Transformers: Infiltration #4

Credits

Writer - Simon Furman / Art - E.J. Su / Letters - Tom B. Long / Colors - John Rauch

Story

In a flashback from three years ago, Verity is listening to an exasperated councilor. Verity constantly spurns the efforts of social services to help place her in a home, and the concilor believes her veneer of superiority is an attempt to mask some personal pain.

Cut to present day Nebraska, where Verity is rappelling down a hidden shaft to the abandoned Decepticon command bunker (as found in issue #3). While Hunter and Jimmy wait to descend, Ratchet and Bumblebee warn them of the risks, insisting on a retreat at the first sign of danger. While Bumblebee reluctantly admits to Ratchet that the humans are "acceptable losses," the trio quickly check their equipment, then split up to search the darkened base.

At the Dallas headquarters of Epsilon Holdings, a man named Drake meets with The Machination (the mysterious group briefly shown in the previous issue). Mr. Dante, the head of the group, introduces Drake to Miss Svenson and Mr. Jolly, who briefs Drake on the recent Decepticon purge attacks. Jolly notes that "the visitors" are speeding up their plans, requiring The Machination to accelerate their efforts as well. Finally, he gives Drake a file assembled from data collected by Stoker, the previous operative whose palm computer was stolen by Verity in issue #0.

Does his name tag read "General Hallo," by any chance?

Verity, Jimmy, and Hunter continue searching the bunker with handheld scanners, though Jimmy wonders if they're finding anything useful. Verity goofs around, then finds a room containing a tree of opened canisters. Spotting a closed canister, she opens it, only to get frightened when it reveals a human skeleton wearing a military uniform! Before Jimmy and Hunter can come to her aid, she recovers, calls them off and resumes the search.

Topside, Ratchet and Bumblebee are waiting restlessly when they're suddenly attacked by Blitzwing and Skywarp! Dodging Blitzwing's blasts, Ratchet realizes the Decepticons are targeting the base, and orders the humans to evacuate. Hunter calls the others for a rendezvous, but Verity spies a light nearby and investigates that instead, losing her communicator in the process.

The Decepticons continue bombing the bunker, attempting to cause a cave-in. Bumblebee fights back against Skywarp by rapidly targeting his warp entry points, and manages to shoot him down. Ratchet blinds Blitzwing with a surprise burst of energy and sends him down, but then gets a tank blast directly in the chest...

Verity, meanwhile, has traced the light source to a room with a voice. She steps forward, and is spotted by Megatron...

Notes and Comments

• The text of the inside front cover reads:
  

  INFILTRATION:

  Having accessed data from a computer stolen by teenage runaway Verity Carlo, Autobot medic Ratchet believes there are answers too be found within an abandoned Decepticon command bunker in Nebraska. Now, Verity, Hunter O'Nion and Jimmy Pink prepare for a hazardous descent, unaware that the bunker has been targeted by Starscream...

  Phase One continues...