Fire in the Sky

The Decepticons drain heat from the Earth's core to make energon, plunging the world toward a new ice age.

What's this? A blanket of snow over the Ark's volcano? The Autobots and Spike engaged in a snowball fight? In July? In the middle of the desert? Something is amiss with the world's weather. According to Teletraan I's scans, temperatures are 40 degrees below normal and falling rapidly.

Somewhere inside the Arctic Circle, the Decepticons have tapped a crystal shaft leading directly to the Earth's core to siphon the planet's heat energy into energon cubes. While excavating the icy caverns surrounding the crystal, Rumble uncovers a Transformer frozen in the ice. Starscream recognizes it as his old colleague Skyfire.

The Autobots finally pinpoint the source of the Earth's energy drain, and Teletraan I confirms Decepticon activity surrounding a crystal outgrowth in the Arctic Circle. Optimus Prime hastily assembles an assault team, and they roll out, with Spike and Sparkplug accompanying.

The Decepticons have hauled the frozen titan out of the ice and proceed to repair it. Starscream explains his past: millions of years ago, before the final falling out between the Autobots and Decepticons, Starscream and Skyfire were both explorers. They were charting an unknown planet, Earth, when a storm separated the two and Skyfire was lost.

Skyfire awakens and Megatron welcomes him to the Decepticon cause. Though Skyfire is grateful for having been thawed out, he shows doubts about being a warrior rather than a scientist. He commits to the cause out of loyalty to Starscream. When the Autobots arrive in the Arctic, Skyfire targets them for destruction.

Skyfire opens fire, scattering the Autobots. Spike tumbles through the ice into the arctic waters. Sparkplug pulls him out, but they are trapped on an ice floe. They cry out for help. Skyfire is intrigued by the new lifeforms and tries to befriend them, not realizing that they are terrified by Decepticons. Spike and Sparkplug try to explain that it's the Decepticons that are the true monsters. The naïve Skyfire takes the humans to Megatron to prove the Decepticons' good intentions. Megatron and Starscream promptly imprison Spike and Sparkplug behind bars of ice, and plan their execution, leaving Skyfire troubled.

Optimus leads his Autobot team into the icy caverns, but a cave-in splits the team in two. Prime's group finds the humans and frees them, while the other team—including Ironhide, Ratchet, Hound and Gears—find the crystal shaft tap. Megatron discovers this second group and has his soldiers capture them. To test Skyfire's loyalty, Starscream orders Skyfire to execute the captives. Skyfire refuses, and in a fit of rage, Starscream blasts his old friend. Starscream then blasts the prisoners to pieces.

Well, not really. Once again, one of Hound's holograms has saved the day, creating the illusion of blasted Autobot parts. When Starscream departs, Hound drops the illusion. An ailing Skyfire awakens and is pleased to see the Autobots functioning. The disparate Autobot teams unite as Ratchet repairs the fallen titan. Laserbeak spies Ratchet's work and reports to Megatron. The Decepticon leader chews out Starscream for failing to kill the prisoners. Megatron orders his soldiers to attack.

—A snow-covered Jazz, surprising Spike

—Bumblebee, after Spike warns Ratchet about Bumblebee's incoming snowball

—Ratchet, predating the "junk in the trunk" standard after they all fall through an ice sheet

—Cliffjumper breaks Spike and Sparkplug out of an ice prison.

—Ironhide reveals yet another unusual piece of Cybertronian technology.