The invading aliens would die on their own after one day, two at most. No matter how you looked at it, that was good news. But for the decision-makers, a new problem appeared: what should they do during this next day or so? Fight back with everything they had and refuse to yield an inch? Or pull back into defensive positions and wait for the enemy to die on its own?
Benjamin Asher looked at the many generals inside the Pentagon.
"We can evacuate civilians into the major bases and cities."
"Right! There's no need to fight the aliens head-on. We can build defensive lines in the major cities, gather civilians together, and treat the wounded."
"Mr. President, we'll do everything we can to rescue civilians, but troop movements take time. You were a soldier once too, so you should know that isn't an excuse."
Facts and reason.
Whether Army, Air Force, or Navy, the generals inside the Pentagon all spoke with the same tone. The military did not want to take enormous casualties fighting the aliens. The aliens would all be dead in a day anyway. They only needed to defend for one day and it would be over.
The news that the enemy would die after one day could not be kept secret. This was not some feudal society where information moved slowly. This was modern society, a capitalist society. The Pentagon leaked like a sieve. Within half an hour, the field-grade officers commanding at the front would know the news, and they certainly would not send their own soldiers into a desperate fight against the aliens.
Generals had to be responsible for the soldiers under them, but as president, Benjamin Asher could not think only about the military. He also had to consider the civilians.
Ordering the military to attack now would definitely save a great many civilians. If the military stayed behind its defenses and refused to come out, civilian casualties would be enormous.
Should he choose the safe defensive option, or accept the huge risk of mounting a rescue?
Benjamin Asher braced both hands on the table and swept his gaze across the generals. "An active offensive will indeed cause casualties, but this isn't a business deal. This isn't about who loses money and who makes a profit."
Ignoring the generals' ugly expressions, he gave the order forcefully. "I am the commander in chief. I order you to attack immediately. No excuses. Now. Right now. This instant!"
The militaries of countries around the world received roughly similar orders. The Tripods' slaughter of civilians was suppressed, and large numbers of civilians were rescued, but national militaries also suffered casualties to varying degrees.
***
Bella, on Titan, knew nothing about what was happening on Earth. While Jazz and the others were drawing the Decepticons' attention, she returned to Optimus Prime. The two Decepticon guards had been distracted by the explosions outside the base. They did not abandon their posts to go watch the excitement, but their attention was focused on the distance as they quietly discussed something.
Optimus Prime was spread-eagled and suspended in midair by chains. Bella could not tell what metal they were made of. She only knew it was extremely strong.
When Optimus Prime saw her appear again, he slowly shook his head. He did not believe she could rescue him without alerting the two guards.
"Watch me!"
Bella used Teleportation again. The portal she opened perfectly enclosed Optimus Prime's spread-eagled body. When Bella jumped through as well and closed the passage from the other side, space itself severed the four chains. The heavy chains crashed to the ground with a sharp clang. The two Decepticon guards hurriedly turned around, only to discover that the frame was empty. Optimus Prime, who had been hanging there, had suddenly vanished.
"What an unusual ability. Cough, cough!..." Optimus Prime was badly injured. He leaned against the wall and even speaking was difficult.
"It's fine. Rest here first. I'll go back and rescue Jazz and the others... Huh? Wait?! No way... What's going on?" Bella was preparing to return for Jazz and Ironhide when, before she could activate her Teleportation spell, she swept Weyland Corporation's base with her mental power and unexpectedly discovered a large group of familiar people.
She froze for two seconds, cast a cleaning spell on herself, then activated the room's rapid disinfection procedure. After finishing all that, she hurriedly teleported to Natasha's side. "Why are all of you here? Did something happen back home?"
Bella lowered her head and saw Little Kitty and Little Elsa eating ice cream cones.
Little Elsa wrinkled her nose, apparently thinking the disinfectant smell on Bella was a little strong, but she still reached out to Bella, asking to be held. Bella looked into the distance and discovered that even the Divine Dragon and Bumblebee were here. This was far too abnormal.
"It's a little complicated. Here's what happened..." Natasha summarized the situation on Earth as briefly as possible, making a special point of mentioning that the aliens only had a one-day lifespan.
With all the information gathered together, Bella, an armchair general and master of textbook strategy, knew far more background than Natasha did. She quickly figured out what The Fallen and Starscream were planning. It was almost exactly the same as her rescue of Optimus Prime on Titan: a diversion layered over deception!
"I know what's going on!" Bella had no time to explain more. The three brothers back on Titan still needed her rescue. Every extra second she wasted here might be the second one of them died.
She pointed toward the disinfection room behind the Weyland facility. "Miss Arcee, Optimus Prime is in there. He's badly injured, so take care of him for now. I still have to go back and rescue Jazz and the others."
After hugging her daughter and indicating that she would be right back, Bella teleported to Titan once again.
Bella waited at the agreed meeting point for a while before finally seeing the three late-arriving Autobots.
Ironhide was badly injured. Both legs were gone, and Ratchet was carrying him to the rendezvous point. Even while being carried, he kept firing wildly behind him. One of Jazz's arms had been blown off, and his chest, shoulder, and abdomen were full of holes.
There was no time to talk. Bella hurried all three of them into the portal.
As the signature spell of Kamar-Taj, Teleportation really was an essential skill for travel, home life, murder, and robbery alike. Bella opened seven or eight portals in succession, redirecting all the lasers and missiles fired by the Decepticons. Only then did she bring Jazz and the others back to Earth.
Old comrades meeting far from home—tears in their eyes.
Optimus Prime, Jazz, Ironhide, and Ratchet were all seriously injured. Arcee and Bumblebee were fine, but neither of them had much combat power.
By the time Bella returned, Arcee had only exchanged a couple of sentences with Optimus Prime.
They had no time for a proper reunion before they started discussing the current situation. The important part was that Jazz told Optimus Prime about The Fallen and let the boss analyze it. After that... hurry up and go kill the enemy!
Optimus Prime listened carefully, asking a few questions from time to time, then summarized the situation by combining the intelligence he knew with Bella's analysis.
"Earth's militaries are all fighting the Selorians now. They can't support us. We have to rely on our own strength to defeat The Fallen. If The Fallen obtains the Matrix of Leadership, he will definitely destroy the star. Only we can stop him!" Optimus Prime said heavily.