Chapter 671: Tape Legion: Civil War (Part 1)

Days of waiting always pass much slower than usual.

As for whether Soundwave would take the bait, Sun Cheng knew that worrying wouldn't change anything, and besides, in his view, the odds of success were quite high.

Given Soundwave's suspicious nature, he would certainly be full of interest in the content of the deal Starscream had made with others using the dozens of Energy Pillars he had stolen from Megatron's plan.

Starscream had been thinking of revenge every moment for these past years, and this was a trap set specifically for Soundwave's personality and his loyalty to Megatron!

If Soundwave wanted to figure out the inside story and the reason for this secret deal, he could only start with the two Decepticons: Starscream and Sun Cheng.

Starscream would inevitably be ruled out by Soundwave immediately; although he was one of the high-ranking Commanders of the Decepticon Legion, he was not a Warrior skilled in combat.

Even though Starscream had been suppressed by Megatron for all these years and had been slow to promote to a true Leader Class, his combat power was actually not much worse than a Leader's.

This point had already been fully demonstrated in the battle where he sniped Optimus Prime.

After The Fallen died, now without his protection, Soundwave would definitely not dare to appear before Starscream lightly.

Therefore, he could not get the inside story of the deal from Starscream, so he had to follow Starscream's plan and come to find Sun Cheng to uncover the truth.

This plan could not be called very clever, but it had the advantage of being simple and brutal.

The suspicious Soundwave would certainly be able to sense that something was wrong, but now, whether it was Starscream or Sun Cheng, everyone was betting that he wouldn't be able to resist.

The anger and disdain toward a former subordinate who dared to betray him would very likely affect Soundwave's judgment.

This was also the reason why Starscream had sought to join forces with Sun Cheng, and he himself had only gradually realized this after Starscream had eliminated the mole Soundwave had planted by his side following the Energy Pillar deal.

Besides, the Energy Pillars were already in his own pocket, and Starscream had not strictly demanded a completion time for the task; if it didn't succeed this time, Sun Cheng believed he would be even more anxious than himself.

Moreover, compared to Soundwave, the Autobots were what he was most worried about right now.

He had dragged Optimus Prime and the others into the water using intelligence about Sentinel Prime; if Soundwave didn't come in the end, he feared it wouldn't be so simple to persuade the Autobots next time.

On the fourth day after Laserbeak was driven away following a close-range observation, even Sun Cheng himself began to doubt whether Soundwave had seen through that Trindade Island was just a trap.

A piercing alarm sounded on the island.

"Master, the radar center has captured several suspected targets rapidly approaching Trindade Island from high altitude. Judging by the targets' current speed, it is estimated that they will crash onto the island in at most three minutes and seventeen seconds."

The voice of Pioneer rang out in a communication network that included Sun Cheng, Thunder, Pioneer, and Hailishi, who was patrolling over a hundred kilometers away.

"Is it finally coming?"

Sensing that the visitors were not coming with good intentions, Sun Cheng instead suppressed the unease that had been growing heavier during this period.

"How many targets did the radar detect?"

He walked out of the Base located in the belly of Trindade Peak and asked toward the newly constructed, eye-catching command center located in the northeast of the island.

"The radar captured six targets, suspected to be Soundwave and his party. Should we immediately follow the contingency plan and start arranging for the Workers to evacuate?"

Sun Cheng frowned slightly, "No rush!"

This Trindade Island was a grave prepared for Soundwave.

If he could keep him here, he could accept the loss of some Workers.

The top priority was not to alert the enemy before they entered the encirclement.

He immediately ordered: "Issue a warning according to the plan, pass the word down, and prepare for battle!"

"Yes!"

The island's Anti-Aircraft System, self-propelled howitzers, and patrolling Combat Robots all began to work in an orderly fashion under Pioneer's control.

Sun Cheng looked up at the increasingly conspicuous 'meteorites' in the sky, but quietly contacted Optimus Prime.

"Your Excellency, please be sure to hold back. Before I summon you, do not alert the enemy!"

The Autobots were a trump card he had prepared for himself, but that didn't mean Sun Cheng was ready to reveal it right away.

Soundwave's personality was too cautious; once he saw Optimus Prime and the others, he would likely turn around and run, and it would be difficult to find another opportunity then.

Moreover, Sun Cheng did not fully trust Starscream.

He knew very well that the guy with the nasty personality must be hiding behind the scenes right now, waiting to watch the tigers fight from the mountain.

Even now, Sun Cheng didn't know what Starscream's plan really was; was it truly just targeting Soundwave? Or was he on the hit list along with him?

Therefore, the Autobots had to wait a bit longer before entering the fray; in case he was truly targeted, this trump card could not only save his life but also kill.

"Warning... warning, you have approached our restricted area. Retreat immediately, or we will launch an attack on you!"

The piercing alarm was sent three times toward the six targets falling rapidly like meteorites in the sky, using a communication method easily readable by Cybertronians.

Unfortunately, after still receiving no response, Pioneer thought of Sun Cheng's previous instructions and decisively ordered: "Anti-Aircraft System activated, three rounds of missiles authorized for lock-on and launch!"

Being fierce in appearance but faint in heart was the state Sun Cheng required them to display.

He needed to make the other party believe, before Soundwave entered the trap, that they were only using force to threaten them to retreat because they lacked confidence, rather than truly wanting to go to war with Soundwave and his group.

All the defensive facilities on Trindade Island were actually built according to this requirement.

They looked very powerful, but were actually weak on the inside.

For example, the several Anti-Aircraft Systems installed on the island were actually equipped with modified S-5 series anti-aircraft missiles that the Russians had almost phased out.

These anti-aircraft missiles were originally designed by Base No. 2, intended to be 'sold' to some small countries in South America.

As for their performance, they were inferior to the anti-aircraft systems equipped by the five major powers on Earth, but they weren't exactly useless either.

At least, the modified S-5s from Sun Cheng's Decepticon Engineers had their maximum range increased to over 600 kilometers, their maximum altitude exceeded fifty kilometers, and their volume reduced by one-third without sacrificing power; they could fully threaten some rogue nations that loved to force their aircraft carrier fleets near other people's coastlines to conduct so-called freedom of navigation.

However, wanting to use these missiles, which even Base No. 2 looked down upon, to hit Decepticons invading from high altitude, they were clearly inadequate.

Sure enough, when the six launchers on the island locked onto the six rapidly falling targets and fired the modified S-5s, the invaders, suspected to be Soundwave and his party, easily dodged the first round of missiles through high-altitude trajectory changes and decoy explosions.

And just as the second round of missile salvos ended, when Sun Cheng looked up, he could already see with the naked eye that the incoming 'meteorites' were less than ten kilometers away from Trindade Island.