Month: May 2021

Megatron didn’t stop swinging his mace. He refused to. He, the master of deception, was tricked into working with his accursed enemies! By his future self, no less! What would happen to him in the 50 years between now and Galvatron’s initial time-travel?! All these factors just fueled Megatron’s rage. “TRAITOR!” he roared as he swung. “VILE LIAR!”

“Enough!” shouted Galvatron as he grabbed the mace by the chain. “What’s the idea?!”

“You contacted Rodimus and praised Silver,” explained Soundwave as he observed from a safe distance.

“…Which one overheard my call?!” snarled Galvatron.

“It doesn’t matter! You tricked me into allying with the Autobots!” roared Megatron.

“Because you wouldn’t listen to me if I just flat-out told you to ally with them!” retorted Galvatron as he threw the mace aside. “You’d probably shoot me if I suggested such a thing when we first met!”

“Right now, that sounds like a capital idea!” Megatron aimed his fusion cannon and fired. Galvatron rolled out of the way.

“GALVATRON, TRANSFORM!” A backpack swung up and released a set of wings. His arms joined in front of his chest and his hands sunk into the forearms as his cannon maneuvered itself between the arms. His toes and heel spurs then folded down and the legs swung backwards as an assembly folded from the top of the wings to the feet and became thrusters. A canopy then covered his head, and he completed his transformation into a Cybertronian jet. He then barreled into Megatron and flew upwards, taking his past self with him. Megatron tried to steady his aim, then Galvatron pointed down, forcing Megatron to fall off. “CYBER KEY POWER!” The Cyber Key then inserted itself between the wings. Once it turned, the wings angled themselves forward. The tips then deployed blasters and fired rapid rounds while the cannon charged a massive shot. The cannon fired and Megatron was pushed into the mountainside, creating a new cave. Galvatron transformed and landed at the cave entrance before grabbing Megatron and throwing him down the mountain. Once he landed back at Autobot HQ, his future self then picked him up. “If you’re done ranting like a child, you should listen!” snarled Galvatron. “When you’ve been fighting Unicron for 50 years and you’re one of the last Decepticons, your priorities tend to shift! Tell me, how can the Decepticons call themselves an empire when it’s down to four?! Even the Autobots are down to five! Our mother died! Dion died! Animatros died! Velocitron died! Gigantion died! Mobius is dying! CYBERTRON DIED! …Everything that we ever cared about died too soon. SO TELL ME WHY I SHOULD CARE ABOUT THE DECEPTICON EMPIRE ANYMORE?!”

“And the Empties on Cybertron?! They no longer mean anything to you?!” roared Megatron.

“Like I said, Cybertron died in my time! What IS there to fight for other than survival?! And, on the slim chance we DO beat Unicron, what good is there to continue old grudges?! Megatron, there are moments where you’re so tunnel-visioned that you can’t see the bigger picture!”

“…At this point, I’m not sure we’re in the same art gallery!” Megatron then leapt at Galvatron.

“NO!” called a voice as a fireball flew between them. The two Decepticon Lords turned to see Amy. “No fighting, no trying to kill each other, or we’ll be killed in an instant! Megatron, is this one of those things where you obsess over something to cover up the real issue?!”

“The real issue,” growled Megatron, “is that in 50 years, I forget what made us a Decepticon in the first place!”

“Really? I thought it was stopping Unicron at any cost. Last time I checked; he’s getting in the way of your goals. So, quit acting like a spoiled brat, calm down, and start picking Unicron’s brain! You wanted to give Optimus Unicron’s coordinates within Mobius, right?!” Megatron growled before calming down. He glared at Galvatron.

“This isn’t over,” he warned. He then turned to Soundwave. “Soundwave, return to base. I’m sure we’ll get the full story in time.”

“As you command, Megatron,” replied Soundwave as he opened a Bridge portal back to the Decepticon Moon Base. He then entered the portal and left the area as Galvatron and Amy went inside, leaving Megatron alone to brood.

“He has a point, you know,” remarked Optimus as he and Rodimus watched the whole thing. “That WAS manipulative of you two.”

“Tell me, would YOU have approached Megatron with the idea without our help?” asked Rodimus.

“There ARE some Autobot principles that matter, one of them being the truth.”

“If I came to you with the truth…”

“Then I wouldn’t believe you? Did you know that Vector Prime himself warned me and Blackarachnia about your arrival? He told us that he sanctioned your journey because the future was too ghastly for him to leave alone.” Rodimus stared at Optimus in wide-eyed surprise.

“…He never told me that!”

“…You serious?”

“Yes! Vector Prime never told me anything! …Though, come to think of it, my connection to the Matrix isn’t…all there.”

“He didn’t contact me through the Matrix. He just popped out in front of me. …Actually, no, he first flew into Blackarachnia’s trap lines.”

“Must you tell him that?” asked a voice. The two Primes whirled around to see Vector Prime standing behind them.

“Do you need to do that?!” protested Optimus.

“Yes.”

“…You bots really DO work in mysterious ways, don’t you?”

“Just how Primus built us. Look, can you really afford to waste time over this? While deplorable, Rodimus’ actions WERE correct.”

“Vector Prime, a question,” interjected Rodimus.

“Yes, my child?”

“I would have thought that any deviation to the timeline would mean that me, Galvatron, and Silver would fade from existence.”

“So why are you still here? Simple, multiverse theory can give you a headache.”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning that your timeline is now an alternate future.”

“…Then our journey here…?!”

“IS for something. While you will still return to that ghastly future, I believe you’ll find the way to defeat Unicron here in this timeline and carry that knowledge to yours.”

“…You mean there’s actually hope for our time?!”

“There’s hope for every timeline. But, to answer your question, yes, for yours, there is.” Rodimus, for the first time in a long time, felt a genuine smile tug at the corners of his mouth. “However, right now, the future is clouded. If you lot really want Unicron beaten, you must fully configure the Matrix with all of our knowledge. Yes, that includes the Fallen, Liege Maximo, me, and Alpha Trion.”

“…But, the Fallen and Liege Maximo…!” protested Optimus.

“They have knowledge that you need,” replied Vector Prime. “I know the Fallen fell under Unicron’s thrall once, but he used that knowledge to help us in the long run. Liege Maximo, while he’s THE ultimate liar and manipulator, is also the Ultimate Strategist. He will find a way to manipulate Unicron to his defeat as he did in the past.”

“…And you and Alpha Trion?”

“…I’m afraid that, if we give our knowledge to you, we will cease to exist.”

“Okay, I may not be his best student, but I don’t see Alpha Trion going for that option.”

“And you’re right on both counts, Optimus,” replied a voice. Another yelp from Optimus and Rodimus and they turned to see Alpha Trion standing behind them with his arms folded.

“How did you…?!” spluttered Optimus.

“We Thirteen have built-in Space Bridges that can take us anywhere in the universe,” explained Alpha Trion. “In any event, I cannot condone joining with our brethren just to fight a battle!”

“A battle against Unicron!” argued Vector Prime. “You and I both swore an oath to stop him!”

“And we’ve done that! Another use of the Three Powers will tear the universe asunder! That IS why we had them destroyed!”

“Well, Unicron’s coming back, and we need a back-up plan should he get another body!”

“Optimus and Megatron must play their hand correctly so that he DOESN’T get a new body!”

“Er, still here, Alpha Trion,” interjected Optimus. “Besides, I don’t think Megatron’s in a team-player mood.”

“…Perhaps I should have a talk with him. It might get him to remember the mission.”

“Er, I think you’re gonna need…!” Optimus’ request for Alpha Trion to get a local alt-mode was interrupted as Alpha Trion vanished. “…Okay, I guess you’re not gonna be a robot in disguise.”

The Space Bridge had sent Dion back to Cybertron in disgrace and morale was low. How could an Autobot be so hateful? Megatron smirked. He knew what caused it; a simple matter of believing in propaganda too much and not realizing the REAL cause of war, money. He had taken over Dion’s quarters and tailored it to his own ends. As he continued arranging things, he heard the door chime. “Yes?” he called.

“It’s your mother,” answered Windblade’s voice.

“…Enter.” Windblade came in and looked around.

“You settled in pretty well.”

“I would have been given my old quarters, but it was…occupied.”

“…Why?” Megatron guessed her question.

“Optimus didn’t tell you?”

“He admitted he didn’t follow everything.” Megatron flinched a bit.

“Simple, we started acting like Functionists towards the losers.”

“…There’s more to this.”

“Believe what you wish, but there really ISN’T…” Megatron didn’t finish his sentence as Windblade leapt onto him, shoving him into a wall. “Wha…?!”

“You betrayed us! You betrayed ME! What’s happened to you?! WHAT HAVE THE DECEPTICONS DONE TO MY BABY BOY?!”

“Enough!” Megatron shoved her off of him and got some room.

“Is it Shadowplay?!” continued Windblade. “Is that what this is?! Did Jhiaxus brainwash you?!”

“If he did, he’d still be around! Remember? Jhiaxus is dead! Any puppet of his would seek to keep him alive! I sent the D.J.D on him! So, no, it’s NOT Shadowplay and I’m sorry if that disappoints you.” Windblade stood there, staring at her wayward son.

“We believed in you back then. We dedicated our lives to you!”

“Not to me, to the Autobot cause.”

“You ARE the Autobot cause! Or, at least, that’s what Sentinel Prime believed.”

“Sentinel REALLY thought me to be the model Autobot? Mother, I had a stutter and was afraid of my own shadow! I find it hard to believe that I was a model Autobot back then! As it stands now, I’m not even the faintest glimmer of ANY type of Autobot!” Windblade scowled, then sighed.

“…The family’s carrying on without you. Optimus has plans.” Megatron arched an eyebrow.

“Optimus? I thought Dion was head of the Pax family.”

“Dion stepped down. He handed the reins of the family to Optimus. …He’s exiled himself from the public eye. He’s still on Cybertron, but he’s living as a hermit. Optimus wants to bring your father back.”

“Well then, go help him! Off you go! Go get my Ex-Decepticon father and have him finally meet his youngest son! Push! Push on! Forge ahead without me!”

“…The moment you tell me this is all a trick, that ‘Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons’ is part of some larger plan, then you’re taking Dion’s place. Optimus never wanted it, feeling that he’s got enough in terms of command already.”

“Ah, yes, Autobot loyalty. I had forgotten how toxic it can be.” Megatron then sat himself on his recharge berth. “Speaking of loyalty, I presume you were sent to spy on me?” Windblade flinched. It was true.

“Optimus’ orders. I was to watch and wait until I could be certain the new you was the real you.”

“And then?”

“…He left that up to me.”

“And you told us Father’s origins?”

“A test for you. Testing your compassion. …You failed.” The silence hung low over the room until Windblade broke it again. “I’ve been watching you ever since you surrendered. You sat in your cell with your eyes closed and your mouth turned up in a smile, and you think, and you think, and you think, and you know what I think? I think, for the first time in your life, you don’t know what you are! Writer, soldier, mentor, brother…now what?”

“Lord of the Decepticons.”

“But WHY? If you’ve had a change of Spark, you could have become a civilian; a Cybertronian, no more, no less. The two thousand years between our last war and the current one were a ripe time for you to step down! Why switch sides?!”

“…When I revealed my new allegiance to Optimus, I told him that it was because the Empty/Plenty ratio is staggering. Decepticons are disproportionally more likely to become Empties than Autobots. I wanted to hurt him, you see, because telling him he’s failed in keeping people happy, he’ll take that personally. The thing is, when I merely thought those words, when they were just in my head and I only had my memories of what I saw, I still had some small spark of disbelief that the Autobots could be so cruel. But when the words left my mouth, I realized that they COULD be so cruel, that Autobots can be just as bad as Decepticons. If the faction you believe in tells you that those who aren’t as lucky as you are just lazy and you stay silent about your doubts, then what does it matter? The problem will resolve itself in due course. But, when you actually verbalize what the problem is…” Megatron sighed. “…I grew to hate what I became in the two thousand years before today; an indolent, selfish creature. And…I decided that the best way to leave that person behind, maybe the easiest way, the only way…was to become a Decepticon.”

“…You were neither indolent nor selfish,” said Windblade, “and we all have wobbles. All of us, from time to time, we all have wobbles, and we question what we’re doing. It’s part of being a person, you wrote that down once. In years to come, when this mess is over, you’ll remember this conversation and laugh.”

“Years to come?” Megatron scoffed. “Mother, look at me. Not with the eyes of a mother, with the eyes of someone who never knew me personally. I may be only in my mid five thousands, but I feel like I’m in my hundred thousands. Those parties made me feel brittle, but even then, I feel long past my…my prime. My Spark feels like it flickers where it once flared, and this body, oh, this nonsense body, it doesn’t graft to the Spark like my previous iterations did. There’s no purchase…no bite.”

“I don’t like hearing you talk like this!” Windblade was tearing up at this moment.

“Why?”

“Because it’s not YOU! The young mech who tore down the Conclave at 500 years of age! The mech who saw to it that the arts survived, even during the Great War! The mech we followed! The mech we loved! What happened to him?!”

“…I don’t know. …I think Megatronus Pax is dead.”

“Dead? Or just resting?” The outer perimeter alarm then sounded. “Unicron?!”

“No,” rumbled Megatron. “I would have already told Optimus about that. No, it’s someone else.”

“It’s Soundwave, if you want to know.” Teletraan appeared on Megatron’s computer screen.

“…The Swap’s tomorrow, right?” asked Megatron.

“It is, but Soundwave looks mad right now.”

“I better talk with him.” Megatron got up and strode to the front door. He went outside and faced Soundwave. “Soundwave, your turn isn’t for another two weeks. I must ask that you return to base.”

“Not until you hear what Ravage found!” replied Soundwave. He then played a little audio file of Galvatron’s voice.

“Silver, you psychokinetic genius! Your scheme is working! We could potentially restore the Three Powers any day now! Galvatron to Rodimus! Galvatron to Rodimus, come in!” Megatron was stunned.

“Wh…wha…” Megatron’s stammering then stopped. It was falling into place! Galvatron had manipulated everyone into working together! He didn’t care about the Decepticons anymore! Megatron’s face contorted in rage.

“Hey, er, Optimus overheard the entire conversation,” Teletraan said over the comms.

“…Galvatron…Galvatron………GALVATROOOON!” Megatron EXPLODED in anger, the energy shorting out his inhibitor chips!

“Someone call?” asked Galvatron’s voice. Megatron then swung his mace at his future self!