As Buster Witwicky slowly comes to, he quickly realizes he is far from home. The giant Decepticon robots looming over him were a good clue. Shockwave and Ratbat debate the fuel-efficiency merits of keeping the young human alive, with Shockwave defending his position by pointing to the human naval fleet just off the coast of their new island base. He correctly believes that Buster will serve as an effective human shield against any reprisal by Triple-I or the military. As Forsythe and Barnett find themselves stymied by the Decepticons, Walter calls home to Oregon to alert Sparkplug Witwicky of his son's fate.