Bumblebee Versus Scuzzard

  Begin Reading

  Table of Contents

  A Sneak Peek of Transformers Robots in Disguise: Sideswipe Versus Thunderhoof

  Copyright Page

  In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Chapter 1

  “Stop in your tracks, Decepticon!” shouts Bumblebee. “You’re under arrest!”

  The Autobot leader blasts his plasma cannon. The rapidly moving target leaps from side to side then somersaults over the Cybertronian lieutenant, landing behind him. The agile adversary shoves Bumblebee to the ground.

  “Is that the best you got, law-bot?” taunts a familiar voice.

  It is Bumblebee’s teammate: the youthful, energetic, and rebellious Sideswipe.

  He scowls at Bumblebee and yells, “You’re scrap metal!”

  Sideswipe then smiles, extends his arm, and helps his sparring partner off the ground.

  “Pretty impressive,” Bumblebee says. “You’ve got some nice moves, but the tough-bot attitude might be a bit over the top, don’t you think?”

  The young Autobot laughs. “You got to be a tough-bot if you want to intimidate those Decepticons, Bee.”

  “Thanks for the advice,” Bumblebee replies. “Who’s next?”

  The Autobot leader scans the scrapyard that currently serves as their headquarters and training area.

  Located on the outskirts of Crown City on planet Earth, the scrapyard belongs to a pair of humans: Denny Clay and his son, Russell. The Clays have befriended Bumblebee and his robot team and sometimes help them on their mission to track down and capture a number of Decepticon fugitives from the planet Cybertron.

  “It is my turn, sir,” calls out Strongarm. The young cadet dutifully strides over to the center of the training area.

  Back on Cybertron, Strongarm was a member of the police force serving under Lieutenant Bumblebee. Now she helps serve and protect anyone or anything that may come to harm at the hands of the Autobots’ evil enemies on Earth.

  “Let’s see if your moves are as good as mine,” Sideswipe says to her. “Not everyone gets the best of Bee. But I did!”

  “Show some respect, Sideswipe,” replies Strongarm. “You may have advanced ‘street smarts’ back home, but you’re no intellitron. Bumblebee is your commanding officer, and you should treat him as such!”

  “You’re right,” snaps Sideswipe. “So I only have to listen to him. Not you!”

  “Fine,” huffs the police-bot. “Who says I want to waste nanocycles talking to you anyway?” Strongarm retorts. “I’d have to use smaller words and talk… very… slowly.”

  “Enough!” Bumblebee says, exasperated. “We are all on the same team, whether we like to admit it or not. The real foes are out there and we need to be prepared. Something terrible is on the horizon, and by the AllSpark, I sure hope we can handle it!”

  “Yes, sir,” Strongarm says. “Let’s continue training.”

  “Where are Grimlock and Drift?” Sideswipe asks.

  Grimlock is a dinobot and former Decepticon who defected to the Autobots, and Drift is an honorable bounty hunter. They’re also part of Bumblebee’s ragtag team.

  “Drift has a free pass from today’s training,” Bumblebee replies. “He took the Groundbridge to an area with an allegedly high concentration of Energon. You know how he likes his solo missions.”

  “Yeah, Drift sure is a real-deal tough-bot,” Sideswipe says. “Glad he’s on our side.”

  Bumblebee chuckles. “I asked him to recon and report back,” the leader says. “If there is Energon out there, we’ll travel to the location and harvest the power source right away.”

  “Excellent,” Strongarm cheers. “Another mission!”

  “I totally understand your enthusiasm, Strongarm,” Bumblebee replies. “Things have been a little quiet around here.”

  “Yeah, quiet until the storm hits,” Sideswipe says, slamming his fist into his palm. “I’m ready for whatever the Decepticons got!”

  “I have a feeling the Decepticons may be after something as big and as powerful as the AllSpark.”

  Strongarm gasps. “But, sir, harnessing that kind of power could bring about unimaginable destruction!”

  Bumblebee nods grimly.

  Sideswipe breaks the uncomfortable silence and tries to lighten the mood. “Speaking of destruction, what’s Grimlock up to?”

  “He’s recharging on top of a pile of old cars,” a voice answers.

  The Autobots turn to see Russell, their twelve-year-old human friend. “Grimlock found a nice sunny spot, and he’s lying in it like a big lizard.”

  “Hey, Russell,” Bumblebee says. “What’s up?”

  “Shouldn’t you be at lob-ball practice?” asks Sideswipe.

  Russell chuckles. “Here on Earth, it’s called football.”

  “Oh, right,” Sideswipe says, trying to remember the word. “Foot. Ball.”

  “We’re on spring break from school,” Russell continues.

  “Spring break?” Strongarm asks, puzzled.

  “Yeah.”

  Suddenly, Fixit rolls into the training area from behind a dented billboard.

  “Who has a spring break?” Fixit asks. “It’s about time! I’ve been itching to repaint… repeat… repair something.”

  The multitasking mini-con was pilot of the prison transport ship Alchemor—the same ship that crashed to Earth and let loose the Decepticon criminals aboard. Now he rounds out the rest of Team Bee as the resident handy-bot.

  After the crash, Fixit developed a minor stutter, but he manages to correct his vocabulary with a quick check.

  The mini-con weaves in and out between the legs of the Autobots, twitching his digits excitedly.

  “No one had anything break,” Bumblebee says, looking himself over. “As far as I can tell.”

  Russell laughs. “Spring break is another term for taking a vacation from school.”

  “What’s a vacation?” Strongarm asks.

  “It’s time off,” Sideswipe replies. “Like an extended holiday.”

  Strongarm’s optics open wide with surprise. “Who would want to take time off from school?”

  “Not Miss Perfect Attendance, I’m sure,” Sideswipe retorts.

  “Every single cycle!” Strongarm announces proudly.

  “Really? I’m impressed, cadet,” Bumblebee says. “That’s an excellent record!”

  “I know!” Strongarm beams.

  Sideswipe rolls his optic sensors.

  “Anyway,” Russell interrupts. “My friends Hank and Butch are going away with their families for the next week and, well, I’m kind of stuck here, where nothing exciting has happened in ages.”

  The boy kicks a rock and sits on an overturned shopping cart.

  “That’s not so bad,” Fixit replies. “I’m stumped… stunned… stuck here all the time when all the other bots are out on missions or when they play games together.”

  “Every team member’s duty is very important,” Bumblebee explains. “Especially yours, Fixit.”

  Sideswipe sighs. “All right. There’s only so much sappy goodness this bot can take before he gets brain rust.”

  He walks over and crouches near the mini-con.

  “So, you really wanna play lob-ball with us? You got it!”

  With a loud whistle, the red robot wakes up Grimlock.

 
“Big G!” Sideswipe hollers. “We’re playing lob-ball with Fixit. Go long!

  “Finally!” Grimlock exclaims as he stretches his limbs. “Something to do that involves some action!”

  Fixit rubs his digits together with anticipation and excitement.

  “Excellent. What’s my position?”

  Sideswipe smirks and picks up the mini-con.

  “Ball,” he says.

  Then, in one deft movement, he hurls Fixit through the air straight at Grimlock.

  “AAAAAAAAAH!” screams the mini-con as he becomes a tiny dot against the sky.

  Bumblebee sighs and hangs his head.

  “When I said we need to focus on working as a team, this is not what I had in mind.”

  Chapter 2

  Grimlock jumps off the pile of cars and dashes into action. Shifting into his bot mode, he grabs an old metal bathtub and scrunches it onto his head.

  With his makeshift helmet secured, the dinobot rushes toward Fixit, all the while giving a running commentary.

  “This is it, ladies and gentlebots! Only mere nanocycles left in the game. Cybertron Lob-ball Legend Gridlock Grimlock sprints to catch the final pass. Will it be the winning play? Keep your optics open. You won’t want to miss a thing!”

  “Gridlock! Grimlock! Gridlock! Grimlock!” chants Sideswipe.

  Grimlock catches Fixit, pulls him into his chest, pivots, and charges in the opposite direction. When he reaches the end of the scrapyard, he hoists Fixit high into the air.

  “Grimlock wins the game for Team Bee! The crowd goes wild!”

  Sideswipe turns on his car radio speakers and blasts a bass-heavy techno sports jam.

  “Go, Grimlock, it’s your botday!” he sings, while dancing to the beat.

  Caught up in the excitement, Grimlock moves to spike Fixit into the ground as if he were a real football!

  “Grimlock, no!” Strongarm shouts.

  Quick as a flash, she and Bumblebee shift into their vehicle modes and rush to the rescue.

  They corner Grimlock just as he spikes the mini-con. Bumblebee’s tires screech and squeal and kick up dirt as he pulls a 180-degree turn. The yellow sports car pops his trunk, and Fixit lands safely inside.

  Bumblebee then changes back into bot mode and cradles the mini-con.

  Fixit’s gears are rattling. “I think that’s enough feet… feed… fieldwork for one day. Thanks.”

  As Bumblebee readies himself to scold Grimlock, Sideswipe blindsides him and snatches Fixit from his arms.

  “INTERCEPTION!” shouts Sideswipe, and he sprints away toward the other end of the yard.

  Grimlock bounds after him.

  Bumblebee throws up his hands and looks at the sky. When he feels troubled, he seeks guidance from his fallen hero, Optimus Prime.

  “Optimus, if you can hear me, please give me a sign. Anything that will—aha!”

  A shiny object glints in the sunlight, catching Bumblebee’s attention.

  For a moment, the Autobot sees the reflection of Optimus Prime, but it is gone as soon as it appeared.

  It is that same object that gives Bumblebee an idea. Shifting into vehicle mode, he speeds past the other Autobots and reaches the end of the scrapyard first. He switches back and climbs inside a truck with a hydraulic magnet attached. Bumblebee pulls down on a large lever and the machine whirs to life. The hydraulic arm drops toward the ground—at the same exact moment that Grimlock and Sideswipe race by underneath!

  CLANG!

  CLANG!

  The robots are yanked off their feet and right onto the magnet.

  “AAH!” they shout.

  Sideswipe freaks out and drops Fixit, but Strongarm is there to catch him.

  The mini-con’s optic sensors are swirling wildly. He is seeing double.

  “Strongarm, how long have you had a sitter… a sitar… a sister?” he asks. “Are you twigs… twits… twins? She looks just like you! Pleasure to meet you, my dear!”

  Fixit bows his head and passes out.

  “Hey, what’s the big idea?” Sideswipe hollers.

  “Game over,” Bumblebee says sternly.

  Grimlock looks down and sees his feet dangling high above the yard.

  “I can fly!” he cheers.

  Bumblebee pulls the lever again, deactivating the magnet, and releases his fellow Autobots onto the ground below.

  CRASH!

  Suddenly, Denny Clay comes running into the scrapyard. He is flustered and gasping for breath.

  “Dad, is everything okay?” Russell asks.

  “You’ll never guess what happened!” Denny blurts out.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s something that’s going to change our lives forever!”

  Russell looks at the robots and says, “What could possibly change our lives more than our new houseguests?”

  “It’s not kittens, is it?” Grimlock asks warily.

  The dinobot has an incredible fear of cats but tries not to let it show.

  “I think I hear Drift calling me. I’ll go see what he wants.”

  The dinobot runs away to the other side of the scrapyard, much to the bewilderment of his teammates.

  Denny sits down to catch his breath. He is huffing and puffing and wheezing.

  A revived Fixit rolls over and scans him.

  “I’m not familiar with organic biology, but it appears that Denny Clay is running on fumes. Does he need more fuel? I have my grandbot’s home remedy right here in the holo-scroll!”

  Fixit rolls away into the command center.

  After what seems like an eternity for the anxious group, Denny finally catches his breath and says, “An old friend of mine called up to say he’s got two amazing items for sale. You’ll never guess! Okay, I’ll tell you. Vintage pinball machines!”

  Russell, disappointed, slumps his shoulders. “Oh. More junk.”

  “Hey, these things are superrare!” Denny says excitedly. “Not exactly in working order, but it’ll give us something to do together when we repair them.”

  “Pardon us for asking,” Bumblebee interrupts, “but what are pinball machines. Are they good or bad?”

  “Do they shoot pins?” Strongarm asks.

  “Ha, no!” Denny says with a laugh. “They’re old-fashioned coin-operated arcade games.”

  “Oooh, games!” Sideswipe says.

  “Don’t get too excited,” Russell responds. “They’re ancient history. Just like everything else in this place.”

  Denny tries to cheer up his son. “Come on, Rusty. We’ll take a little road trip together. It’ll be a blast and a half! Things seem to be quiet here.”

  “Your father is right,” Bumblebee says. “I’m confident we can manage for a while without you. Go and enjoy yourselves.”

  “Fine,” Russell says. Then he whispers to Sideswipe. “Call us back immediately if something exciting happens, so I don’t die of boredom.”

  “You got it, dude.”

  As Denny and Russell head inside to prepare for their trip, the Autobots disperse throughout the yard.

  Grimlock returns with a brave face. “Hey, I don’t think that was Drift calling me after all!” he says with a chuckle.

  Seeing that he is alone, a wave of panic grips the dinobot.

  “Oh no!” He gulps. “It was kittens!”

  Chapter 3

  “All aboard!” Denny says as he climbs into his pickup truck.

  Russell climbs into the passenger seat and buckles himself in. His father is elated.

  “I can’t wait to get my hands on those fantastic fixer-uppers!”

  “So, where are we headed exactly?”

  “My old high school buddy Doug Castillo owns an arcade near the amusement park. Doug’s Den is the name, and he’s got all the old-school video games. I always wanted to take you there when you were younger but never got the chance.”

  As Denny loses himself in a wave of nostalgia, Russell falls silent and stares out the window. It’s true his father was not around m
uch when he was growing up. Now, with his mom traveling in Europe, Russell is spending a lot more time with his dad.

  It was not long after Russell moved to the scrapyard, or, as his father calls it, the “vintage salvage depot for the discriminating nostalgist,” that the Autobots literally crash-landed into their lives.

  Russell watches the trees whiz by and wonders how vast the universe must be if alien robots really exist on other planets. Especially when these robots are sentient beings with the ability to reconfigure their alien anatomy into that of vehicles or animals while battling one another right outside his very home.

  The pickup continues over the bridge leading into the city. Denny rolls down the windows and turns on the radio. A summerlike beach-rock tune fills the air.

  Denny sighs happily. “It’s good to get away!”

  Meanwhile, underneath the bridge in a murky marsh, a large metallic object glints in the sun. Part of it is submerged in water and most of the exterior is damaged.

  When the Alchemor crashed to Earth, a number of prison cells known as stasis pods were scattered across the surrounding area. Those pods housed Cybertron’s most violent criminals—Decepticons.

  Unfortunately, some of them had escaped their pods, and it is Bumblebee’s mission to round up the rogues.

  This particular pod starts to shift and rattle as the prisoner stirs within.

  CRACK.

  CRACK.

  CRACK.

  A sharp, pointed beak pecks at the surface as if hatching an egg until it finally breaks through the stasis pod.

  SKRAAAACK!

  An oversized, rust-colored vulturish Decepticon emerges!

  Stretching his long neck and long wings, the creature steps, blinking, into the sun. It scours the terrain for food.

  “I HUNGER!” he screeches.

  His raspy, grainy voice startles a nearby bullfrog, which leaps into the water.

  Following the movement, the Decepticon stabs at the water with his beak and pulls out a soggy rubber boot.

  “Meh!” he exclaims in disgust and flings it aside. “What is this? Where am I?” He turns his head from side to side, observing his surroundings.