing.

"Helium-3... They're extracting Helium-3!"

Helium-3 was a relatively clean nuclear fuel. It didn't produce neutrons in the nuclear fusion reactions involving Helium-3 and deuterium, resulting in non-radioactive protons. Therefore, using Helium-3 as an energy source did not generate radiation and posed no harm to the environment.

After the conclusion of the Cybertron Civil War, the Autobots who were forced to retreat to a Cybertron satellite had established several nuclear power stations there, utilizing what they considered outdated nuclear energy to supply their energy needs.

After collecting some lunar soil samples and analyzing them, Bumblebee quickly made a startling discovery.

The lunar soil was rich in Helium-3, even though nuclear energy was considered primitive for the Cybertronians who had long entered the era of high-purity energy.

However, regardless of how outdated it may have seemed, it was still a source of energy. If the Decepticons were to harness it, they could quickly amass a massive army.

Realizing this, Bumblebee instinctively wanted to destroy the discovered Decepticon laborers and their factories used for extracting Helium-3. But he soon remembered his mission and restrained himself, quietly noting down the coordinates of these factories before discreetly moving away.

On the moon, a single day spanned several Earth days.

Bumblebee cautiously approached the spaceship crash site provided by Frenzy, having encountered Decepticons multiple times during these past few days.

On the far side of the moon, a place not easily observable by humans, the Decepticons had established their base, complete with dozens of mines and factories of various types.

Relying on his utmost care, Bumblebee managed to evade them time and time again.

Finally, Bumblebee arrived at the spaceship crash site indicated by Frenzy.

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Next Chapter >>Chapter 698: Prowl