Transformers: Survival of Defective Products

Chapter 115 The Sin of Pride

In the beginning, there was nothing.

There was no sound, no pain, and no light.

In the pitch-black silence, even one's own existence becomes a difficult question to ascertain.

Then, something jumped very lightly.

It was far away yet clear.

First time.

Like a spark at the bottom of ruins, finally remembering that it has not been extinguished.

Then, the second one.

The third time.

A faint light seeped from the depths of the cracked spark, spreading outward little by little along the energy patterns within her body that were usually barely visible.

It was bluish-green, initially dim, but slowly brightened.

The excess energy she usually swallowed, stored in her circuits, and hadn't had time to fully convert was forcibly extracted at this moment, like a brutal last-dose boost when near death.

Beneath the rubble, her fingertips twitched slightly.

His right arm was pinned down, the spark chamber in his chest was shattered, and the pain from his severed left arm felt dull and distant, as if separated by an entire body of water.

But then she suddenly felt something else—her severed left arm.

Magnetic attraction reached out from the other side of the ruins and found a piece of metal that still belonged to her.

—The original body of every Cybertronian served their own soul.

Function, form, armament, transforming structure, and some other things that cannot be fully understood at first glance.

She has always been right-handed, but the knife is on her left side.

Because that wasn't a weapon I usually used.

That was the blade she could still extend when she was driven to the brink of despair.

She just hadn't truly used it well before, nor had she fully unleashed its potential.

Deep within the rubble, the left arm, hidden by broken pipes and shadows, twitched slightly.

The energy blade in the forearm, which had been partially extinguished, lit up again.

Immediately afterwards, the outer armor of the upper arm unfolded layer by layer.

A longsword that had not been fully awakened before.

A bluish-green blade of light extended from the forearm all the way to the end of the upper arm, forming a sharp line.

She couldn't see the vector, but she could feel it.

Using the last bit of magnetic attraction, she slowly grasped the sword from a distance.

-

The Heavenly Enemy's greatsword gleamed with a dark golden light: "Then you'll all be buried together."

Before he could finish speaking, a very faint metallic dragging sound came from behind him.

It's too light.

At the moment when Megatron and Optimus Prime charged forward simultaneously, amidst the roar of the ambulance, the cover provided by Jazz and Alita, and the lingering echoes of the collapsing walls, it should have been almost impossible for any machine to hear.

But the enemy still noticed.

He turned around abruptly.

It's too late.

A blue-green longsword flew out from the shadow of the broken pipe and slammed into his back armor at an angle.

It wasn't precise, but rather the last instinct of a dying machine—yet it felt strangely vivid.

The Sky Enemy's machine suddenly stiffened.

The longsword pierced the back armor, and blue-green energy exploded along the wound.

For the first time, he showed an expression of disbelief.

The rubble moved.

It was very light at first.

Then, the broken pipes, metal plates, and debris gradually floated to the surface.

A bluish-green hue seeped from the cracks in the ruins, and a buried fire reignited and was reborn from the ashes.

All the machines stopped for a moment.

Megatron's fist was still suspended in mid-air, Optimus Prime's railgun was still emitting smoke, and Ratchet suddenly opened its optical scope wide.

The rubble was lifted layer by layer.

The vector rose from the ruins, pulled back from the brink of death by something.

Her ignition chamber was shattered, and the light inside was pitifully dim.

The left arm was missing, and energy fluid was still leaking from the severed end. The right cannon hung limply at the side, and the surface of the machine was covered in cracks and scorch marks.

But she hasn't lost yet.

Blue-green energy patterns crawled from around the fire seed chamber across the torso, up the side of the neck, and spread across the right arm and leg, like a set of battle patterns that were only lit up when the person was on the verge of death.

Yutiandi looked at her: "Impossible."

The vector raised its head.

The light inside the optical lens is weak, but it's still there.

"Who gave you permission...?"

Her voice was so hoarse it didn't sound like her own.

"Is the case closed?"

Megatron was brought back to reality by those words.

She is still alive.

The four words exploded in his brain, bringing a deeper and more ferocious loss of control.

Optimus Prime's optical lens lit up for a moment, then he suddenly woke up.

"ambulance!"

The ambulance had already rushed over: "I saw her! Don't let that old lunatic get near her!"

"She can't stand anymore!" The sound of being knocked down came from the other side.

Several machines landed simultaneously.

Red Spider descended with a sharp whooshing sound, and as his optical scope swept across the scene, his usual taunt caught in his throat.

The shockwave followed immediately, and a single optical mirror, flashing red, began scanning:

"The spark protection mechanism is still active. The core is severely damaged. Continuing to fight will lead to irreversible collapse."

"Do you even need to tell me?" Knocked down, he rushed forward, his voice changing upon seeing the vector's chest. "Her outer layer of the spore capsule is shattered!"

The sound waves fell silently onto the edge of the higher broken wall.

The laser bird detached from his chest and swooped down, sweeping across the rubble. The mechanical dog instinctively lunged toward the direction of the gravitational vector, trying to get closer to check on her condition.

I didn't look at the vectors.

She slowly raised her right hand.

The longsword with the severed arm that had pierced the back of the enemy shuddered violently before being pulled out of his armor.

Yutiandi grunted and staggered half a step.

Megatron and Optimus Prime charged at the same time.

The silver-gray gauntlets slammed into the Skybreaker's heavy sword, but Optimus Prime knocked away his sword-wielding wrist from the side.

Alita's arm cannon blocked his retreat, while Arcee and Jazz cut in from the left and right, and the barrier and the flying mountain blocked the alleyway from behind.

No one hesitated.

Some planes rescued her, while others suppressed Sentinel Prime.

The battlefield was reorganized in an instant.

Sentinel Prime was forced to retreat, and the wounds on his breastplate and waist simultaneously reopened.

The severed left arm flew back to the gravitational vector under the pull of magnetic attraction.

It was attached to the outside of her right arm, the bluish-green energy lines resembling rough stitches, connecting it to the pulse cannon in her right arm.

The forearm energy blade, the upper arm unfolding structure, and the right arm cannon muzzle are simultaneously reassembled.

The metal outer armor snapped shut, and the energy circuits lit up one by one.

An excessively long section of the cannon barrel extended from the outside of her right arm, its sharp edge pressed against both sides of the barrel, like a sword forcibly converted into a cannon.

Dangerous and unstable.

The ambulance driver's vision blurred: "You still dare to re-arm?!"

The voice, now shrill, cried out, "Don't move! If you move again, the flame will crack!"

The vector heard it, but had no energy to respond.

She moved forward step by step, her soul trembling with each step.

The mechanical dog tried to get close to her, but was stopped by the sound waves.

The sound wave stood high up, its face displayed on the screen expressionless.

The laser bird was already hovering in mid-air, scanning at a frequency that was almost out of control.

Megatron blocked Sentinel Prime's heavy sword, turned around and saw Primal Force walking forward, his voice hoarse: "Stop."

Optimus Prime turned his head, his blue optics reflecting suppressed emotions: "Gravity Vector, that's enough."

"not enough."

Her voice was so soft it seemed to drift away on the wind.

Despite being suppressed by several machines, Sentinel Prime still looked up at her.

At that moment, the horror on his face finally faded, leaving behind something extremely complex.

She is an anomaly, a defective product, a variable that should not exist in any established category.

She broke through legal constraints, restructured the system, and unearthed the voices that should have been suppressed.

She should be removed.

But she certainly deserved to stand there.

It is even more qualified than many machines that claim to be complete, orthodox, and noble.

He had once imagined that she could sit in the position of chief judge.

As long as she learns to be obedient.

He understood the true order, he understood the wars he had witnessed, and he understood that Cybertron could not be drowned out by unfiltered voices.

But she never listens.

That's why she stood up.

Long ago, he also stood on the ruins, pointing his sword at what was pressing down on Cybertron.

He hated cages back then.

Later, he personally repaired an even sturdier one.

The thought came to him so quickly that he barely acknowledged it.

Yutiandi looked at the unstable blue-green cannon on the right arm of the vector.

If his life must end due to some anomaly, it shouldn't be because he was mediocre.

she is not.

The vector finally stopped.

The long cannon on the right arm was raised, and the muzzle was aimed at the enemy.

The blue light began to compress layer by layer, all the surrounding metal fragments trembled, and the air was slowly tightened by an unseen hand.

Yutiandi wanted to make a move.

Megatron punched down his heavy sword, while Optimus Prime grabbed his shoulder and pressed half of his machine back against the wall.

Alita's arm cannon locked onto his knee joint, while Arcee's energy blade blocked his other escape route.

Red Spider descended from above, his cannon flashing, his voice cold: "Don't move, old man."

Yutiandi looked at the vector.

The vector was also looking at him.

All the anger, disgust, pain, sadness, and even the slightest regret that she herself didn't want to admit, burned to nothing at this moment, leaving only a cold calm.

Like the final hammer blow on the judge's bench.

"You should crush my embers."

"Cut it off, make sure it's extinguished."

The bluish-green light at the muzzle of the cannon grew brighter and brighter.

Micro-motion of the optical mirror of the enemy.

The vector continued:

"But you didn't."

She looked at him.

"You are too arrogant, Sentinel Prime."

Sentinel Prime did not refute this.

Perhaps it was too late, or perhaps he had nothing to say.

The long cannon on the right arm of the vectoring force trembled under the strain, and sparks of energy continuously spilled from the connection between the broken left and right arms.

The ambulance tried to rush forward, but was knocked down and stopped.

"Touch her now, and she'll fall apart!"

The ambulance driver cursed angrily, his voice trembling.

The vector did not turn back.

She simply lowered the optical glasses and then raised them again.

The cannon fire suddenly erupted into a beam of compressed blue-green light.

It pierced through the alleyway, through the remaining defenses of the dark gold greatsword, through the already damaged breastplate of the Skybreaker, and straight into his spark chamber.

The entire aircraft of the Sentinel Prime suddenly froze.

A dark golden light burst open on his chest, and the optical mirror lost focus.

The greatsword slipped from his hand and crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.

He looked at the index vector.

It seemed like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing.

The optical glasses of the strongest warrior of the Golden Age gradually dimmed.

Then, he fell backward.

The old-fashioned weapon fell to his side, and the dark golden energy on its blade extinguished.

The alleyway fell silent for a moment, with only the embers and the sound of alarms remaining.

And the vector's soft, emotionless murmur:

Goodnight, Sentinel Prime.