Transformers: Survival of Defective Products

Silas ultimately failed to escape, as the command vehicle was completely immobilized, even its tires were stuck.

Silas met her gaze through the windshield and wisely gave up trying to escape.

The mobile testing base had been reduced to scrap metal, and there were Autobots and Decepticons around it. Judging from the expressions of those two leaders, he'd better not make a fool of himself.

Most of the members of the mech special forces were gradually taken into custody and eventually taken over by special personnel sent by the human government, after all, they had been carrying out kidnapping, illegal experiments, armed attacks, and sabotage of government facilities on human territory.

When Fuller arrived, his face was ashen, as if he had swallowed a dead fly: "I'll take him with me."

The vector looked down at him and reminded him, "Don't lose anything again."

Fuller was indeed not confident enough to refute this, and could only say:

"Silas will be detained at the highest risk level, and the federal government will apply for continued detention; he won't be released easily."

"Not enough." The vectors begin to move down one by one.

"The human government must notify the judicial center in advance of any transfer, change of custody, temporary release, or judicial transaction involving Silas."

"Can."

"All scans, samples, and experimental data obtained by the Mech Special Forces from Bumblebee and Deadfire are to be sealed and stored in a unified manner. They cannot be transferred to other government laboratories simply because they are 'of research value'."

Fuller's expression was subtle.

Yin Xiang narrowed his eyes: "Your expression makes me very uneasy."

"I just think you're being too pessimistic about government departments."

"Can you guarantee that no one will think, 'Silas may have broken the law, but he's quite skilled; why not take him in to atone for his crimes?'"

Fuller remained silent: "...I'll include this in a separate section."

The vector was somewhat satisfactory:

"We also checked all the seized devices, especially offline storage and external backups. No device was allowed to leave until it was confirmed that it had been completely cleaned up."

Fuller nodded.

"And his cell."

Without hesitation, the vector pulled up a list of equipment: "The judicial center provides a set of independent monitoring devices."

Fuller glanced at it: "You're planning to install Cybertronian equipment in human prisons?"

"The installation was approved by you, and it will not be connected to your internal database; it will only be used for on-site anomaly monitoring."

The vector display function is now available.

[Monitoring of Abnormal Energy Reactions] [Detection of Unauthorized Electronic Communications] [Monitoring of Micromechanical Activity]

[Land bridge, space bridge, and space anomaly early warning] [High-energy weapon response early warning]

"If any unusual energy, unknown machinery, abnormal communications, or spatial fluctuations suddenly appear around the cell, the judicial liaison point and your security department will receive an alert simultaneously."

Fuller: "He's just a human being."

The vector remained expressionless: "A human who just used a fake energy signal to capture two Cybertronians and almost dismantled the Transformation Gear."

"..."

"I won't gamble."

Finally, human governments and judicial authorities determined a set of joint high-risk detention measures.

Silas remains imprisoned, prosecuted, and tried by human governments, with the judicial center not exceeding Earth's judicial authority.

However, as the direct victim, Cybertron reserves the right to submit evidence, recover data, be informed of the risks of detention, and pursue accountability for subsequent damages.

Silas's cell was equipped with an additional independent monitoring device provided by the judicial center, which simply kept a 24-hour watch on him.

After Fuller finished learning about the last monitoring system, he couldn't help but say, "Are you really afraid he'll run away?"

"He's caused trouble twice with me, I'm not going to let him do it a third time."

The vector continues to be output:

"Furthermore, the entire collaborative database was blocked. The fact that you were able to be hacked means that access permissions were definitely not properly tiered. Energy spectrum, mining area survey parameters, and physiological structures of organisms are not things that can be crammed into a single database."

Fuller opened his mouth.

The vector didn't give him a chance to speak:

"Accident investigators need to know the energy information; they don't need to look at the data on deformed gears. The technical department should only do basic collaboration; everything should be put together so that anyone can see it."

Fuller listened in silence for a long time before saying, "Aren't you a little too familiar with human government data?"

Fuller squinted at her. Last time they talked about guardianship and territorial sovereignty, and now it's about Silas's detention, government database access, data classification, and administrative responsibility.

Such proficiency is difficult to attribute solely to strong learning ability.

"Chief Justice, you've really never worked for a human government before?"

"no."

She never even graduated in her previous life, let alone joined the government.

Fuller: "Then how come you seem to know me so well?"

The vector plane remained unfazed: "I've learned a lot."

She clearly wasn't going to explain further. Fuller stared at her for a few seconds, but ultimately didn't press the matter.

-

Human governments have voluntarily taken responsibility for the leak and are conducting a comprehensive review of the compromised databases, among other things.

The medical expenses for Bumblebee and Deadfire, as well as the resource consumption caused by the extra deployment of the judicial center, will all be compensated by the human government.

The good news is that neither of the damaged machines sustained any serious damage.

Laffey stayed close to Bumblebee, asking, "Won't this really affect its transformation?"

"No." Bumblebee had barely finished speaking when he noticed Laffey still staring at his waist, so he quickly added, "I'm very healthy."

When he spoke quickly, his tone turned into a familiar electronic one at the end.

Lafite understood perfectly: "Then don't go running around lately."

Why are they even starting to control human children now?

The fire recovered faster after being knocked down and checked several times. Finally, I was satisfied to find that there was nothing seriously wrong.

The private frequency of the vector quickly received a thank you from Deadfire.

-

Both Optimus Prime and Megatron asked the same question: How did she get there before them?

The vector simply replied, "I used a working gadget."

Optimus Prime instantly realized he wouldn't get an answer, so he said, "I'm not someone who needs to be kept in the dark," as a reminder, and gave her space.

Megatron, however, wasn't so easily appeased: "What is it?"

"We'll talk about it later."

"Why not now?" "Because I'm very tired right now."

The reason was simple and blunt, and he wisely added, "Don't enter the enemy base alone next time."

-

After a considerable amount of time had passed since the matter was resolved, the vector finally returned to the temporary judicial liaison point.

He leaned back on the sofa and opened his terminal; the draft of the top-secret joint meeting on artificial energy entities was still there.

BICk0 popped his head out from the other end of the communication: "[Still running?]"

"open."

She had figured it out; if she dragged it out any longer, she couldn't wait until all the industrial equipment was built before calling Optimus Prime and Megatron over and saying:

Surprised? Unexpected?

That's just asking for a beating.

"Arrange a top-secret meeting."

Where is the crystal prism?

"Including all the key personnel who have inside information, let's bring them along."

BICk0 will make the arrangements quickly.

The vector pointer organizes the content to be said in the report:

An ancient formula for artificial energy bodies has been discovered, and modern raw material substitution, stabilization simulation, and artificial circulation verification have been completed.

Without live human testing, it cannot be claimed to be absolutely safe.

Her logic is clear and she's easy to explain; she'll definitely be able to get this out of the public today!

The vector took a deep breath, and then a new communication lit up.

she:"……"

BICk0 on the other end of the video also fell silent.

Both machines looked at the sender—Megatron.

The sixth sense, the vector, began to pound wildly.

[An ancient archive has been discovered.]

Her fins moved slightly.

[Preliminary assessment indicates it originated from Iron Fortress.]

……and many more!

The sound waves cannot be cracked; the encryption method shows traces of primitive technology.

I need you and Optimus Prime to participate.

BICk0 asked cautiously: "Will the meeting still be held?"

Megatron sent another screenshot. The Iron Fortress data interface was so familiar it gave her a headache; she recognized it at a glance.

She knows all the passwords, after all, those zip-like compressed messages are still in her brain module.

The vector slowly raised its hand to cover its face.

Her life felt like a knife stabbing into her armpit—it was both painful and made her want to laugh.

-

When Megatron discovered the Iron Fortress database, his first reaction was certainly not to share it.

The sound wave was tasked with trying to crack the code, but it failed repeatedly. Even changing the algorithm didn't help, and the database even popped up a warning that it might be corrupted.

Soundwave reluctantly stopped, and Megatron also gave the ancient, selective data a cold look.

The encryption system inside is not only ancient, but also contains elements left behind by the original creator.

Without proper permissions, forcibly dismantling the device may result in obtaining nothing.

So he had no choice but to send the message out.

——Autobot Base——

After receiving permission from the gravitational vector, Optimus Prime quickly received and recognized it as the Iron Fortress database.

The ambulance also came over, while the sound waves were remotely connected, with Megatron personally monitoring the analysis progress.

As for the index vector? She didn't come.

I can't be of much help with this kind of ancient database.

Jiuqi was silent for a moment when he saw her reply:

"Aren't you quite knowledgeable about ancient things?"

"I don't understand today."

97: "..."

There's definitely something fishy going on.

-

Optimus Prime enters the core access password, Soundwave takes over the subsequent cracking and decompression, and Ratchet is responsible for verification.

Several machines can process the data together, making it very fast.

The first batch of catalogs popped up quickly, and then the room fell silent.

[Hammer of the Prodigy] [Star Sword] [Energy Harvester] [Ultimate Key] [Omega Lock]

One after another, it was a complete list of sacred objects.

As Optimus Prime looked at the entry, he suddenly remembered that he had recently seen the Energy Harvester in a secret warehouse of a certain machine.

The ambulance driver had clearly anticipated this as well, his expression a mixture of anger and worry.

Megatron's face grew increasingly dark.

Some things that I used to think were strange suddenly came together.

Why does the vector go to human relics every day?

Why are Cybertronian devices of unknown origin being recovered from various parts of the Earth?

He kept saying "I can't say for now," but his hands never stopped moving.

She must have collected most of it.

Megatron turned around: "Open the bridge."

——Temporary Judicial Liaison Point——

The vector was still sitting on the sofa, feeling guilty.

She wasn't surprised at all when the land bridge lit up.

Megatron came out of there with a sour face.

Vector: ...As expected.

"Explain." "Please sit down."

"I won't sit." "Okay, then you can stand."

Megatron: "..."

In the past, when he came to settle scores with her, she would be on guard and prepare a way out.

Now, to make matters worse, she actually had the mood to pour him energy liquid, which made him even angrier.

"You already knew about the sacred artifacts recorded in the Iron Fortress database." "Yes."

"You've recovered most of it." "...Mm."

Megatron's chest armor noticeably heaved.

The vector quickly added, "But I didn't use it for anything bad."

That's not the point!

"Okay, okay."

Megatron stared at her, a bunch of words stuck in his throat for a long time, but in the end, they didn't turn into the kind of interrogation he used to have.

He said in a low voice, "I can understand why you didn't tell me in the first place."

He was indeed untrustworthy at that time, constantly plundering, trying to control, and taking everything that could give him an advantage.

"But what happened next?" Megatron looked at her. "I've changed a lot, so why won't you tell me?"

He controlled his volume, even his anger subsided, which made Yin Xiang feel even more guilty.

This time there was no way to deny it. After a few seconds of silence, he said, "This is my problem."

Megatron was taken aback by her admission, and his pent-up anger was suppressed.

"At first I really couldn't say it, but as things piled up, I thought I'd find a suitable time to talk about it, but I kept getting interrupted."

Iron-Eating Insects, Mech Special Forces, Time Blade, the Second Batch of Dispatch, one after another.

Vector sighed: "And there's something else, which I was planning to tell you and Optimus Prime together today."

Megatron squinted through his optical glasses: "What?"

"Artificial energy body".

Megatron's angry expression instantly turned into surprise and shock.

"The judicial center has previously found the formula for an artificial energy body." The vector retrieves the first phase report.

"We have passed the verification of modern raw material substitution, stability simulation, purification process and artificial circulation, but we have not conducted in vivo experiments, so we cannot claim that it is absolutely safe."

"But it can theoretically be used."

Megatron stared at the report, his mind immediately turning to Cybertron: "So, in the future, we can directly produce energy."

"If the subsequent verification goes smoothly."

Mines, supplies, fleets, strategic reserves—countless things swept through Megatron's brain module simultaneously.

If the Decepticons gain control of production first—

His thoughts paused, and when he looked up, he saw Yin Xiang leaning against the sofa, his eyes calmly and steadily watching him.

Those familiar calculations were never spoken aloud; they existed only in the brain, forcibly suppressed by reason and that bottom line.

"...This is a good thing."

"Hmm." She noticed, but didn't point it out, which was another form of trust. "I will formally explain the complete research with you and Optimus Prime."

"Okay." After answering, Megatron remembered what he had originally come to do.

"So you're not allowed to do that again."

Vector reference: ...Are you a primary school student drawing the 38th parallel?

"understood."

"I'm serious." "Me too."

Megatron stared at her for a long time before finally giving in with a reluctant acceptance.

"You've lied to me, and I've done things to make you distrust me before, so this time we're even."

A very Megatron-esque reconciliation.

She smiled and said, "Okay."

-

Optimus Prime arrived later and remained even more silent.

The vector was already mentally prepared when he came in: "You're here to settle accounts too?"

Optimus Prime sat down next to her: "Not really, I have a rough idea."

The vector became even more uneasy...

He's not stupid; after the energy harvester was exposed, there was just a lack of evidence for many things.

Now that the database is open, the evidence is practically shoving in his face.

Are you angry?

"I feel a little helpless."

The vector was unsure how to answer, and his fingers unconsciously twisted together.

Optimus Prime said softly, "If you can't trust Optimus Prime on this matter yet, I can accept that."

The vector was taken aback.

"But what about Orion? I didn't abandon Orion just because I became Optimus Prime."

His voice was calm.

"I will still hesitate and worry about you, and I will want to know what you are going through."

"So, can you tell me more?"

After struggling with the vector for quite some time, he finally retrieved the brain module and said, "I promise."

Optimus Prime stopped worrying about why she had kept it a secret, and simply reached out and carefully put his arm around her shoulder armor. After confirming that she didn't object, he moved even closer.

"If you ever feel like you have to bear something alone again, remember that Orion is still by your side."

The vectoring fin moved slightly, actively and gently moving back towards it.