“I’m sorry, I must be getting on in years!” snarled Megatron. “What did you just say, Starscream?!”
“I said I’m going with Deathsaurus!” replied Starscream.
“But what about your teleporting buddy?!” wailed Skywarp comedically. “You’re just gonna leave me?! Oh, you Sparkless…!”
“Get over here. I need a Space Bridge guy.”
“…Well, since you asked so nicely…” Skywarp appeared to consider his actions.
“You can be one of my commanders. Order people around as you see fit. Heck, even change your title whenever you want.”
“…Oh, twist my arm, why don’t you! In that case, soldiers, until I decide otherwise, you shall address me as Princess Skywarp!”
“All hail Princess Skywarp!” called the soldiers.
“They catch on quick, don’t they?” Skywarp whispered to Deathsaurus.
“That’s why I like them!” replied the rogue Decepticon.
“Thundercracker, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us,” offered Starscream.
“…You took an oath!” snarled Thundercracker. “As leader of the Seekers, you are supposed to oppose evil wherever it lurks and Unicron’s at the center of Mobius!”
“Wake up, Thundercracker!” replied Skywarp in uncharacteristic seriousness. “In the Seekers’ history, has ANY Trine ever been trained to fight Unicron?”
“We swore an…!”
“Answer the question! Did any of us ever receive Unicron-based combat training?!” Thundercracker growled.
“…No,” he finally sighed.
“Do we have any weapons even remotely similar to the Three Powers?”
“…No.”
“And are we REALLY that neutral?”
“…No.”
“Then tell me, what hope do any of us have?”
“Last chance, Thundercracker,” offered Starscream. “An opportunity like this only comes once.”
“…When we beat Unicron,” declared Thundercracker, “I’m going to relish in telling everyone how the leader of the Seekers forgot his oath and fled like the craven coward he is! If Unicron beats us, I hope he devours you before the D.J.D catches you!”
“The D.J.D will be spared the effort!” roared Megatron as he leveled his fusion cannon!
“Megatron, NO!” called Optimus.
“MEGATRON, YES!”
“Megatron, no,” remarked Starscream as he fired his null ray right into Megatron’s chest, winding the Decepticon Lord. “…You have no idea how much I’ve wanted to do that!” He then addressed his old comrades. “Attention, idiots! You are all doomed to fail and be devoured by Unicron! Skywarp and I want no part of it! We’re leaving this world and claiming the TRUE Decepticon Empire as our allies! Deathsaurus, get us out of here!”
“As you command, Lord Starscream,” replied Deathsaurus. The teleport beam then snatched everyone up and left Megatron, Thundercracker, and the four Autobots to themselves.
“…FINE! I HOPE THE D.J.D. TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB!” shouted Megatron to the heavens.
Megatron was fixed up from the shot Starscream took. Once he was cleared, he toured the base…what was available to him. As he walked, he noticed Galvatron packing, ready for a swap the next day. “Galvatron, a word,” called Megatron.
“A word or an attempt to give me a beating?” replied Galvatron.
“…Not dignifying that. Look, did Starscream get involved at all in your time?”
“Yeah, he tried to serve Unicron. Didn’t end well. Killed all the Seekers right there.”
“…Mind elaborating?”
“I’d rather show than tell.” Galvatron then pulled out a cortical psychic patch.
“…Very well.” Megatron opened the back of his head and Galvatron plugged one end of the patch into it. He then opened the back of his own head and plugged the other end into it, sending both bots into a trance.
Megatron woke up in a cave and saw Galvatron in a mess. His armor was torn, and he was leaking Energon. “What in…?!” spluttered Megatron.
“Relax, these are just my memories,” assured Galvatron in a tone that didn’t match his condition. He then groaned in pain as Starscream entered the cave, passing right through Megatron. “You…traitor!” gasped Galvatron to Starscream.
“We’re not going to accomplish anything by standing against Unicron!” replied Starscream. He approached the center of the cave. “I won’t let myself be destroyed so damn easily. You’re going to be witness to this event, unlike the others.”
“What…event?!” grunted Galvatron.
“My audience with Unicron.” Starscream then carved out a runic circle in the floor and jabbed himself in the arm with his finger. He then drew it back and revealed purple liquid instead of pink. Megatron, observing the whole thing, realized what Starscream did.
“…Dark Energon?” he asked Galvatron. His future self nodded as Starscream put his finger to the circle. It glowed purple and bathed the cave in darkness.
“I feel your presence! Share your very Anti-spark! I call on you as my Lord and Master, Oh Mighty Unicron!” Seven pillars of purple clouds then appeared before six of them turned into the Terrorcons, sans Rodimus Unicronus, while the seventh grew and grew until a massive upper torso with a horned head appeared. Megatron looked on in fear.
“Unicron!” he whispered.
“Who would speak to me?” demanded Unicron.
“Your servant most humble!” answered the Seeker. “Starscream, Air Commander of the Decepticons and your very herald! The one who wielded the Dark Energon which binds us to awaken you once again! The Prophecy has been fulfilled! It is only the beginning of what we shall accomplish…together! For you shall rule this planet and those who walk upon it through me…!”
“PRIDEFUL FOOL!” roared Unicron. Starscream gulped. “How dare you think yourself capable of summoning MY life force! I rise because I have deemed it my time!”
“Master,” whimpered Starscream, “I did not mean to overstep…!”
“SILENCE, WORM! I have no need of your LOWLY assistance.” Unicron then raised his hand, causing Starscream to levitate. The Terrorcons then drew their weapons, causing Starscream to fear for his life.
“PLEASE, MY LORD! I EXIST ONLY TO SERVE YOU!”
“If you did, you would have told us where the Matrix was,” scoffed Nemesis Prime.
“Is that what I sense?!” snarled Unicron. “The taint of Primus still exists?!”
“It turns out Optimus never had the Matrix on his person,” explained Nemesis. “He hid it away before a successor was chosen. A Velocitronian by the name of Hot Rod.”
“Some…Elite guard!” chuckled Galvatron. It was clear that Unicron and his Terrorcons saw him, but they elected to ignore him and continue to berate Starscream.
“That Velocitronian is now Rodimus, the Last of the Primes and our sworn enemy…!”
“You profess loyalty to me,” interrupted Unicron, “yet allow a disciple of Primus to LIVE!”
“I will destroy him for you! His screams will be heard…!”
“I grow weary of your prattle! Surely, if you had the power to destroy this Prime, you would have done so already! I will deal with him myself.” Unicron then clenched his fist and Starscream exploded, the shrapnel burying itself into the cave walls. Megatron then felt something pull at him.
He then woke up in Galvatron’s quarters and shook his head. “Who else is left?” he asked his future. Galvatron sighed.
“…Ravage, Knock-out, Rumble, and I are the only Decepticons. Rodimus has Ironhide, and Ratchet. The organics…the only fighters left are our apprentice, Silver, a pyrokinetic cat named Blaze, Vector, and Amy. The other fighters…gone, dead or in the thrall of Unicron. When Vector had no choice but to kill a possessed Charmy…” Galvatron stopped to wipe tears away. “…Now do you see why I’m not so eager to restart the Decepticon Empire in my time?”
“…I believe so. …However, that is YOUR time and there are some obvious differences between us. Ironhide and Rumble, for a start. With all that in mind, I intend to keep up appearances. I MUST have something to remember who I was before this all went down.”
“Please yourself.” Galvatron resumed packing as Megatron left the room, giving off an air of calculating confidence. It was clear, given that the time-travelers didn’t fade, that multiverse theory was in play and Megatron intended to make Galvatron’s time an alternate future.