Chapter 659: Cassette Legion Civil War (Part One) (Patreon)

Transformers Begin : Table of Content/Chapter List

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Saint Helena Island, another volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean.

This overseas island is under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom, situated nearly two thousand kilometers off the west coast of Africa and over three thousand kilometers from the east coast of South America.

Despite its modest size of just over a hundred square kilometers, the island is sparsely populated, with only a few thousand permanent residents, mainly concentrated in the habitable areas encircling the eastern and central hills.

Sun Cheng had chosen this location for his rendezvous with Starscream precisely because vast stretches of the island's eastern, southern, and western regions, near the coastline, remained uninhabited. He couldn't afford to meet Starscream unprepared. After all, nobody knew whether this cunning and treacherous character would suddenly turn hostile and stab him in the back during their meeting, and Sun Cheng's apprehension exceeded that of the Autobots.

Sun Cheng arrived on Saint Helena Island a day earlier than agreed upon. After making the necessary arrangements, he sent his coordinates to Starscream.

About four to five hours later, the familiar Desert Camouflage F-22 fighter jet appeared in the sky.

"Master! He's here!" Thunder, responsible for surveillance, couldn't help but alert Sun Cheng when he noticed him lost in thought.

"Ah!" Sun Cheng opened his eyes and looked up at the F-22 fighter jet, which seemed to streak across the sky like a meteor from the moon. He still had no idea what to expect from their upcoming meeting.

"Why did this guy contact me out of the blue?" Starscream had come alone, and he was fast. He landed on the island in no time.

"Oh, my dear friend, how delightful to see you again..." Starscream greeted with his distinctive, sinister, high-pitched laughter.

Sun Cheng squinted at him. Not long ago, he had traded intelligence with Starscream using the Leadership Module. They had both schemed against each other to some extent. Sun Cheng had used something unattainable to nearly outmaneuver all his opponents.

Starscream, on the other hand, had managed to cause disruption within the Skytiger Legion and had yet to face retribution from Megatron. He was indeed skilled. Despite his greed, he hadn't fallen into any traps. Upon realizing that he couldn't obtain the Leadership Module either, he had promptly informed Lord Fallen of this development.

Their mutual scheming had left neither of them at a disadvantage. Instead, they had cooperated surprisingly well, drawing both the Autobots and Lord Fallen into their schemes, as well as involving the United States.

"Lord Fallen has already been destroyed by Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots... I'm curious, why did you suddenly contact me?" Starscream carefully scrutinized Thunder with his crimson eyes, as if he had discovered something amusing, chuckling to himself.

"Soundwave is still on Earth, and I bet you're finding that quite bothersome!" Indeed, it was irritating. However, Soundwave, as a high-ranking commander, had certain advantages even though he wasn't adept at combat. His current mechanical body had undergone several optimizations specifically for combat, which allowed him to hold his own against Soundwave for a short period. But defeating him would still be challenging unless someone created an opportunity for him.

Sun Cheng glanced at Starscream discreetly. "I'm not the only one bothered by this. You already attempted it a year ago. I don't believe you would refrain from taking action if you had a chance to kill him."

Starscream understood that his meaning was clear. "You seem to enjoy doing business. So, let's make a deal..."

He watched Sun Cheng with a wide, radiant smile on his face, but those sharp, jagged fangs gave him an unusually ferocious appearance.

"Shockwave's main forces will arrive on Earth in no more than two years, but his second advance team will reach Earth in a few months. Once they arrive, we won't have such a good opportunity anymore!"

Starscream's hatred and fear of Shockwave were not concealed at all, and at this moment, his crimson eyes seemed madly intense.

Sun Cheng was indeed tempted. Shockwave's power undeniably reached Leader-level, making him the formidable presence in Skytiger Legion just beneath Megatron. Moreover, he had long served as the military commander of Skytiger Legion. If Shockwave led a substantial army to Earth, even the Autobots would have a hard time, let alone a Decepticon traitor like him.

"I'm not a match for Soundwave..."

After a moment of silence, Sun Cheng spoke slowly. "Onslaught is undergoing transformation. He had a close encounter with the All Spark in Sector Seven, so he can't act right now... As for Skyfire, he despises combat..."

His words were half-truths and half-deceptions, casually spoken. Sun Cheng didn't hide the weaknesses of his faction, hoping to push Starscream into taking a risk, but showing weakness was also a form of probing.

Sure enough, Starscream chuckled happily. "I can create a relatively 'fair' environment for you and your followers. Your opponents will only be Soundwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage... This will be a Civil War exclusive to your Cassette Legion..."

Sun Cheng's mind raced. If their opponents were only Soundwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage, gathering his forces might offer a chance to deal with them.

But he fixed his gaze on Starscream. "What about Astrotrain?"

Twenty days ago, during the operation to assassinate Optimus Prime on the Sinai Peninsula, Astrotrain, one of the Triple Changers, had played a crucial role.

Astrotrain's power had surpassed the limits of regular warriors. He possessed the strength and an exceptionally tough mechanical body that could rival even some high-ranking commanders. In fact, Sun Cheng suspected that Astrotrain's power had already reached the level of a high-ranking commander.

It was said that Astrotrain stubbornly refused because warriors at the commander level, whether Decepticons or Autobots, rarely engaged directly in combat. Most of the time, they directed operations under the protection of their guards and lieutenants. They only joined the battle when things became extremely intense.

As Shockwave's right-hand man, Astrotrain was more of a rogue than a qualified leader. His thirst for battle surpassed his lust for power. Perhaps this was why Shockwave had repeatedly modified Astrotrain.

Among the Decepticons currently on Earth, the four most formidable were Starscream, Soundwave, Onslaught, and Astrotrain.

Sun Cheng didn't want to face any of them if he could avoid it, unless his life was at stake or someone could offer him a tempting deal.

As if Starscream had anticipated this question, he smiled and looked up at the moon. "Thanks to the Autobots, Megatron needs a new mechanical body, which requires a massive amount of resources... I will send Astrotrain to the Asteroid Belt to search for metal ores for Megatron's new mechanical body... This is a one-time opportunity, remember!"

The Asteroid Belt was a densely populated region of small asteroids located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter in the Solar System. It was rumored to contain hundreds of thousands of small asteroids, many of which held rich metal deposits, with some asteroids entirely made of metal.

Sun Cheng calculated in his mind. According to Frenzy's data, Astrotrain's fastest speed could reach up to seventy Mach.

If Starscream could successfully divert him, even if Soundwave sent a distress signal, it would take at least half a month for him to arrive on Earth.

That should be enough time!

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Next Chapter >>Chapter 660: Negotiation Settled