Month: October 2021

Once he returned to the Nemesis, Megatron turned to Thundercracker. “Thundercracker, you’re in command until my return.” Megatron then headed to the door.

“Return from where?” asked Thundercracker.

“My mission with Gaia and Vector Sigma.”

“…You’re…seriously going behind Prime’s back?”

“What good would new Emeralds be with Primus and Unicron breathing down our necks?”

“New Emeralds?! Then Optimus really DID give the Chaos Emeralds to Starscream?!”

“And Slipstream has Primacron’s notes so we can make more!” By now, Megatron was getting annoyed at the constant questions. He turned to leave, but Thundercracker turned him back around.

“You Paxes are trying my patience!” snarled Thundercracker.

“…You’re not planning to usurp me at this time, are you?” asked Megatron. Thundercracker drew his sword and held it to Megatron’s neck.

“The possibility IS being considered!”

“At so dangerous a time?” That sentence hung in the air. “…All right, all cards on the table, I didn’t plan on giving the Emeralds away. However, Slipstream managed to tell Gaia via mental call that she has the necessary data to make new ones. They’ll only be temporary, but they should give us an edge over Tornedron. While they’re being made, Vector Sigma, Gaia, and I will go down to Voksphere and wake up the Vok, Lux, and Umbra so they can recombine Primus and Unicron back into Primacron. Primacron will be mortal, Tornedron will be too weak to help him, and Starscream’s War-world will be easy pickings for the Vok. We need as many soldiers as possible, and this is the best way to minimize casualties.” That last statement made Thundercracker arch his eyebrow. “Think about it. Won’t more allies mean we will have more people watching our backs?” No one moved for a few seconds, then Megatron gently nudged the sword away from his neck. Thundercracker then sheathed it and knelt.

“My apologies, my Lord,” he said. “I had no idea.”

“Perhaps I should have told you, so I will take some blame. For now, make it up to me by commanding the Nemesis in my absence.”

“Yes, my Lord.” Megatron then headed off the bridge and made a mental call.

“Ready,” he said.

“Let’s get going,” replied Gaia’s voice. He then faded away.

He, Vector Sigma, and Gaia arrived in a forest-choked city. Time had overtaken the buildings. The statues littered throughout the city were untouched, oddly enough. Gaia and Vector Sigma looked around in pain and sadness. “So many Vok,” whispered Gaia.

“Not just the men, but the women and children too,” mumbled Vector Sigma. Megatron put a reassuring hand on each of their shoulders.

“Primus and Unicron will pay for this, I promise,” he urged. The two then steeled themselves.

“This way!” called Vector Sigma. “We’re in Lokras City, near the shores of the North Continent of Light, Lux’s private domain! We need to be at Tirmal City on the Equatorial Continent of Earth! It’s directly south of us!” He led everyone to the edge of the continent. Once there, the seas revealed themselves. They were calm seas, but they had no boat. Megatron simply transformed and Gaia levitated herself and Vector Sigma. They flew through the skies. As they flew, Megatron managed to get a call. It was Optimus. Megatron’s holo-form rolled his eyes before he accepted the call.

“And just what, pray tell, are you doing?!” hissed Optimus.

“Optimus, I’m a little busy as well as behind enemy lines at the moment,” replied Megatron, “so whatever you have to say, please make it brief.”

“Get back here! I told you to leave them until Tornedron was beaten!”

“Do you really think that Primus and Unicron will give us that courtesy? Have you SEEN their arsenals?! No, they will assist Tornedron if we don’t give them a distraction. Gaia, Vector Sigma, and I will be waking Lux, Umbra, and the Vok and they will assist us!”

“Get back here! That’s an order!”

“Apologies, Galaxy Convoy: Optimus Prime! For too long, my fate has not been in my own hands! Not this time! Like I said, I’m behind enemy lines, so I must insist on radio silence until my mission is complete!” He ended the call and then saw land approaching the group.

“Earth Continent ahead!” called Vector Sigma. “One minute until Tirmal City!” The group continued onward. Once the buildings were sighted, they made their descent. Megatron transformed and landed like Iron Man. Vector Sigma arched an eyebrow. “Isn’t that hard on your knees?” he asked.

“Slightly, yes,” confirmed Megatron.

“This way!” called Gaia. They all followed her through the statue-laden streets until they reached a building. “Primacron’s old lab,” explained Gaia. They reached the doors and realized they were shut. Megatron decided to use a little brute force to open them. He shoved his fingers into the crack and pulled hard. It took a minute, but he succeeded.

“I’m actually…surprised…they opened…at all,” he panted. Once he caught his breath, they all entered the lab. It was dark, so Gaia summoned a light. The light then showed two statues of women.

“My mothers!” she yelped. She ran up to them and examined them. “…They’re aware!”

“…Aware of what?” asked Megatron.

“Everything. Vector Sigma telling you and Optimus about their plight, Optimus becoming Galaxy Convoy, the fleet coming here, they know about everything! …And they have a plan!”

“What’s the plan?!” asked Vector Sigma. Gaia then made a mental call to all ship commanders in the fleet.

“Everyone, Lux and Umbra have an idea!” she called. “These are the intended steps: Vector Sigma and Megatron will awaken Lux and Umbra with pure versions of their respective elements. At the same time, I will awaken the Vok with the four smaller elements. Once that’s done, my mothers and I will hold off Primus and Unicron while the Vok and their ships are sent to your fleet. Once they join you, activate the new Chaos Emeralds and start shooting at Tornedron immediately. Is everyone clear on this?” The fleet mentally confirmed the plan. “Timing is of the essence, everyone. There can be no margin for error.” She turned to Megatron and Vector Sigma. “Pure light and pure darkness, please.” The two men then summoned balls of energy between their hands. They were straining under the pressure. Vector Sigma then faced Lux’s statue while Megatron faced Umbra’s. Gaia then raised her hands and surrounded herself in an air ball while rocks, water, and fire made rings around it. “…Three…two…one…NOW!” She fired all the elements onto the floor and surrounded the planet in light. While that happened, Vector Sigma and Megatron fired their respective energy balls into the statues. All the statues on the planet then cracked and broke apart, revealing the Vok, Lux, and Umbra! The Vok Navy then vanished.

“Vok ships coming in!” called Cliffjumper. “The Vok Fleet Admiral said he’ll be taking your orders!”

“All ships, it’s time! Activate the new Emeralds!” ordered Optimus.

On the War-world, Starscream was called to the bridge. “What’s going on?!”

“Sir, it’s Lux, Umbra, and the Vok!” replied Deathsaurus. “They’re back!”

“WHAT?!”

“Sir, Lux, Umbra, and Gaia are fighting Primus and Unicron!” reported Skywarp.

“Sir, the enemy fleet!” called Sunstorm. On the screen, they saw seven lights, the same colors of the Chaos Emeralds, orbiting the fleet. The lights then entered all the ships and the whole fleet turned gold with a golden aura surrounding each ship. Starscream then realized what happened.

“Slipstream had Primacron’s notes on creating the Chaos Emeralds!” he gulped. He turned to Deathsaurus. “Activate ours! Order Tornedron to attack! We’ll assist it!”

“Sir, are you sure that’s-?!”

“THAT’S AN ORDER!”

“…Aye, Sir.” Deathsaurus issued the necessary commands. Tornedron and the War-world then advanced on the fleet as the War-world turned gold.

“The enemy’s advancing on us!” reported a now golden Cliffjumper.

“That’s our signal! ATTACK!” ordered Optimus. The fleet then advanced, each ship raising their shields and arming their weapons. The Primacron Battles had begun!

Slipstream had gathered a team of people for the creation of new Chaos Emeralds. They were given a lab aboard the Ark. Her team consisted of Shockwave, Ratchet, Maria, Knock-out, and Swoop. Ratchet poured a portion of liquid into another beaker. “Fetch me the Quantum Cyber-measure,” he directed Knock-out.

“Do I look hired help to you, Autobot?!” snapped Knock-out.

“Knock-out,” interjected Shockwave, “attend to the needs of our partners.”

“As you command,” sighed the Decepticon medic. He slunk off as Slipstream set an Energon crystal down.

“So, we know the basic crystalline structure of the Chaos Emeralds,” observed Swoop, “was produced by an atypical molecular displacement reaction?”

“Extensive empirical evidence,” replied Slipstream “indicates that the fundamental chaotic natures of the Emeralds were produced when Primacron was trying to make a super-fuel.”

“Double-blind analysis?” asked Shockwave.

“More like the extensive notes Primacron took. He documented everything about his life, even when he went to the bathroom. He also went to describe that attempts to make the Emeralds again only resulted in the new set rapidly breaking down on the molecular level once the Super Form’s time limit was exhausted.”

“So, he couldn’t successfully replicate the Chaos Emeralds, only a quick fix.”

“A quick fix may be all that we need,” remarked Maria.

“If it is, it will be quite the act of providence,” mused Shockwave. “There is much to do and little time. Shall we begin?” The team nodded and began their work. The Energon crystal was subjected to radiation, then Ratchet carefully poured the contents of the beaker onto the crystal. It then separated into seven crystals. Maria then glanced around her workstation.

“Knock-out, the isoprobe!” she called. “I can’t find it!”

“Third lever on the right of the console on your left,” grumbled Knock-out. Maria saw it, then grinned.

“Thank you, Doctor Knock-out.” Knock-out’s optics flickered as he processed Maria’s thanks. He then grinned.

“You’re welcome!” Maria pulled the lever down and the isoprobe extended, producing a resonance with the crystal formations. Shockwave looked over the results.

“It’s not enough,” she reported. “The resonance isn’t reaching the required activation frequency.” Ratchet then got an idea.

“I wonder if Basso Profundo’s vaunted ‘secret’ can help.”

“I only have part of the secret,” Basso Profundo sang over the comms. “The remaining Secret Keepers are Allegra and Zebop Skandana.”

“We need your harmony to stabilize new Chaos Emeralds,” explained Shockwave.

“New? Then the rumors ARE true!”

“We have data concerning how they were first made, something Starscream overlooked. They’ll only be a temporary solution, but we have need of them. It should be enough to defeat Tornedron.” Basso Profundo considered his next move.

“…Very well. Zebop, Allegra, and I will beam to your vessel.”

“I’ll inform the transporter room.”

“There is no need. We shall use our own method.” The call ended. Shockwave’s optic flickered.

“Their own method?”

As the science team kept their current work in a state of stasis, they heard a three-part harmony growing. As the harmony crescendoed, three people shimmered into view. It was Basso Profundo, a woman in a one-piece bodysuit and cape, and a man looking like he came from medieval nobility. “You believe our harmony,” sang the man, Zebop Skandana, “can help your experiment?”

“Idiocy if I ever heard it,” sang the woman, Allegra.

“I know it sounds preposterous,” replied Shockwave, “but the new Emeralds need a better resonance than the isoprobe can deliver.” Allegra rolled her eyes.

“Fine, we’ll help.” Shockwave pointed to the chamber where the seven Energon crystals were. Maria turned off the isoprobe and pointed to a microphone. Basso Profundo sang and held a bass note. Zebop then sang and held a tenor note. Allegra was the last, singing and holding a soprano note. The harmony then unified, and it reached the microphone. As the harmony progressed, the crystals grew brighter and brighter until…they flashed a white light. It abruptly ended the harmony as the three Eurythmans yelped at the light. The light died and everyone soon regained their vision. Allegra gasped as she and the others saw the results of the experiment. Sitting in the chamber, now having been cleared of the initial radiation and deemed safe, were seven jewels, colored and shaped like the Chaos Emeralds. These new Emeralds were the size of a Transformer’s fist! Shockwave took a reading on the new Emeralds, then grimaced.

“They ARE going to break down once we use the Super form,” she reported. “Thirty Mobian minutes at maximum.”

“If I had the time,” grumbled Maria, “I would have created a recall system that gets everyone back to their ships once the Super form wears off.” Knock-out then thought about something.

“What if we spread the power out through the ships?” he asked. Shockwave was then hit with inspiration.

“There IS a way to transmit that kind of power into the ships!” she called. “I’ve designed a program that was meant to do that!”

“Give me the parameters of the program!” urged Maria. “I can alter it to activate a recall effect for all troops through their respective means of matter-transmission!” Shockwave searched her computer for the files related to the program, then sent them to Maria’s tablet. Maria then connected her tablet to the computer and got to work. Shockwave then called Optimus and the Nemesis.

“Prime, my Lord, we have our new Chaos Emeralds,” she reported. “My teammates are geniuses, thank you for sending them. Slipstream must also be thanked for acquiring the necessary data. They ARE temporary, though. Maria is currently working on a safety program for the transporters of every ship that will recall any soldiers left in space once the Super form wears off and the Emeralds break down.”

“Acknowledged,” replied Optimus.

“Understood,” supplied Thundercracker. Shockwave’s optic then flickered.

“Thundercracker?” she asked.

“Megatron, Vector Sigma, and Gaia are on Voksphere, trying to awaken Lux and Umbra,” explained Optimus.

“Behind enemy lines?! It’s too dangerous!”

“I tried to tell him that, but no dice. They’re maintaining radio-silence and WHOA!”

“Optimus?!” yelped Ratchet.

“Guys, I think Megatron was successful! Two new energy beings just popped up from Voksphere and are facing Primus and Unicron!”

“…He did it!” realized Knock-out. “That spawn of a glitch! Megatron actually did it!”

Optimus entered an airlock and strapped on a harness that would allow him to fly through space without a spacecraft. He then activated a mic. “Deactivate artificial gravity in Bow Airlock One,” he called.

“Deactivating artificial gravity in Bow Airlock One,” replied Teletraan. Optimus then felt his feet leave the floor. He made his way to the wall opposite the airlock door and grabbed something on it, stopping his momentum and facing the airlock door.

“Open external door of Bow Airlock One.”

“Opening external door of Bow Airlock One.” The door slid open, letting a force-field take its place and do the job of keeping the air in. Optimus put his hands and feet onto the wall and took in a breath to prepare himself.

“…Depressurize Bow Airlock One.”

“Depressurizing Bow Airlock One.” The airlock then deactivated the forcefield and let all the air out. Optimus nudged himself off the wall and went through the airlock, activating the harness and making his way towards the meeting point between the two battlefleets. Ultra Magnus was at his right wearing the same harness and Vector Sigma was at Ultra Magnus’ right, simply flying with no aid at all. On Optimus’ left was Megatron in vehicle mode and on Megatron’s left was Gaia. They all flew through space and saw Starscream, Skywarp, Sunstorm, and a fourth Seeker arriving. This Seeker was purple with cyan highlights. Both sides stopped. The Seekers transformed, as did Megatron, and the mystery Seeker was revealed to be a femme.

“Who’s she?” asked Optimus.

“SLIPSTREAM?!” snarled Megatron. He prepared one of his fusion cannons.

“You fire that thing,” warned Starscream, “and this parlay is over!”

“You really wanna lose me now?” asked Slipstream.

“You gave Starscream a reason to conquer Cybertron so he could hide the truth about our race, didn’t you?!” growled Ultra Magnus.

“Don’t blame Slipstream,” remarked Skywarp. “She was merely the tool of your betrayal.”

“If you wish to see its grand architect,” chuckled Sunstorm, “look to your right.” Gaia turned her head to look at Megatron, Megatron then looked at Optimus, then Optimus looked to Ultra Magnus, then Ultra Magnus looked to Vector Sigma, then Vector Sigma looked to his right before realizing everyone was looking at him.

“Oh no, you don’t! My hands are clean of this!” he yelped.

“I believe we have business to discuss,” remarked Starscream.

“What do you want?” asked Optimus.

“An exchange. Slipstream has withheld valuable data from me. She won’t say what it is, even under Cortical Psychic Patch, so it’s her for the Chaos Emeralds.” Megatron noticed a wry grin on her face.

“Done!” he called.

“Not done!” replied Optimus.

“Give us a cycle,” Ultra Magnus said to Starscream. Starscream nodded as the heroes huddled.

“Megatron, have you lost it?!” hissed Optimus. “They’ve got Tornedron!”

“Slipstream, evidently,” replied Megatron, “has data concerning how to best him. Perhaps the notes on how Primacron made them in the first place?”

“I just read her mind,” supplied Gaia. “That’s exactly what she has.”

“Would we really have time to make a new set of Emeralds?” asked Ultra Magnus.

“If we follow Primacron’s formula, then yes!” urged Vector Sigma.

“…We’re outvoted, Ultra Magnus,” sighed Optimus. Ultra Magnus gave his own sigh. Everyone then turned to Starscream and his group. “All right, Starscream. We agree to your terms.”

“Splendid,” replied Starscream. “Now, the Emeralds?” Optimus made a call.

“Gather the Chaos Emeralds and beam them to my position,” he ordered. After a minute, a pouch containing the Emeralds appeared in front of Optimus. He then pushed the bag away from him and it floated to Starscream. Starscream then pushed Slipstream away from him. Megatron caught her. “Now, advise your fleet,” warned Starscream. “You can fight and all of you will die, or you can run and only MOST of you will die.”

“You manipulated us into remaining ignorant of our origins,” hissed Optimus.

“A necessary sacrifice. It was for the greater good to keep you to your fate.”

“That statement alone seals yours. We will fight and you will die.”

“…So be it.” Optimus then turned to Gaia.

“Get us back.” Gaia nodded and the group, with Slipstream, vanished.

Optimus was back on the Ark’s bridge. He sat in the Captain’s chair as Goldbug rushed to him. “Please tell me I didn’t see that!” he hissed. “You didn’t just give our only weapon away to the enemy!”

“Slipstream found Primacron’s notes on how he successfully made the original Chaos Emeralds,” explained Optimus. “We have a way to make our own.”

“Optimus, we don’t have time to make new ones!”

“More time than you think, actually,” called Prowl. “Sensors detect no energy build-up from the enemy.”

“…Really?” asked Optimus. “…That’s weird.”

“This is our chance!” urged Goldbug. “We can open fire and-!”

“No.” Optimus’ declaration made everyone blink in surprise. “Open a channel to the fleet.” Prowl obeyed and Optimus stood up. “All ships, this is Optimus. If there are those of you that feel I made a poor decision in giving the Chaos Emeralds to the enemy, do not panic. They surrendered someone that, unbeknownst to them, had Primacron’s data on their creation. They’ll be asking us for materials to make backups so we can still defeat Tornedron. They’re waiting for us to make the first move. Until the new Emeralds are created, no one is to fire unless I give the order.” The fleet acknowledged Optimus’ order. Prowl then examined something.

“Sir, I’ve noticed a discrepancy on the call,” he reported. “The bot who responded for the Nemesis didn’t sound like Megatron.”

“Hail the Nemesis.” Prowl keyed in a command.

“Nemesis is responding.”

“On screen.” The bot that came on screen wasn’t Megatron. “Thundercracker?! Where’s Megatron?!”

“YOUR brother,” replied Thundercracker, “stayed on the Nemesis long enough to give me command of the vessel while he, Vector Sigma, and Gaia headed to Voksphere.” Optimus groaned in frustration.

“Because, of COURSE, he’d go behind my back! Do you have a lock on him?”

“We have radio capability with him.”

“Give me his frequency. I need to chew him out!”

“Open a channel to all command ships,” Optimus ordered Prowl. “Ask for the Captains.”

“All command ship Captains responding,” replied Prowl.

“On screen.” The Captains appeared on the main screen. “All right, everyone, let’s get down to brass tacks. We need to plan our war against Starscream’s forces so that it’s only ONE battle.”

“What do we know about them?” asked Earthia.

“Primus and Unicron are planets,” replied Megatron, “and, like us, they can transform into robots, the biggest stable Transformers around. They also pack a wicked arsenal between them.”

“Tornedron also feeds off of energy, except for Chaos energy,” reported Gaia.

“Starscream has an immortal Spark, but that doesn’t mean he’s indestructible,” called Vector Sigma.

“And the best way to defeat Primus and Unicron,” remarked Eggman, “is to recombine them into Primacron.”

“Such an endeavor,” sang Basso Profundo, “will require timing.”

“Which is why we’re dealing with Tornedron first,” declared Optimus. “Before the fight, we all use the Emeralds to achieve the super form. Now, I must warn you all, that form’s going to last thirty minutes. We need to make our strikes against Tornedron quickly and with the most damage possible.”

“We received the instructions on how to use the Emeralds,” replied Alana. “We’re ready.”

“Good. Now we just need a Space Bridge to Voksphere.”

“Optimus, wait a minute,” remarked Gaia, “what about my mothers and the Vok?” Optimus sighed.

“…We need to take care of Tornedron first. Once it’s gone, we wake your mothers and recombine Primus and Unicron.”

“Optimus, having our mothers in the battle ahead would help us!” protested Vector Sigma. “A two-pronged assault-!”

“I’m sorry, Vector Sigma, we CAN’T afford a two-pronged assault. If we wake the Vok up now, Tornedron will drain them. We NEED to take it out first.” Vector Sigma sighed in annoyance. “Gaia, if you please.” Gaia then nodded before leaving the call.

She floated out into space, then stopped in front of the fleet. She made a circle with her hands, then blew into it and opened her hands as if she were scattering something to the wind. A Space Bridge portal then opened, the most massive ever seen. She then turned to the fleet and motioned for it to follow her.

“All ships, follow Gaia into the portal!” Optimus ordered over the comms.

The ships followed Gaia through the portal with the Ark right behind her. Gaia had a frustrated frown on her face as she led the fleet through the Space Bridge vortex. She then heard something in her head. “Gaia, if you can hear my thoughts-”

“Megatron?” she asked.

“Ah! There you are!” replied the voice in her head, Megatron on a mental frequency. “I was worried I would need special equipment to project my thoughts to you.”

“No, that’s not necessary.”

“Excellent. Do you think you could get Vector Sigma?”

“There’s no need,” replied a new voice. “I’m here. I was trying to reach her too.”

“What do you boys need?”

“Megatron, if you please.”

“Delighted. Gaia, Vector Sigma, we all know that having your mothers and siblings awake could help us and that Optimus made a poor call.”

“You’re not wrong,” remarked Gaia.

“Well, I have a solution that, regretfully, means going behind his back.”

“…You’re not sending your own squadron down there, are you?”

“If by squadron, you mean me and you two, then yes.”

“You’re going behind Optimus’ back?” asked Vector Sigma.

“I have a feeling that will reopen hostilities between Autobots and Decepticons in the future,” warned Gaia.

“Look, we need Primus and Unicron to become Primacron again,” reminded Megatron, “and Lux and Umbra are the only ones to do it. We actually have THREE weapons against us instead of one. Therefore, we have to get Lux and Umbra back.”

“…He’s right,” sighed Gaia. “We need our mothers back.”

“Lady Gaia!” protested Vector Sigma.

“I’m sorry, Vector Sigma, we can’t leave them to their fate. We HAVE to free them.” She then looked ahead. “We’re approaching the other end.” The vortex then pulled away in front of the fleet and revealed a large planet with two massive robots and a gold energy cloud near it. One robot looked like the devil while the other looked like a stern, helmeted man with wings.

“Primus…and Unicron,” mumbled Optimus.

“I never thought I’d see them in their full robot modes,” gulped Goldbug. Prowl then noticed something on his console.

“Sir, Starscream’s War-world is hailing the fleet!” he reported.

“On screen.” Prowl keyed in the commands and Starscream as well as the other Captains appeared on screen.

“My dear friends, I’m frankly mystified about your aggression!” he said.

“You shouldn’t be,” replied Ultra Magnus. “We’re all against you.”

“Maybe you Transformers, Gaia, and Vector Sigma, but not the organics, surely.”

“We’ve got a stake in this!” challenged Sonic. “You’d kill any Transformer ally to make sure the slate’s wiped clean!”

“My dear Sonic, there’s really no need to spread wild accusations. If you and your fellow organics would just leave the area, you will be spared.”

“And leave your split boss to wipe the universe clean of all life? Just feels like a delayed execution.”

“Sonic, I can’t be held responsible for what happens to you.”

“You WILL be held responsible, you sniveling worm!” hissed Megatron. “Every death that will take place today as we end this affair will be on YOUR head!”

“They really won’t, they’ll be the result of Optimus’ carelessness. But I’m willing to parlay.”

“What makes you think we’ll be interested in-?” asked Ultra Magnus.

“Name your terms,” interrupted Optimus.

“WHAT?!”

“OPTIMUS, NO!”

“Trust me!” The clamor stopped. “…Name the terms, Starscream.”

“I’d rather discuss them in open space.”

“Fine. Ultra Magnus, Megatron, and I will join you.”

“Bring Gaia and Vector Sigma with you, they need to hear this. I’ll be bringing Skywarp and Sunstorm with me.”

“…Fine.” Optimus didn’t notice the wheels turning in Megatron’s head. “We’ll meet you in ten minutes.” Starscream grinned.

“I look forward to your arrival.” He ended his part of the call.

“Optimus, we can’t trust that slime-ball!” urged Ultra Magnus.

“He doesn’t need to,” interjected Megatron. “He unwittingly gave us an edge already.”

“…Well, we’ll try to exploit it,” declared Optimus. “Megatron, Ultra Magnus, Gaia, Vector Sigma, meet me in front of the Ark.”

The next day, Optimus was back in his ready room, drafting a battle plan. He heard the door chime. “Come in,” he called. Dion then stepped into the room. “Dion, you look…better.” Dion was polished and had a sober look on his face.

“Optimus, I’m accepting Thundercracker’s recommendation,” he declared.

“You are?”

“Thundercracker is right, the position will help me fix my own problems. By having both Autobots and Decepticons under my command, I should be able to consider both sides more effectively. As such, I took the time between yesterday and today to study Decepticon Law. Megatron was very generous in giving me a copy of all Decepticon laws, past and present. Did you know Megatron banned the use of Smelting Pools as a means of execution after he killed Straxus?”

“He told me he passed that ban when we regrouped after getting rid of everyone but Nemesis Prime and Unicron.”

“Speaking of which, do we still have the Three Powers?”

“They’re safe in the cargo hold.”

“Perfect, we at least have weapons against Unicron. …Now we just weapons against Primus.”

“We deal with Tornedron first. The instant you’re inducted into the position as an Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord, you and I need to meet with all the leaders so we can discuss our battle against Starscream’s forces.”

“Agreed.” Optimus then handed a data-pad to Dion, then held up his own pad to read aloud the acceptance letter for Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord.

“‘I, Ultra Magnus, hereby accept the position as the Galaxy Convoy’s Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord. In accordance with its laws, I will see to it that no military technology is shared without express approval from the government sources of said technology. I will ensure that war does not spill out to planets with civilizations lower than or equal to grade 3. I will work with the Galaxy Convoy to ensure that peace is held throughout the galaxy and will apprehend any and all violators of the Tyrest Accord. Anyone that resists will have the option of doing it my way or the hard way.’ I just need you to sign your name and-”

“Just a minute,” interrupted Dion. “Why did you use my old title of Magnus? I thought Bumblebee became my successor as Goldbug Magnus.”

“He is, but he insisted that you take your old name up again. What do you say? Ready to be Ultra Magnus once again?” Dion looked at the pad, then smiled. He then signed the pad with “Ultra Magnus”! Optimus looked at the signature, then grinned. “Good to have you back, Ultra Magnus.”

“Good to BE back, Sir,” replied Dion Pax, Ultra Magnus, as he shook hands with Optimus. Optimus then handed him a new hammer. Ultra Magnus’ optics widened. “Tyrest’s Gavel?!”

“Tyrest made it the symbol of office when he and Sigmar Prime pleaded their case to the First Galactic Council. He was Sigmar’s Magnus at the time and said that just having the Magnus Hammer on his person was more than enough.” Ultra Magnus set it into the harness on his back. “Now, I need you to take command of the Galactic Council Ship, the Chief Justice, and get on the call with everyone.”

“Understood, Sir.” Ultra Magnus saluted and headed to the transporter room.

Over on Voksphere, Cybertron, Unicron, Tornedron, and Starscream’s War-world hung in orbit. Skywarp idly checked for galactic chatter. “Maybe I can get some of those Torkuli erotic strips,” he mused. “Maybe they’re really as wild as they…uh oh.” His optics found an article concerning the Galactic Council.

“First Galaxy Convoy is a Cybertronian!” read the headline. Skywarp read on. “The Galactic Community was turned on its ear yesterday as the Ninety-eighth Galactic Council has done what its previous iterations have failed to do and elected a Galaxy Convoy in light of the Transformers’ Gods turning against the universe. The Transformers were allowed to plead their case and debate what to do.

“In an act of good faith, the Transformers brought a member of the once-thought extinct race of Vok and one of its Goddesses, Gaia, Unicron’s jailor, to confirm that their story was true. The Galactic Council were urged to go to war against the Transformers Gods but had to elect a Galaxy Convoy to issue a formal declaration of war.

“In a surprising turn of events, the Council elected Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots and current recognized leader of Cybertron, to be the first Galaxy Convoy. When asked for comment, Optimus merely said ‘I’m as surprised as the Galactic Community, but here we are now.’

“Optimus and his rival, Megatron, have appeared to have put aside their differences and are leading a fleet of warships, including the Black Block Consortia, the Galactic Council’s law enforcers, to Voksphere, the home-world of the Vok. According to sources, the Vok and Gaia’s mothers, Lux and Umbra, are merely in a state of petrification, so they intend to release them from that state with the help of seven jewels from the remote planet of Mobius. Called the-” Skywarp shut off his computer as he growled, knowing full well what the jewels were called. He teleported into the War-world’s conference room where Starscream was talking to Primus and Unicron in smaller avatars. Unicron’s avatar looked like his Mobian body and Primus had jet-kibble.

“So, really, we have nothing to worry about,” Starscream assured his Gods. He then saw Skywarp. “Ah, Skywarp! I see that you decided to join us!” Skywarp then shot Unicron! The blast knocked Unicron to the floor. Starscream and Primus drew their swords and leveled them at Skywarp.

“WAIT!” shouted Unicron. He picked himself up and stalked his way to Skywarp. “…I hope, for your sake,” the Chaos Bringer whispered to the teleporting Seeker, “you were initiating some obscure modern Seeker ritual.”

“You were careless!” Skywarp accused Unicron. “You didn’t drain the Chaos Emeralds!”

“What?!” yelped Starscream.

“You and the Decepticons kept them out of my reach!” retorted Unicron.

“We had a working means of teleporting directly to where they were held!” snarled Starscream as he now pointed his sword at Unicron. “What about Gaia?! Is she gone?!”

“Gaia’s stuck on Mobius, still within the core!”

“Not what a news article told me,” replied Skywarp. “She and Vector Sigma successfully pled their case! The Council made Optimus the Galaxy Convoy! There’s a fleet of ships ready to bring war to us!” Starscream hissed to himself in frustration.

“Real smooth, Unicron!”

“We still have a weapon of unlimited power,” remarked Primus. Starscream rolled his optics.

“A weapon that’s weak against Chaos energy. If the fleet manages to tap into the power of the Chaos Emeralds, Tornedron can’t absorb their life-forces fast enough.”

“There are only two that can tap into the Emeralds, from what Unicron told me.”

“Five. Megatron and Shockwave tapped into them, and he forgets Knuckles. Besides, who’s to say that they won’t teach the fleet how to use them?” Unicron then grabbed Starscream by the wing.

“Perhaps we are tired of waiting!” growled the Unmaker.

“It WAS you and Primus who suggested we go back to Voksphere after all these years, hm?” Primus and Unicron glared at the Arti-Vok. “Besides, I have a way to turn this in our favor.” Primus looked to Unicron and nodded his head. Unicron released Starscream. “I would suggest, my Lords, that you assume your true robot modes. We may need the firepower should the parlay go south.”

While the Decepticons dealt with their own in-house problems and Drift and Nightbird patched things up between them, Optimus sat in his ready room. He was unsure of how the battle was going to be conducted. His thoughts were interrupted by a door chime. “Come in,” he called. Treadshot then entered the room. Optimus stood up. “…Dad.” He then winced at how slow he said that. Treadshot raised his hand.

“It’s all right,” he assured. “I was an absent father.”

“Not by choice, from what I recall. I never got a clear answer on what the charges were for your exile.”

“…Simply because I was found out. Majoris was just as Deceptiphobic as Dion was and regretfully, so was the Autobot Council. After the war, they were more interested in punishing their enemies. They kept my origins from Dion because he was the perfect soldier and their ideal Autobot.”

“…Did you manage to talk to him?” Treadshot winced.

“He’s…not in a receptive state. In fact, he’s not in a sober-enough state.”

“He’s over-energized?! Where?!”

“Last I saw him was at the bar in Four-Forward.”

“Come on!” Optimus and Treadshot dashed to Four-Forward and found Ultra Magnus with his face on the table and an empty bottle in his hand while three other bottles surrounded him. “Dion! Dion, we need to talk to you! …Dion, are…are you all right?”

“GOOOOONNNE!” wailed Dion as he suddenly sat up. He had clearly been crying and turned to Engex for counseling instead of Snarl. “Ish all gone! All of ish gone! Bye bye WOOHOO shee ya!”

“Dion, what happened?!”

“One minnit yer leedin a teem uf bosh to help Ahdobotsh wage der baddle to deshtroy de eefil forshesh uf de Deshepticonsh…den SHUDENLEE ya find yershelf…shuckin down Engex wif…Solush Prime and her liddle shishter!” Dion then drunkenly and sadly laughed to himself. Optimus arched an eyebrow.

“…I think you’ve had enough high grade for today,” he remarked as he managed to take the bottle out of Dion’s hand. “Let’s get you out of here, Dion.”

“DONCHU GEDDIT?!” Dion pulled Optimus right up to his face. “YU SHEE DA HAT?!” It was then Optimus noticed that Dion was wearing a Transformer-sized newspaper hat. “I AM MINIMUSH…AMBUSH!” Dion laughed like a lunatic.

“SNAP OUT OF IT, BOY!” snapped Treadshot. He separated the bots, took off the newspaper hat, and slapped Dion in the face.

“DAD!” protested Optimus. Other than Optimus’ protest, the bar was silent after the slap.

“…I-I-I…I’m sorry,” stammered Dion. “You’re right; I’m just a little depressed, that’s all.” He then stood up and headed to the door. “I-I can get through this!” He then collapsed to his knees and broke down. “OH, I’M A SHAM!” he wailed as his hands went to the floor as Optimus and Treadshot tried to get him to quiet down. “LOOK AT ME! MY WHOLE MILITARY CAREER WAS A LIE! …The…the hat looked good?! Tell me the hat looked good! The apron was a bit much!”

“What apron?!” asked Treadshot.

“It’ll be easier if Ratchet fixes him up,” declared Optimus. “Dad, help me get him to Repair Bay.”

“Yes, son.” Optimus and Treadshot then each put one of Dion’s arms around their shoulders and had to drag him to Ratchet, since he wasn’t moving his feet.

“YEARS OF ACADEMY TRAINING WASTED!” cried Dion.

Dion woke up on a repair berth as Ratchet checked over Thundercracker, of all bots. “Decepti-!” yelped Dion. As Ratchet and Thundercracker looked at Dion, he sat back down. “Ah, what’s the point?” He felt a major processor-ache.

“On the table,” directed Ratchet. There was Energon and a pair of tablets on the bedside table. Dion popped the tablets into his mouth and drank the Energon, thus swallowing the tablets. “Thundercracker wanted to talk to you about something.”

“…Sorry, I must still be over-energized,” muttered Dion. “For a minute there, I though you said Thundercracker wanted to talk to me.”

“He did. And I do,” replied Thundercracker.

“…Is this a hallucination?”

“Dion, will you just talk to him already?!” grunted Ratchet. “Even Snarl would suggest it!” He gave Thundercracker one final look-over. “And that’s a clean bill of health for you. For all the times we shot each other, I have to give you Seekers respect for how seriously you take your health.”

“An unhealthy Seeker can’t fly very well, so we kind of HAVE to take our personal health seriously,” replied Thundercracker.

“Well, that removes a lot of stress on this old medic. I’ll just leave you two be.” Ratchet headed off to another area. Dion looked at Thundercracker. An awkward silence filled the space between them.

“…Something I can do for you?” Dion finally asked.

“You could accept the position as Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord,” replied Thundercracker. “You know that Optimus made the offer to me? I had to refuse, saying that you were better for the position.”

“…No.”

“Whoa, hey, maybe those pills aren’t working yet, but-”

“No, Thundercracker. For the first time in my life, I AM thinking clearly. You Cons were right all along, I’m NOT anything. I’m…I’m just a cog. Just a small, insignificant cog in a machine that wouldn’t care if I stopped working.”

“Hold on a cycle there! The Autobots wouldn’t be talking about you if you WERE insignificant!”

“Yeah, right.”

“No, it’s true! They DO talk about you! Look, Optimus needs a bot that he knows has the experience to lead an army if he can’t, and you led armies more than he did!”

“Why would you, of all bots, pick me, a Deceptiphobe?”

“Because you’ve done some reexamination? Let me tell you, before I killed Firestar, I was a raging Autophobe, as bad as you were a Deceptiphobe. But we have a chance to change that now! Don’t misunderstand, our sins can never be fully purged, but we can make sure we do better in the future. I was already told how to atone and try to make up for Firestar’s murder as best I can, maybe being an Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord what YOU need. With Optimus as the Galaxy Convoy, he needs someone as his second-in-command on that front!”

“Why would you suggest me then?”

“Why would I suggest you?! LOOK AT YOU!” Dion’s optics flickered as he looked to Thundercracker. “You’re the Autobot War Hero, Ultra Magnus! Any kid would give their Spark to recreate your famous victories! You’re the best law-bot in all history! You kept order throughout the force! You helped Sentinel win over us! Your shoulders have missile batteries in them! You are the greatest bot around! …Besides, you never went through the hell of killing a kid. I can’t trust myself with that kind of power.” The Repair Bay went silent again. “…I don’t know, maybe I was being goofy. I just figured you would want a command position again.” Dion then looked at the data-pad on his bedside table. He picked it up and read it to himself. As he read, he thought about what Thundercracker said, then his face became one of determination.

Nightbird slept off her drunken state and spent the next morning mulling over what happened. As she thought, the comms activated. “Ravage to Nightbird.”

“Yes?” she grunted.

“Thunderhoof’s asking for you.” Nightbird sighed.

“Put him through.” She waited a few seconds.

“Ey yo! What’s goin on here?” demanded Thunderhoof. “Why was youse jus chattin with your target?”

“…I was making decisions.”

“Don’t tell me youse was makin decisions here! I hired ya to make sure she slept wid da piranhatrons! I don’t need ya goin soft on me!”

“We need all the soldiers we can get. Killing any of them will make our alliance dangerously unstable.”

“What’s unstable is youse if ya think I’m gonna accept dat! Tell ya what, seein as money’s always an issue, if ya do it, I’ll give youse a bonus.”

“…I’ll give that proposal all the consideration it’s due.” She ended the call.

An hour later, she and the Nemesis’ senior staff met with Megatron. Megatron cleared his throat and activated his reading glasses. “All right, we all know why we have these senior staff meetings,” he began as he pulled out a data-pad.

“In the past, yes,” replied Knock-out. “We discussed how to better kill the Autobots.”

“That point IS moot now, given the truth about our origins,” reminded Shockwave.

“…Fair point,” conceded Megatron. “This time, we’re discussing how our war against Starscream’s forces needs to go. As you may have guessed, the Council had voted to fight our Gods and Tornedron without help from Lux, Umbra, and the Vok. I’m due to meet Optimus and tell him about that option while we discuss strategies against the enemy. That should be the first point we talk about. Ravage, any news from Soundwave and Blaster?”

“Funny you should open with that,” replied Ravage. “I got a report from them about two minutes before I came in. That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier.”

“Then let’s make up for that and hear it now.”

“The enemy’s gathered around a planet near the center of the galaxy, over on the Delta Quadrant side.”

“Pretty far away,” remarked Thundercracker.

“There’s more. Before they self-destructed so they couldn’t be detected, the surveillance drones saw statues covering the planet, statues…that looked a lot like Vector Sigma.”

“Voksphere?” asked Shockwave.

“Gaia confirmed it.”

“And we’re going there? It’s gonna take a year to get there.”

“Gaia has offered to open a transwarp corridor into it. The other end will only be two hours away from Voksphere.”

“Cutting it a little close, aren’t we?” remarked Megatron.

“EY YO!” shouted a voice. Thunderhoof then kicked the door in, mad as a moose.

“…May we help you, Thunderhoof?” asked Megatron. Thunderhoof’s optics then settled on Nightbird.

“C’MERE, YA NO-GOOD LYIN BAG A BOLTS!” he shouted as he stormed up to her. Megatron got between them.

“Is there an issue?” he asked.

“Yer dame decided ta cancel da Deadlock contract after I paid good money t’ see her offlined!”

“I assure you; we can clear up this misunderstanding,” offered Nightbird. Thunderhoof tried to get around Megatron.

“YOU talked t’ Deadlock last night and she told youse about a little plan of hers where BOTH Cyber-Ninja corps managed to learn from each other! Den ya sent me a notice an hour ago sayin dat youse wasn’t gonna kill her no more! Ya call DAT a misundastandin?!”

“You WILL get your money back, believe me.”

“YOUSE betta believe I’m gonna stomp ya into scrap!”

“You will not!” shouted Megatron as he shoved Thunderhoof back. “What’s done is done. Nightbird was wise in cancelling the contract. We have other priorities than your reputation. End. Of. Discussion!” Thunderhoof glared at Megatron for a good while, then turned his head away. “Now, I will have to discuss-”

“EY YO!” Thunderhoof launched himself at Nightbird and tackled her. She drew her sai and stabbed him in the shoulder as Megatron pulled him off.

“THAT’S TREASON! THAT’S MUTINY!” roared Megatron.

“Ey yo, where’s da respect?!” Thunderhoof then slammed his foot to the floor, causing an energy wave to head straight for Nightbird. Nightbird leapt to the ceiling and fired shuriken at him. Once they embedded into his chassis, they unleashed an electric current that shocked him hard. Once they stopped, he fell to his knees, then fell forward, faceplanting on the floor.

“Knock-out, get your medical kit, then meet Thunderhoof in the brig,” ordered Megatron. “Thundercracker, Shockwave, get him into his cell.” The three Cons saluted and headed off.

Thunderhoof groaned as he got up from his berth in his cell. His optics were slow to kick in fully. “…Cybertron?” he asked himself.

“No, the Nemesis’ brig.” Thunderhoof looked to see Thundercracker and an energy field separating the two. His optics then sharpened enough to confirm what Thundercracker said. “You’re under arrest for assaulting Megatron’s wife.”

“Don’t go barkin rules n regulations at ME, Flyboy! I’m Thunderhoof, see? I run some of da biggest enterprises on Cybertron! Half yer law-boys are on my payroll!”

“You RAN some of the biggest enterprises on Cybertron and half our law-boys WERE on your payroll. Or have you forgotten that we evacuated Cybertron until we kill Primacron? Your criminal empire’s probably scattered and each part run by other bosses.”

“Dey’ll see sense when I get back!”

“I’m afraid that prospect isn’t an option. Once our war is finished and we’ve won, you’re looking at a life sentence in Kaon Prison.”

“WHAT?!”

“You’re too dangerous to be left to your own devices. Your empire will have to remain in disarray, and you will have to accept that you won’t see the world outside a prison’s walls again.” Thundercracker turned to the door and walked out.

“I’LL SNUFF MEGATRON’S SPARK WHEN I GET OUTTA DIS ONE!” shouted Thunderhoof. “NOBODY HOLDS THUNDERHOOF AND LIVES TO TELL DA TALE!” The door shut behind Thundercracker, silencing Thunderhoof.