Chapter 293: Trade Conditions

Looking at Starscream on the screen, Josh frowned slightly.

It wasn't because of the guy's arrogance, but because he was trying to figure out which version and timeline this Starscream came from.

The way he looked now, Josh had never seen him before - his whole body was thin and tall, completely different from the Earth-style jet form shown in the movies and cartoons.

In fact, he looked more like the Fallen from the second Transformers movie.

Wait, the Fallen?

Thinking about the movie series, Josh suddenly remembered what the Autobots looked like when they first landed on Earth in the first movie—before they scanned any vehicle forms. That was very similar to how this Starscream looked now.

That meant the guy on the screen was most likely from the movie universe, just at a point before he reached Earth.

Which also explained why Josh didn't recognize him until he said his name.

"Starscream, huh? Acting all high and mighty—does Megatron know you're so arrogant?" Josh asked, pretending not to be impressed.

"Huh? How do you know Megatron, you little bug?" Starscream's arrogant face froze for a moment as he angrily questioned Josh. But after saying that, he quickly calmed down and returned to his usual mocking tone.

"Heh, no matter where you heard that name, it doesn't matter. Megatron has been missing for over ten thousand years, so now I rule Cybertron!"

Yeah... that sudden change of mood was definitely Starscream's style.

But missing for over ten thousand years?

Heh. That confirmed it.

"Oh, really? Then tell me—do you dare say you rule Cybertron before the Fallen or Shockwave?" Josh tapped him on the chin and asked again, testing him.

"You damn bug, do you dare challenge me? I could send someone to Earth right now and tear you apart!" Starscream exploded in anger.

But as soon as he finished, he saw the look on Josh's face, like someone watching an idiot, and realized there was a huge flaw in his threat.

If the information he'd received when the trading system linked with him was real, then this human in front of him wasn't even from the same universe. Even if Starscream blew up his own Earth, it wouldn't matter to Josh.

"Hmph! Human, if you beg me for mercy, I might forgive your insult... Otherwise, don't even think about getting anything from me!"

Even though he knew he'd messed up, Starscream would never admit fault to a tiny human. And as for the trade? He didn't believe for a second that Josh could have anything he wanted.

But what he didn't know was that Josh had already found out everything he needed just from this short exchange.

Yes—this Starscream was definitely from the Transformers movie universe.

Megatron might be missing, but Shockwave was still around—the highest-ranking military commander of Cybertron.

So even though Starscream had served as the leader of the Decepticons for the past ten thousand years, even earning a fancy title like "Emperor Starscream", the truth was—he was never really able to rule like Megatron.

Not even after leading the Decepticons to finally defeat the Autobots during that long war.

Not to mention the Fallen—that ancient force that lurked in the shadows above them all.

It was clear now: Josh's two seemingly simple questions had hit Starscream where it hurt most, which was why he became so angry and unintentionally revealed valuable information.

But even as he provoked Starscream to get what he wanted, Josh didn't forget the primary purpose of the trading system.

Looking at Starscream's arrogant attitude, he knew the guy wouldn't budge unless he saw something really tempting.

So Josh casually placed a container of vibranium in the trading window.

Starscream, who had just been looking down at Josh, needed only one glance at the description of the metal before his glowing red eyes locked on it like a hawk.

Was there really such a crazy metal in this world?

Oh right — this human wasn't even from his universe.

If he could use that insane metal to upgrade himself…

Forget Megatron, Shockwave, or the Fallen—he'd crush them all!

He didn't even need much. Just a thin coating of Vibranium on his body would be enough... But just as Starscream was getting lost in his power-hungry fantasy, Josh removed the Vibranium from the display.

Snap.

There went Starscream's dream—crushed in an instant.

At that moment, Starscream really wanted to curse him, maybe even insult his whole family.

But even though Starscream was arrogant and liked to act big, he wasn't stupid.

Now he clearly understood that Josh was no ordinary human being, and that this trading system wasn't nearly as simple as he'd first thought.

He held back his anger, his glowing red eyes flickering rapidly as his mind raced, trying to figure out how to trick Josh into giving him some Vibranium.

Money?

Absolutely not. Anyone who had access to a material like Vibranium and could trade across dimensions wouldn't be moved by something so basic.

Beauty?

Cybertronians had genders, but their physical forms made it impossible to appeal to human desires—unless they went to Earth and kidnapped someone; but if Josh didn't care about money, he probably didn't care about beauty either.

Power?

Hmm... Maybe. If Josh's world had lower-level technology, Starscream might be able to tempt him with some basic Cybertronian technology.

"All right, I know what you're thinking," Josh said casually, seeing the look of hesitation on Starscream's face. "Actually, getting Vibranium from me is pretty easy..."

"Heh, dear sir, let me just say—I'm actually a very friendly guy," Starscream said, his tone suddenly much more polite. "I love working with humans, doing business with them. The Decepticons and humans? We're practically family! We visited Earth a long, long time ago, you know. I just adore Earth culture. I was just... uh... rehearsing a play! Yes, rehearsing a play, that's all!"

"We even sent two ambassadors to Earth recently!"

Look at that.

Now that was what I call shameless flip-flopping.

No vibranium? You're just a simple bug.

But show a little? Suddenly you're a noble sir.

Josh figured that of all the Transformers, there probably wasn't another one as shameless as this guy.

Loved humans? Sent ambassadors to Earth? Yeah, right. Maybe he meant spies. Josh mocked him silently in his heart.

But he didn't really care about all that nonsense. What mattered now was getting the most out of this deal with Starscream.

"No need to use the same tricks you used on Megatron and the Fallen on me, Starscream. My terms are simple—Cybertron's complete tech database, the Space Bridge, and information on Omega Supreme... as well as the Fallen and Megatron," Josh said bluntly, laying out his demands.

The moment he mentioned the first item—all of Cybertron's technology—Starscream's face began to twist.

By the time Josh finished listing the rest, Starscream's jaw nearly hit the floor.

Was this human insane?

He had to be.

Or did he think Starscream was an idiot?

What kind of confidence did this guy have to believe that Starscream would trade all of Cybertron's technology for Vibranium?

Sure, Vibranium was impressive—maybe even enough to help him really rule Cybertron—but just that, in exchange for all of Cybertron's technological heritage? That was a rip-off of galactic proportions.

And the rest? The Space Bridge? Omega Supreme? The Fallen and Megatron?!

Who did Josh think he was, offering those as if they were goods at a market stall?

"Oh, and if you're interested," Josh continued calmly, as if he hadn't just said something outrageous, "I'm also willing to trade for Shockwave, Drill Bit, Soundwave, Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Bumblebee... even all the Transformers, alive or dead. Though, of course, none of them are worth as much as the first three."

Just when Starscream thought Josh was completely insane, Josh went even further.

"Human! I admit your Vibranium is valuable to me, but that doesn't give you the right to play games with me!" Starscream glared at Josh, his glowing red eyes seething with rage; if Josh had been standing in front of him, he would have been torn to shreds.

"Tut tut tut, calm down, our mighty and noble Emperor Starscream," Josh replied, completely unfazed by the fury on the other side of the screen.

"Heh... fine, I'll bite. Let's hear what other nonsense you've got," Starscream sneered, his anger barely contained.

"Vibranium is just a base level offer. I don't even care if you take it for free," Josh said, still calm. "What I really want to trade with you for... is something else. Something that will make you more than just the ruler of Cybertron. It will make you the ruler of the entire universe."

His tone was so calm, so cold, that for a moment Starscream felt the same pressure he had once felt when standing before the Fallen.

"What... what is it?" Even as he doubted him, Starscream couldn't help but ask.

"The AllSpark, the Matrix of Leadership, the staff of Quintessa... and-Unicron.

Josh spoke slowly, clearly, each name like a hammer blow to Starscream's CPU.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! The AllSpark has been missing for tens of thousands of years. Megatron disappeared trying to find it! How could a human from another universe know where it is? As for the Creator and Unicron, they're nothing but old legends—completely made-up stories!" Starscream snapped back right after Josh finished.

Josh, however, didn't seem to be bothered at all and calmly replied, "Heh, wasn't the Fallen just a legend before he returned?"

When it comes to Transformers history, Unicron aside, the Fallen appeared much earlier than Quintessa, the supposed creator.

In the movies, the very first Transformers were the Seven Primes, including the Fallen; these first-generation Transformers didn't even have the ability to transform.

During the first prehistoric civil war on Cybertron, the Fallen defeated and killed the other six Primes.

He himself was then exiled to another dimension, leading to the sudden disappearance of Cybertron's leadership and the end of the war.

Not long after, Quintessa appeared. She was incredibly powerful, but had no real connection to Cybertron.

She was actually more like the Quintessons of the comics—a true invader from the outside. (TL/N: The rulers of the Quintesson Empire, the Quintessons were an ancient enemy of the Cybertronian race, having enslaved Cybertron and sold off its citizenry as slaves)

She defeated the early Transformers and made them her slaves. Then she began to study the AllSpark.

Using the AllSpark and the first generation of Transformers as models, she created a second generation—one that could transform and work better as a tool.

This second generation included more familiar names like Optimus Prime and Megatron.

But under Quintessa's rule, Cybertron was being drained of resources, and she didn't want that to happen. She knew that Cybertron was originally created by a supreme being—The One. (TL/N: The One, also known as the Source is the sentient core of the universe is an extradimensional entity from before time, in whom Order and Chaos exist in perfect harmony. It created Unicron (boo!), then cut him in half to make Primus (yay!).

To restore its power, she needed an equally powerful power source.

And that was none other than Unicron.

So she created a new batch of Transformers and sent them with her staff to drain Earth's energy.

These became the Twelve Knights featured in Transformers 5.

What Quintessa didn't expect was that the Twelve Knights would betray her.

They hid on Earth for thousands of years until Merlin accidentally found them.

She tried to hunt them down on Earth, but something worse happened—because of the energy crisis, both the Autobots and the Decepticons rebelled and managed to drive them off Cybertron.

With her gone, Megatron and Sentinel Prime led their factions into the Second Great Civil War.

This war not only caused the AllSpark to disappear again, but also completely destroyed Cybertron.

It was during this chaotic time that the Fallen returned from the other dimension.

So even though the Fallen appeared earlier, that doesn't mean Quintessa was older than him.

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