Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-26

Everyone managed to check in on Teletraan to see how he was doing. It felt like a long half-hour for everyone. Maria…was a little on edge. “So…they’re from a planet of naturally-occurring robots?” she asked Shadow as she saw the whole thing.

“Yep,” replied Shadow.

“And…this is new to them?”

“Uh huh.”

“…Huh.”

“…Maria, what is it?”

“Shadow, how can this appear normal to you?! I was dead for 50 years, you were eaten up by revenge for a bit, then you fought the Black Arms, you joined G.U.N. after that, then you get caught up in all sorts of shenanigans that frequently pit you against my cousin, now calling himself Dr. Eggman (even though I’m sure his degree was revoked a long time ago), then robots that can think and feel like a biological organism land here, then you get caught up in their second civil war, then you tell me that you helped banish their version of the devil and met the actual creator of this planet, and, just to really put icing on the cake, characters from our stories come to life and we had to save one another’s butts, and I was resurrected by Morgane Le Fay herself and put into a Mobian body similar to yours, and now we’re going to space and our Autobot friends’ A.I. is raising an offspring within the span of 30 minutes!” Maria then started panting, her stress clear on her face. Shadow said nothing as Maria spoke, he felt it would be rude of him to interrupt. A few seconds after she was finished, he gave her a reassuring hug.

“It’s a lot to take in,” he soothed. “I promise you though, I WILL help you through this.” Maria steadied her breathing after Shadow’s reassurance. They stayed in that position for a long time. Just then, a call rang throughout the base.

“Everyone, Teletraan’s back!” announced the caller, Scattershot. “He wants us all to be in the command center to reveal his kid!” Shadow looked to Maria with a look of concern.

“I’m fine now, Shadow,” she assured him. “I guess I just needed to rant a bit. Let’s go see Teletraan’s kid.” They joined everyone else in the command center to see Teletraan’s avatar on the screen.

“Everyone, thanks for checking in with me and my kid,” he began. “It helped me know that I wasn’t raising them alone. Now, thanks to the wonders of modern computation, a program developed on its own from my own code. Would you like to see her?”

“So it’s a girl A.I.?” asked Optimus.

“Bingo.”

“Then let’s see her!”

“Everyone, presenting the daughter of Teletraan 1, the newest Tactical Artificial Intelligence!” A human woman dressed in a maroon Japanese Policewoman’s outfit appeared next to Teletraan’s avatar. Her hat had the Autobot symbol set over a gold background and she wore a set of headphones modeled to look like siren lights with a microphone on the left side. Her eyes were dark lavender, and she had brown hair.

“Hello, everyone!” greeted the woman. “I am the Tactical Artificial Intelligence, but you can call me T-AI!”

“Good to finally meet you, T-AI,” returned Optimus. “I’m Optimus Prime, these are my bots and friends.”

“Good to meet you all!” cheered T-AI. “I’m eager to be put through my paces as I coordinate planetary action for those staying behind.”

“You’re sure about this?”

“Dad and I already had a few discussions about this, and I’m sure. I’ll monitor Mobius for any and all threats.”

“Splendid! I can’t wait to see how you handle the planet in Teletraan’s absence.”

“Oh, she can handle it just fine,” replied Teletraan. “She’s the daughter of a genius, snarky A.I.”


The time to leave finally came the next day. The ones staying behind were the Technobots, Cosmos, Blaster, the Round Table Knights, Guinevere, Merlin, Aleena, Team Chaotix, Omega, Big, Cream, Vanilla, and Topaz. The ones going to space were divided up as followed; Arcee, Blackarachnia, Goldbug, Jazz, Optimus Prime, Perceptor, Ratchet, Sparkplug, Stormfront, Yoketron, Natalie, Shahra, Sira, and Trema were going on the Ark with Optimus in charge, Cliffjumper, Dust Up, Jumpstream, Pyra Magna, Rust Dust, Skyburst, Stormclash, Strongarm, Windblade, Alexis, Amy, Cosmo, Knuckles, Sonic, and Tails would board the Blue Typhoon with Tails in command, and the crew of the Fang would consist of Grimlock, Slag, Slash, Sludge, Snarl, Swoop, Maria, Rouge, and Shadow with Grimlock as Captain. The Decepticons had already left a day ahead of them, so the time to go was NOW. Optimus and those going to space faced those staying behind and said a few goodbyes. “Blaster, you take care of these crazy kids,” directed Optimus.

“Yes, Sir!” replied Blaster. “Mobius will be exactly as you left it, Sir!” Sonic then spoke to Aleena.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he promised. “I’ll have a lot to tell you!”

“Please, make sure you take care of yourself,” urged Aleena. Amy then talked to Cream.

“When I come back, do you want to start your magic training?” she asked.

“Yes, please!” answered the young rabbit. Teletraan spoke to T-AI.

“Now, you be good for them,” he remarked. “Make sure you scan for viruses daily, keep the VPN up to date, don’t let any dangerous programs into your systems-”

“Daaad!” groaned T-AI. “I can take care of myself! I’m a grown woman!”

“I know, but I can’t help but worry.” He then hugged T-AI. “I’ll come back, sweetie, I promise.”

“I’ll miss you, Daddy.” Alexis and Topaz then said their goodbyes.

“You keep Team Dark in line, you hear?” ordered Topaz.

“Understood, Ma’am,” answered Alexis as she saluted.

“And come back alive, I won’t have G.U.N. lose you OR Shadow and Rouge.”

“We will, Ma’am, I promise.” Merlin and Sira were the last people to say their goodbyes.

“Merlin, I trust you can handle the Erazor Djinn?”

“Quite easily,” assured the wizard. “Now, since he’s been freed from service, he can’t be bound again, but I have a variety of weapons at my disposal.”

“Perfect. Oh, tell me how Lancelot and Guinevere’s wedding goes, will you?”

“I shall, indeed. Good luck, Sira Mayworth.” Sira bowed and joined everyone.

“Everything’s ready,” reported Teletraan.

“Beam us up,” replied Optimus. Everyone was taken up in the transporter beams and placed in their respective ships. They all reported ready to go. It would take a while for the Warp Field Drivers to get to speed, so Blackarachnia decided to see Optimus have just a little fun with the situation.

“Teletraan, play the instrumental version of the first Star Trek opening,” she called.

“What?!” asked Teletraan.

“I want to hear someone say ‘to boldly go’ and Optimus is a fan of the show, so…?”

“Go ahead, Teletraan,” urged Optimus. “I’ve always wanted to say it.” Teletraan smiled.

“Playing music,” he reported. The familiar opening notes of the first Star Trek opening then played on the bridge.

“…Space, the final frontier!” began Optimus. “These are the voyages of the starships Ark, Blue Typhoon, and Fang. Their ongoing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before!”

“Warp Field Drivers ready!” called Teletraan.

“Take us out!” The ships adjusted their headings, the engines spun to life, then they all sped away from Mobius at speeds one can only dream of! Their journey across the stars has begun!

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-25

The yellow hedgehog girl sat in a room alone. She waited for someone to come in. She was surprised to see Shadow and Prowl’s holo-form. “Shadow?” she asked.

“Agent Shadow,” grunted the black and red hedgehog. “The one beside me is Prowl of the Autobots.”

“Pleased to meet you, Ma’am,” greeted Prowl.

“Shadow, what’s going on here?” asked the hedgehog girl.

“Agent Shadow, and I want answers. You said you were on Eggman’s moon base. How did you get down here?”

“I used Chaos Control like you did.”

“So, you’re Chaos-sensitive?”

“Maybe a little less than you. I was trying to get to the Space Colony, but I ended up here.”

“Why to the Space Colony?”

“I thought you would be there.”

“Why me?”

“Because you’re the one who understands my position.” Shadow arched an eyeridge.

“I fail to see how,” he remarked. The hedgehog girl looked pleadingly at him.

“Shadow, please! I know I look different, but it IS me!”

“You took Maria’s name and styled your quills like Maria did her hair. Why?” The hedgehog girl then realized what was going on.

“Is there a surefire way for you to see that I’m not lying?”

“That’s where Prowl comes in.” Prowl then strode forward.

“Ma’am, I have been authorized to corroborate everything you’re going to say,” he explained. “Right now, you’re in a room that’s lined with the most advanced lie detectors on Mobius and Cybertron. Right now, I need you to lie to me. How old are you?”

“17,” replied the girl. A light flashed red in the ceiling.

“Okay, good. Now, Shadow, proceed with your questions.” Shadow stepped forward.

“How did you get to the moon in the first place?”

“Morgane Le Fay brought me there, albeit without all my memories.”

“So you were resurrected?”

“That’s right. My soul was just put into a new body.”

“Where did the body come from?”

“The Space Colony ARK. Genetics lab 17, room five. The same room you were created in.”

“Prowl.” Prowl took that as a cue to check. He remotely connected to the security feeds on the ARK.

“Access code 17-42,” the girl chimed in. Prowl tried it and was stunned at the results. It showed Eggman carrying a tube of green liquid with the hedgehog girl inside.

“Confirmed.”

“Thank you,” replied Shadow. He resumed his interrogation. “So, you’re an artificial life-form like me.”

“Not quite. You see, you’re a hybrid of Black Arms and Hedgehog, I’ve got human DNA in that mix.”

“Human? How was it made compatible?”

“That’s one of Professor Gerald’s secrets. It should be found in his personal logs. The code to access that is 4-1-7.” Shadow nodded to Prowl, and the Autobot Cop accessed that part of the computer systems. His eyes widened as the read the data.

“Sh-Shadow,” he stammered, “it says here that the human part of that body…came from a Ms. Maria Robotnik!” Shadow’s eyes went wide.

“Maria?!” he breathed. He then glared at the hedgehog girl. “What memories do you have?! Whose soul did Morgane put in that body?!”

“…Do you remember when we had a walk around the ARK a couple of times?” asked the girl. “I always told you about how I wanted to see the surface of Mobius.”

“…And then you died of your NIDS,” muttered Shadow. The girl could see that it was an obvious lie.

“Come on, Shadow, you know what really happened. Your ear always flicked whenever you lied. It was from a government soldier’s bullet. It managed to go through my shoulder blade and hit my heart as I activated your stasis pod and sent you to the surface of the planet. I distinctly remember telling you to give the rest of my former race to be happy.”

“I don’t believe it, it IS you! Maria!” Shadow then brought the girl, now believing it was his best friend, Maria Robotnik, into a bear hug. They stayed that way for a good minute.

“So, you believe her?” asked Prowl.

“Of course, I do!” snapped Shadow as he broke off the hug. “And if she’s gotten intel on the Decepticons, then we should decode it now!”

“I’ve already decoded most of it on the way here,” called Maria. “I was gathering more until Megatron found out after I discovered who’s going into space and who was staying.”

“Then we should tell Optimus what we can,” declared Prowl.


After everyone heard the story about Maria, the rest of the intel was decoded, plans were made, and the loading of ships increased. The remaining intel was who on Megatron’s side would stay. The Combaticons and Metal Sonic were ordered to stay on Mobius, the Nemesis, Whale Shark, Decimator, and Revenge would go to Cybertron. On each ship were Clench, Knock-out, Megatron, and Shockwave on the Nemesis with Megatron in command of the ship, Obsidian, Strika, and Eggman on the Whale Shark with Eggman in charge, Tankor and Morgane on the Revenge with Morgane as Captain, and Jetstorm, Overdrive, and Thundercracker aboard the Decimator with Thundercracker as the head honcho. Their flight path was also discovered, so the Autobots knew where to confront them. The journey to Cybertron would have the following stops in the following order: Nebulos, Animatros, Velocitron, and Gigantion. Optimus had to make a few decisions on who would go on what ship out of the people going to space. As he pondered, Teletraan popped up. “Hey, Prime, could I have a word?”

“Sure, buddy,” answered Optimus. “What can I do for you?”

“It’s about the A.I. situation.”

“…A.I. situation?

“I don’t know if you know this, but there’s a situation concerning me. If I stay here, the guys in space won’t be able to coordinate effectively. If I go, though, then the guys here have the same issue.”

“Not if the Technobots have anything to say about it.”

“…Sir?”

“Remember that bit of code you isolated before the World Rings affair went down?”

“Yeah?”

“Turns out, it was naturally-occurring code with a few similarities from you. It’s been trying to form its own personality.”

“…It’s an A.I?! I’m a DAD?!”

“If you want the A.I. to take over Mobian affairs while you go out to space, you need to raise it.”

“Give me half an hour!” Teletraan 1 then vanished. Optimus then got a call from Afterburner.

“Prime, we’ve got a situation here!” he clamored. “Teletraan’s just locked himself into a server that only us Technobots got access to! He’s taken that code-bud!”

“Give him half an hour,” replied Optimus.

“…Oh, yeah, computer time’s faster than real time. …He’s raising that baby A.I. alone? That’s gotta be stressful.”

“Tell your brothers that you need to check on him every chance you guys get. That baby can’t rely on Teletraan alone.”

“You got it, sir.” The call ended and Optimus grinned.

“I wonder what the new A.I.’s gonna identify as?” he mused to himself.”

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-24

Kup, Windblade, Prowl, and Strongarm sat in a room alone, remembering Chromia. “At least she went peacefully,” sighed Kup. A small chuckle escaped Prowl’s lips.

“What’s so fragging funny about that?!” demanded Windblade.

“Nothing, I was just remembering when we first had a mission together,” explained Prowl.

“You mean the London incident of 2008?” asked Strongarm.

“That’s the one. I was mech-splaining to her when we were setting up the flare, then I went and tripped over it, setting it off!” He was giggling a bit, a rare thing for the normally stoic bot. “You should have seen her face as the flare’s light illuminated the whole city and we had Decepticons coming out of the sewers ready to kill us!”

“Oh, yeah!” laughed Windblade. “She wouldn’t stop complaining about you for months! But, out of all the mechs she met, aside from Ironhide, she liked you the most.”

“She did? Why?”

“She said you meant well, just like Firestar!” Windblade’s face then turned to a sad expression. “Just like Firestar.”

“And Ironhide,” recalled Kup. “That’s all of them. That whole side of Ratchet’s family is gone.”

“Gone, yes,” called Optimus’ voice as he entered the room. “Forgotten, never. Not while there are those who remember them.”

“You’re so right, Sir,” agreed Prowl. “How are the others holding up?”

“As well as can be expected,” answered Optimus. “Snarl’s just finished up his degree in psychiatry, so he’s asked me to tell everyone he’s available if you want to talk.”

“He’s our psychiatrist now?” asked Windblade. “He always was a good listener. I think I’m gonna have to take him up on his offer.”

“Whatever you need, he’s there for us.”

“Are you gonna speak to him anytime soon?” asked Strongarm.

“I am. That was the first time I ever took part in medical euthanasia. Chromia told me as Ironhide died that seeing rigor-morphis will never get easier for people and she was right. Unfortunately, decision-making in light of these circumstances isn’t any easier.”

“What do you mean, Sir?” asked Kup. Optimus sighed.

“G.U.N’s picked up someone who was in the Decepticon Camp for a while,” he explained. “A hedgehog woman who claims she has information about the Decepticons’ plans once they leave Mobius. With that loose end and the Erazor Djinn still out there, we can’t afford to bring everyone.”

“Please tell me there aren’t any objections,” interjected Strongarm.

“Believe it or not, the Technobots offered to stay behind, so did Cosmos, as well as the Knights of the Round Table, Guinevere, and Merlin.”

“Cosmos? Why her?”

“She figured Mobius could still use a warp-capable space-craft in case of an emergency. Given that she’s built with a warp engine, she volunteered to be that craft.”

“Well, if there are bots willing to stay behind, then there aren’t any objections from me.”

“Nor me,” agreed Prowl.

“I ain’t complaining,” supplied Windblade.

“Sounds like the Technobots and Cosmos got heads on their shoulders,” remarked Kup. “No complaints from me.”

“That’s actually a relief,” sighed Optimus. “You guys, I wasn’t too worried about understanding my motives, it was the bots of my generation I thought would be more hesitant. Still, it’s good to know that everyone understands. There IS one bot I think would object, though.”

“Who?” asked Prowl. Optimus steeled himself before answering.

“Blaster. I want him to stay behind.”

“Did you tell him about that decision yet?” inquired Windblade.

“No, he’s the last bot I’m telling. I have a feeling he’ll object.”


“What do you mean you want to have your Cybertronian Citizenship revoked?!” Optimus asked Blaster later.

“After Xitra, I never really felt at home on Cybertron. I felt more at peace on this planet, even during the first war. I want to live out the rest of my days here on Mobius, so asking me to stay behind is actually a good thing.”

“Does Aleena know about this?”

“I was hoping we could both call her together.”

“Then let’s do it. Though, I don’t know what her reaction will be. Teletraan, mind calling up Aleena?”

“Sure thing,” answered Teletraan. After a few seconds, Aleena’s face popped up on the console.

“Optimus, what can I do for you?” asked Aleena.

“It’s about Blaster here,” explained Optimus. Blaster took over the conversation.

“Your Majesty, I want to move here and be a Mobian citizen. I’m in the process of revoking my Cybertronian Citizenship and…”

“Finally!” sighed Aleena.

“…Finally?”

“I was hoping we could have someone move here. A lot of senators don’t want to recognize Transformers as citizens unless they actively wanted to live here and pay taxes. Come by the Mobian Congressional Building the day after the funerals of Chromia and Arthur and I will personally make you a Mobian Citizen.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!” Blaster was smiling by then.

“Perfect,” sighed Optimus as the call ended. “Now, the next things are the funerals and that mystery hedgehog girl.”


The first funeral was for King Arthur. The mourners met in his tomb as they had arranged to have him reinterred there. Lancelot, Shadow, Gawain, and Knuckles bore Arthur’s body. Merlin then lowered him back into the coffin. “Hic jacet Arthurus,” pronounced Lancelot, “Rex quondam, Rexque futurus.” Everyone just stood there with their heads declined in respect for King Arthur, the former Monarch of England, and the Holy Roman Empire. After a respectful silence, Excalibur then spoke.

“In his new life, Arthur was wiser and learned from his mistakes of his previous one. He gave his life so that we may all live to read and learn from all stories. He touched the hearts of millions, may he continue to do so.” Optimus then came forward.

“When I met him, I was so sure he was just a story. He and his actions proved me wrong, and I have never been more grateful for that. In the short time I knew him, he taught me about of chivalry. I won’t ever forget him, as I’m sure no one else will forget. In pace requiescat.”

“In pace requiescat,” repeated the mourners. Lancelot then stepped forward to give one last prayer, straight from a book that gave him surety so long ago.

“Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great mercy to take unto himself the soul of our dear brother here departed, we therefore commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our vile body, that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty working, whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.” Sonic shut the lid once the funeral finished.

“Goodbye, Arthur,” he mumbled. “I’ll make sure to rule Mobius as you once ruled Camelot a long time ago.” Everyone then left Arthur’s tomb.


Chromia’s funeral was much like Ironhide’s. She was laid upon the same apparatus that would vaporize her body like it once did Ironhide’s. Optimus took his place at the podium. “Everyone,” he began, “we gather here to honor the death of Master Sergeant Chromia Teznark of Iacon. A devout Camien, a Wrecker warrior par excellence, a wife, a mother and friend, and a loving soul, Chromia will never be replaced. Like Ironhide, I won’t ask anyone to replace her. It would cheapen her life and I won’t do that. Chromia, you will be remembered, and we will dedicate our victories to you and the family you have reunited with in the After-spark. Rest in peace.” Optimus then nodded to Kup, Goldbug, and Jazz. They stepped forward, left a space between Jazz and Goldbug, and raised their weapons.

“Fire!” called Goldbug. They fired three times, then holstered their weapons and saluted. They then let Windblade perform a Camien Funerary Rite. She approached the body and placed her hand on Chromia’s.

“Chromia,” she said, “we once bared our Sparks to each other and bathed in their combined light, making the universe brighter. It is now dimmer without you, but I shall continue to keep our light alive. Rest well, my Amica Endura.” She stepped back and nodded to Optimus.

“When a Spark goes online, there is great joy. When one is extinguished, the universe weeps.” The Autobots then each took a phial of Innermost Energon and held it up to the sky.

“You flare. You flicker. You fade.” After the chant, the Autobots set their phials down and Windblade stepped up to the control panel.

“Goodbye my friend. …Rest in peace!” She pressed the button and Chromia’s body was vaporized after a few seconds. Windblade then started crying and Optimus hugged her, his own tears falling down.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-23

Like she suspected, Strongarm had a burr on her rotator. As she treated it, she told Optimus, Kup, Prowl, and Windblade about what Chromia told her. “Sounds like she’s put a lot of thought into this,” muttered Prowl.

“I’d say she’s been thinking about it before this all went down,” remarked Strongarm.

“She’s raised some good points,” remarked Kup. “I mean, how much longer do we actually have?”

“If it’s such a problem,” growled Windblade, “why don’t us old fogeys all go for medical euthanasia?! Because we’re not stupid!”

“So, anyone who chooses to die like that,” snapped Optimus, “is stupid in your book, Mom?”

“If they refused the options available to them, yes!”

“Even if those options have a low chance of survival?”

“Optimus, I don’t know if you remember the war stories, but we had a few low chances of survival during our youth! That didn’t stop us from fighting!”

“Windblade, this isn’t the same thing!” argued Prowl.

“Oh no?! What’s the difference between facing death by firearms or by a serious illness?! You can die in either case, but you fight on regardless!”

“Not everyone who fights wins, Windblade! Not everyone came back!”

“But enough of us did, including Chromia! I don’t get why she wants to die after surviving a war!”

“Chromia, why are you insistent that she doesn’t do this?” asked Kup. Windblade hesitated before explaining.

“Have you guys ever heard of the term ‘Amica Endura’?” Only Strongarm’s head was still as everyone else shook their heads. “It’s like a Conjux Endura, but it’s only between friends. A sort of platonic marriage, if you will.”

“And Chromia’s your Amica Endura?” asked Optimus.

“Exactly. She’s my best friend and we survived through so much. Believe it or not, I was once prejudiced against Cybertronians and joined the Camien Liberation Front. It’s thanks to her that I got over that prejudice. I felt like I owed her. Now she’s dying and I can’t do anything to help her when she needs it the most!” Windblade was letting her tears fall by then, born of both frustration and sadness.

“It’s…it’s infuriating, this whole situation.” sighed Kup. “Unfortunately, the French have a rather sad but accurate phrase for something like this. C’est la vie, that’s life.”

“And it’s bullscrap!” Windblade sighed to steady herself for her question to Optimus. “When’s she gonna do it?”

“Wednesday afternoon at 4,” answered the young Prime, “and she’s requested you and Kup be there when it happens.”

“She has?” asked Kup.

“Given that we’re prepping for a space journey, and considering the actual size of the Repair Bay, it would be impractical for everyone to see her. However, I’m allowing for requested visitors to go if they want.”

“I want,” declared Windblade.

“Me too,” rumbled Kup. Optimus then got a look of contemplation.

“You know, I think we can bring someone else along,” he mused, “one of our allies that she hung out with a lot.”


4 O’clock, Wednesday afternoon came too quickly for Windblade’s liking. She, Kup, Ratchet, and Optimus gathered around Chromia’s berth. As Ratchet prepped the necessary machinery for inducing medical euthanasia, Chromia spoke with everyone else. “Thanks for being here,” she greeted with a sad smile on her face.

“It’s our pleasure, Chromy,” chuckled Kup. Her face then turned sour.

“So it’ll be your pleasure to watch me go?”

“Nonononono! I meant…!” Kup then saw her wicked grin. “Ah HA! I knew you’d get me one day!”

“I taught her well!” chuckled Windblade.

“More like I taught YOU,” reminded Chromia.

“…Yeah, you did. Chromia-”

“You’re not gonna try to talk me out of this, are you?”

“I would, but the thing is, it’d sound like begging.”

“You? My Amica Endura? Beg? That’s hardly befitting a Camien!”

“It’s not befitting of any soldier,” remarked a voice. A human woman then came out from behind Optimus’ head.

“Commander Topaz?!” yelped Chromia. Her smile almost lit up the room. “So good to see you again! I don’t think you told me the results of that little health scare last year.”

“And I’m sorry for not telling you. It’s just been so busy after the whole Unicron fiasco that I couldn’t find the time to tell everyone.” Optimus set her down on a little table near the berth. “I was diagnosed as prediabetic, so I went keto to gain control of my blood sugar. Let me tell you, it’s worked wonders! Thanks to that little change, I got a new lease on maintaining my health!”

“That’s wonderful! Congratulations!” Chromia’s smile then faded. “I…hope you don’t think less of me for-”

“I would never dare think less of you, especially not for this decision. I will admit, I’m not too fond of it, but I respect your choice. So should you, Windblade.”

“I don’t know if I can,” mumbled Windblade. “Chromia, after all you’ve done for me-”

“Windblade,” interrupted Chromia, “you owe me nothing. You never have. I was proud to call you my Amica Endura. Topaz, it was a pleasure to work with you in Mobius/Cybertron relations and to assist you in all joint operations we did together. Optimus, it was an honor to be a part of your life and to be commanded by you. Ratchet…” She trailed off when she saw Ratchet simply standing by. “…It’s ready?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” mumbled the old medic.

“Well, let me just say this to you, it’s still an honor to have been treated by you. Remember this, you’re NOT my executioner.”

“…I’m not sure if I could ever accept that. I never did with those I had to euthanize.” Ratchet then turned to Optimus. “We’re ready on her word and yours.”

“Chromia,” asked Optimus, “you’re absolutely sure about this?”

“Yes, Orion, I am.” Chromia then tapped a button and the berth leveled itself out. There was a window in the ceiling that showed off the sun as it shone down on her. “You may give the word.” Optimus hesitated.

“…Ratchet…do it.” Ratchet pressed a button and the machine near the berth started shutting down all electrical signals in Chromia’s body. She smiled, being at peace now.

“I’ll give my love to Ironhide and Firestar, shall I?” she offered. Her Spark then lost cohesion without the electrical signals keeping it going, resulting in it fading away. Once it did, her optics went offline, and her body faded to gunmetal gray. Her armor then shifted before settling on her robot mode. As her body laid on the berth, one could still see her peaceful smile on her face. There wasn’t a single dry eye in the Repair Bay as the truth set in; Chromia was dead, reunited with her husband and daughter.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-22

While Megatron was getting his house in order, Chromia was coming out of her induced stasis. She saw Optimus and Ratchet’s blurry outlines, then her audio receptors picked up that they were speaking. It soon became clear to her when Optimus spoke again. “Ratchet, you’re absolutely sure about this?!”

“There’s no doubt in my mind, Sir,” answered Ratchet.

“Oh no.” Optimus sat on an empty repair berth.

“O…Optimus?” asked Chromia. Both Prime and medic then turned to her.

“Chromia, you’re awake.” Optimus’ statement came out as one of surprise. “How are you feeling?”

“A little groggy,” answered Chromia, “sore too. But I’m all right. How’d the mission go?”

“Well, to get the bad stuff out of the way, Scattershot and his team disobeyed my orders for them to stay put and Arthur gave his life to stop Morgane. Their respective actions, though, saved our stories and reality as we know it, and the Autobots now have two stable Combiners. Scattershot and his brothers are calling themselves the Technobots and their combined form is Computron.”

“I’m sorry about Arthur, but I’m glad that we won.”

“Yeah, we won, but Megatron returned with a new jet mode.”

“Uh oh. Well, I’m sure that, thanks to Ratchet, I’ll be there to…” Chromia then got a good look at her surroundings. “Hold on a cycle, I’m in a different…” panic then set into her. “Back of the repair bay?!” She turned to Ratchet. “What did you find?!”

“Chromia, easy!” urged Ratchet.

“The back of the repair isn’t called the Dead Zone for no reason, Ratchet! What did you find?!” Ratchet hesitated, then sighed.

“Metal Fatigue.” Those two words echoed throughout Chromia’s head. Metal Fatigue: a weakening of metal due to stress, leading to an accumulation of small cracks, an illness no Transformer wants to be afflicted with. The least worrisome is stage one, where an overhaul would cure the patient. If it’s stage five and the patient chooses the overhaul, there’s a nine to one chance they would die during the procedure. It’s a terminal illness no one of metallic origin wants to be afflicted with.

“H…How bad?” asked Chromia once she found her voice.

“It’s stage three at the limbs, but…” Ratchet faltered before continuing, “…but it’s stage five at the Spark Chamber. It was practically dangerous to move you here. But don’t panic, we’re doing everything we can to reestablish communications with Cybertron! With any luck, this localized version of stage five won’t…Chromia, are you listening?”

“Optimus Prime, Ratchet,” declared Chromia, “I request medical euthanasia!”

“YOU WHAT?!” shouted the two mechs.


“SHE WHAT?!” cried Prowl once everyone heard Chromia’s announcement.

“That’s absurd!” protested Grimlock. “Can’t you talk her out of this?!”

“Ratchet and I,” explained Optimus, “spent two hours trying, but her mind’s made up. Besides, the law is very clear on this matter: a soldier’s right to end their life on their terms in a situation such as this is absolute. We all have to oblige this request, no matter how much we disagree with it.”

“We can talk to her, Sir,” offered Kup. “She’s probably feeling a little down. Whatever’s she’s got-”

“Metal Fatigue.”

“…Sir?”

“She has Metal Fatigue, stage five localized in the Spark Chamber. Swoop and Ratchet told me it was a miracle she didn’t break down sooner than she did.”

“How long does she have?” asked Hot Rod.

“If left untreated, a few months. Even if she is treated, you all know the odds of survival on stage five fatigue-ridden bots. In light of these details, I hesitate to call her decision an irrational one.”


While most bots and allies agreed, the topic was very divisive. Some wanted her to take the overhaul while others wanted their colleagues to respect her wishes to end her life. One thing everyone agreed on was wanting to see her, but the repair bay in a wartime isn’t like a hospital with visiting hours. Everyone was wracked with anxiety. To make matters worse, word about Megatron’s plan to leave Mobius to reestablish communications with Cybertron reached Optimus. He believed that the Decepticons would gain allies from other planets, so he made the decision to pursue the Decepticons with the Ark. What made the work so worrisome is that everyone wanted to see Chromia, but it wasn’t practical. However, Strongarm managed to get some insight on the matter during a visit to Ratchet. She sat down on a berth near Chromia. “Regs?” asked Chromia.

“Hey, Free-Wheeler,” greeted Strongarm.

“What are you doing here? Wait, you don’t have…?!”

“No, no, nothing so serious.”

“Then, what are you doing here?”

“Got a pain that feels like a burr on my rotator. Ratchet’s trusting my feelings, but I just want to be sure before I start taking care of it. I should be out by this afternoon after a little examination.”

“…Unlike me.” The mood went serious real fast.

“I’m not gonna gold-plate it; your decision’s caused a stir among the ranks.”

“Where do YOU sit on the matter?”

“I’m reminded of the time during the first war that I got Cosmic Rust.”

“When you and Prowl had a mission at the Autobot colony on Antilla? He refused to leave your side because of that.”

“Well, he’s a sweet bot under the rulebooks he buries himself with. In any case, after the corrostop, I was sure it’d be the end of me, and I would go for medical euthanasia. But, thanks to the stage three overhaul breakthrough, I got a new lease on life!”

“So, you think I should take the overhaul?” Strongarm winced at Chromia’s question.

“I don’t know. My Metal Fatigue didn’t reach my Spark Chamber. Like most of us, I just want to be sure you’re not being too hasty with this decision.”

“At the start, I thought I was, but given how extensive the Spark Chamber Fatigue is…” Chromia trailed off.

“Where in the Spark Chamber did Ratchet and Swoop find it?”

“It would be quicker to tell you where they DIDN’T find it. An overhaul would be too expensive and-”

“What if the funds were available?”

“Even if they were and the odds of survival were in my favor, how much longer could I go on? I’m 90,000 years old, you know!” Strongarm bridled at this.

“I’m just as old and Kup’s older than all of us! I don’t know about him, but I don’t see myself picking medical euthanasia anytime soon!”

“Is that because you haven’t considered the future?”

“What do you mean?” Chromia drew in a breath before she began her explanation.

“Strongarm, our generation is full of nothing but fighters. The generations after that, up to Optimus’, knew peace. We spent our entire adult lives fighting and felt out of place once the war ended, no matter what we did. I know elderly Transformers are the best-treated elderly people in the galaxy, but how far can our wartime advice take future generations? Even the advice of the generations before us didn’t support ours forever. Our advice will only meet the same fate. Sooner or later, our time will come. This is MY time and I choose to go out this way. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Chromia, I do.” Strongarm meant it. She understood Chromia’s feelings. Ratchet told Strongarm he was ready to examine her. As he induced stasis, she thought about what Chromia said.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-21

The pair flew through Robotropolis with Megatron firing at Eggman. “Like the new look, Doctor? Wings become me, no?” Eggman still kept trying to get away. Megatron kept up the pace. “Tell me, has flying always been this easy or are you just incompetent at that?” Eggman fired missiles to try and deflect his tormentor. No dice. Megatron simply took the brunt of it and flew undeterred. “As heartening as it is to see the spring in your step once more, Doctor, it is only fitting that I warn you that your attempts to evade me will fare no better than your attempt to lead the Decepticons.” Eggman fired again and ducked into the sewer systems. “Ah, it’s a tour of your domain, is it? A hollow pipe for an empty leader!” Eggman then targeted his missiles at the walls and collapsed the pipe they were flying in. He stopped to see the smoke.

“…Megatron?” he asked. He then heard the shifting of metal and the whirring of a t-cog, serving as a split-second warning of Megatron’s robot mode.

“ROBOTNIK!” He grabbed Eggman and blasted a hole into the ceiling, returning the pair of them topside. “And that, as they say, is that!” He threw Eggman to the ground. Eggman bounced a few times before stopping by a building. Megatron transformed to alt-mode and his holo-form landed before grabbing Eggman and slamming him into the building. “What were you thinking, Doctor?! Walk me through your thought process here; what did you think was going to be the end result of you opening fire on my holo-form?! Look at me! I’m Megatron! Even as I rusted in the sands of Shamar while you galivanted and canoodled with Morgane Le Fay, you could not vanquish me! What hope do you have now?!”

“Hope?” groaned Eggman. “Hope took a walk a long time ago.”

“NO! This is not you, Doctor! I don’t expect a backbone, but I expect some form of self-preservation! You really want to die right now?!”

“…Yes.”

“You want me to end all this?!”

“Yes!”

“…Well, think back on the last thing you really wanted, and remember what an utter failure that was!” Eggman then punched Megatron to try and get away, but Megatron continued his pursuit. “If you truly sought release, you would have stood your ground after emptying your gun into my holo-form! You don’t seek oblivion, you seek punishment! I rarely like to help others; I see it as a character flaw. But, in your case, Dr Eggman, let me be of service!” Megatron then started slamming his fists into Eggman’s body. “You look like him! You move like him! When my blows strike you, your flesh reverberates the way his does! …But you are NOT Dr. Eggman! You can’t be! Eggman could talk himself out of anything! You aren’t even talking yourself out of this beating! As pathetic as he was, you’re a mere shadow of what I expected! Every blow I bring down comes from a place of pity, you wretch!” Eggman then did something that surprised Megatron, he grabbed his tormentor’s fist!

“Talk, you insignificant pile of scrap?!” Eggman then decked Megatron’s holo-form right into his alt-mode and knocked him out of the sky! Megatron transformed to land, only for Eggman to deck his face and suffer no ill effects. “TALK?!” roared Eggman. “Is that really what you want?! Or do you want me to merely beg for forgiveness?!”

“Is it my forgiveness you seek, Doctor? Is it me who you’ve let down?!”

“You clearly don’t understand! I doubt I even WANT you to!” Eggman tore off his glasses and revealed his eyes, blazing with every single emotion that fell under the umbrella of anger. Like the Erazor Djinn, his eyes were red with black sclera, clearly cybernetic enhancements.

“Understand what?!” demanded Megatron.

“The Roulette of Trust, that’s what!” Megatron stopped.

“I’m…sorry?” He was genuinely confused at Eggman’s statement.

“The Roulette of Trust! Come on, Megatron! Your whole faction wears deception as a badge of honor like I do! You backstab me, then I backstab you! One of us will prove the other’s superior somehow! We both know the Decepticons are beneath us! We lie to them to keep them beneath us, otherwise our life’s work would be undone! You never knew what it was like to see everything crumble around you!”

“…You think THAT is why I lie?” Megatron took a purposeful step forward. “You think I don’t know what it’s like to see my work undone?!” He took another step, punctuating each sentence with a step. “You lie to keep everyone a slave, I lie to free them! I lie to implant ideology! I build up the ideology! I liberate cities! I topple corrupt civilizations! It took a millennium for me! Then I slumber for one! Measly! Year! And when I wake up, THIS Is all that is left! So, say it again, Eggman! Say that I don’t know what it’s like to see my life’s work undone and made a mockery of!” Eggman was about to wet himself. “You and I have one thing in common, Doctor; the person responsible for leaving our lives in tatters…is you.”

“So, go on! End the Roulette of Trust if you hate it so much!”

“…No. Here’s why I keep you around, Doctor: your bullying of underlings and identifying with your equals, it makes you a more competent member of my inner circle than Starscream ever was. Your actions keep those below you, and, subsequently, me, in check. Your venomous aspirations make you a model Decepticon, even more so, given the life-span disparity between humans and Cybertronians. You are the type of deviant that will ensure our ultimate victory. But it is the thought of you in charge that keeps me alert. You see, even when I was an Autobot, leadership was never something I feared losing, but the reasons for my staying in charge have changed over the years. When I was an Autobot, it was simply because no one else was available. When I first became a Decepticon, it was because I needed to prove something to the whole faction. Now? Well, now, leadership is something I fear you gaining. Oh yes, that IS a fear of mine. So, in the moments that my all-consuming destiny lie ahead of me, you remind me of the need to watch my back. THAT is your importance to me, Eggman. …But that is in the past!” Megatron charged up a shot from his left fusion cannon. “So, let it be known that if our resources were not critical, our numbers not low, and our troops not outgunned…I would atomize you!” He fired his shot into a pile of scrap.

“Th-Thank…” Eggman’s thanks were interrupted by another bark from Megatron.

“DON’T thank me! It’s your own incompetence and poor judgement that’s saved you today! Instead, Doctor, repay me! The all-consuming self-hatred you’re feeling? Use it against our enemies! Tired of the bone-deep chill of losing, Eggman? Then stand with me, for right now has never been a better time to be a Decepticon!”

“…Yes, Lord Megatron.”

“Oh, and, Doctor, I expect the Roulette of Trust to continue, for you ARE right. We DO stab each other in the back constantly. There will come a time where it ends, but I’d prefer to stave that off until the Autobots and Sonic are defeated. Agreed?” Megatron held out a hand to offer a handshake. Eggman stared at the hand, then grinned before grabbing it. The two then shook hands.

“I say, let the games begin!” declared Eggman.

“I thought so!” Megatron then broke off the handshake and turned to see the crowd of Decepticons coming out from behind the cover they used to keep themselves out of the blast radius of Megatron’s beating. “You hear me, my Decepticons?!” he called. “Vengeance will be ours! We have taken care of an internal threat, but there is still the threat of the Autobots! They sit there, in their cozy base, ready to ghettoize us! How small, how ARROGANT, for them to not recognize what oppression does to warriors like you and me! Have they forgotten that it was from under their boots that the first Decepticons, then called the Ascenticons, rose to confront them in the first place?! The time for recriminations is over! You are needed, all of you, no matter how injured or infirm you are! You have no Energon? Let hate be your fuel! Blinded? Let your anger light your way! Crippled? Your bitterness will carry you to victory! Diseased? Rage will cure you! Scattered no longer, we come together, Decepticons! Banded and bonded with retribution and vengeance for all!”

“ALL HAIL MEGATRON!” cheered Thundercracker.

“ALL HAIL MEGATRON!” Shockwave joined him.

“ALL HAIL MEGATRON!” Frenzy, Rumble, and Ravage followed suit. Soon, all of Robotropolis was echoing with the phrase “All hail Megatron”!

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-20

Once everything was brought to some form of order in Robotropolis, Megatron decided that now would be an excellent time to take a tour of inspection. His troops lined a walkway and saluted…as best as their weary frames could allow. They were clearly run ragged, Eggman and the Combaticons’ doing. Of all the sights Megatron’s optics absorbed in his lifetime, the sight he saw now ranked as one of the most disappointing. They looked almost malnourished and ill-treated on the medical front, even Knock-out. Megatron decided it was time to breathe life into the dying embers of their rage. “Decepticons! My Decepticons, the days of sorrow and defeat are already behind us! I have been informed that we still have four working ships! Fully topped off on fuel and every single weapon kept well oiled for any battles! The communications problem with Cybertron is two-fold, from what Shockwave has told me! One: they have not returned any of her calls! Two: Eggman has blocked all attempts to make contact in the usual manner! But despair not! We still have allies among the stars! We shall travel to them as we journey to Cybertron! You deserve better than this and our allies shall give you better! Once we are returned to life, retribution, swift and terrible retribution, will be visited upon the Autobots and Eggman and his allies! So, take up arms and do not stop until your digits ache from squeezing the trigger of your blasters as they empty into your enemies! Revenge shall be your reward!”

“Lord Megatron,” mumbled Frenzy.

“Yes, my friend?”

“My Lord, how can I pull the trigger-” Frenzy then revealed his mangled hands “-when my hands haven’t been repaired for weeks?!” Megatron growled, not at Frenzy, but at the neglect Frenzy suffered. His mind flashed on the one fleshling that ruined his forces on Mobius. He’s eager to get to him, but some things needed to be addressed.

“Lord Megatron,” called Shockwave, “I must insist that we continue testing your body’s new armor as soon as possible.”

“You insist? Such ardor, Shockwave. I have already tested it out and it works as intended. Be proud of your contribution, or, at least, simulate the feeling.”

“My time would be better served in ruling out any stray connections to Unicron. Your current form was fashioned from his old corporeal form.” Megatron, of course, had a rebuttal on what she said.

“Shockwave, I have even reached out to him, and I assure you, he has no influence on me. You and Thundercracker have my gratitude for my resurrection, but, for now, I need you to make sure all our ships are ready for solar system egress at a moment’s notice. We are rather pressed for time now.”

“As you command, Megatron.” As Megatron left, Ravage followed behind him, giving him reports. As they walked, Megatron decided that now was the best time to visit a certain someone.

“My brothers and I,” reported Ravage, “have prepared extensive documentation about dereliction of duty in your absence and-”

“Enough, Ravage,” ordered Megatron. “Your findings will be reviewed in time.” They stopped by a human’s room. Megatron then transformed to alt-mode and activated his holo-form. “We’ve reached the final stop of my inspection tour. I wish to be left alone.”

“…As my Lord wishes.” Ravage slunk off as Megatron opened the door. Inside, the room was dark, with only the light of the outside illuminating the occupant’s features. The occupant was a broken-looking Eggman, still thinking back on what went wrong. For Megatron, he wanted Eggman’s immediate universe to consist of the anguish-dampened misery pit he dig for himself…and Megatron.

“Hello, Doctor,” greeted the Decepticon Lord. “…Come on, pick yourself up. You won’t find your dignity down on the floor.” Eggman stood up as if he was weighed down, his face looking equally heavy. “I wish to speak to you about your tenure as leader of the Decepticons.”

“Really?” scoffed Eggman. “You’d just like to have a chat about that?”

“A year, Doctor. One year to the day, you’ve commanded the Decepticons. You must be eager to tell me all about it.”

“…Why are you doing this?”

“Why am I doing what?”

“Look, I don’t care, all right?! I don’t care that you want to humiliate me before unleashing whatever absurdly creative punishment you’ve got in store-”

“Punishment?” Eggman scoffed at Megatron’s question.

“Whatever you want to call it!”

“No, I mean punishment for what, Doctor? Do you deserve punishment?”

“OH, JUST SHUT UP AND DO IT ALREADY!” Eggman shoved a gun into Megatron’s hands and made it so Megatron was pointing it at Eggman’s head. His hands never released his tormentor’s arm. The gun was in an active state, it would be so easy for Megatron to pull the trigger and end Eggman’s life. …It was too easy for Megatron. He engaged the safety and pulled his arm away so he could set the gun down.

“One year,” muttered the Decepticon Lord. “One year ago, I was punched from the Mojave Desert to Shamar and was never found until yesterday. You did not overthrow me, you merely saw a gap and meekly stepped in to fill it. Am I right? Is that how the reign of Lord Eggman began?” Eggman said nothing. “…Ah, YES! That’s not all, is it?! It’s easy to forget your credentials for the job! The culmination of your research into us led to the creation of your very own Transformers through the Allspark! The Cube itself wrote you a glowing reference as it birthed the Combaticons after so many years of inactivity! Your mastery of an ancient artefact that everyone barely understood obviously made you the most likely candidate for the position! Tell me, was the Allspark everything we hoped for after all the years the Transformers pursued it long before you were born? Did planets fall before you as you used it? Was victory a mere formality after tilting it back and forth under a strong light? Did your followers respect you simply by dint of you prancing around with it as if it were your favorite toy? I have to say, I expected this from Starscream, but YOU?” Nothing from Eggman, neither sneer nor smirk. For a moment, Megatron wondered if, while running the Decepticons into the dirt, he succeeded in destroying himself. Megatron growled as he continued. “Your silence is grating, so it falls to me to list your achievements! Under your rule, the Decepticons’ infrastructure was turned upside down as your Combaticons guzzled all necessary Energon while my soldiers were reduced to taking orders from your failed Eggacons so they could get the scraps! Shockwave was forced to call agents on Cybertron to inform them, with no way for them to inform the higher ups in any reasonable time! You resurrected your dead cousin in a form like Shadow’s, thus leading to the compromising of our moon base and the loss of our only means of keeping an eye on all enemy ships! My soldiers were treated as if they were mere Roombas that didn’t pick up as much dirt from a rug as advertised, on the verge of cannibalizing each other, so focused on their sole survival instead of the survival of the Decepticon Cause! …I hope it was everything you wished for, because this is exactly what happens when YOU get what you want.” Megatron leaned into Eggman’s ear. “All. Hail. Doctor. Eggman. You must be incredibly proud of yourself.” Eggman then grabbed the gun that laid forgotten on the table and fired on Megatron. He didn’t stop until the gun was drained of power. When Megatron still stood, Eggman remembered that he just shot a projection of lights and forcefields. He dashed past the holo-form and switched his Egg Mobile on before fleeing. Megatron teleported his holo-form into his cockpit and kicked his thrusters into gear.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-19

“I told you lot to stay at the base!” Optimus snapped at Scattershot.

“Given Victorion’s chances, I can’t stand idly by!” argued Scattershot. He turned to his brothers. “Guys, you ready?!”

“Let’s do it!” called Afterburner. Scattershot brought out the Enigma of Combination, the five parts glowed in their respective colors, and they all put their fingers to it. Scattershot touched the middle, Afterburner touched the upper right, Strafe touched the upper left, Nosecone touched the lower left, and Lightspeed touched the lower right. A glow enveloped them, and they all changed. Scattershot transformed into vehicle mode, then his fuselage folded upwards. Afterburner transformed, then his front allowed a right hand to flip out before it attached to Scattershot’s lower left as the thumb faced down. Strafe transformed, then his rear ejected a left hand and he attached to Scattershot’s lower right, the thumb facing down. Nosecone transformed, a foot swung out, then he attached himself to the upper left of Scattershot as the toes pointed down. Lightspeed did the same and attached to the upper right. A head then sprouted, adorned with a blue visor over its optics and faced opposite of Scattershot’s topside, then the new gestalt landed on his feet, facing Bruticus. It stood there, still as a statue.

“…Computing actions,” it rumbled. “…Computing actions. …Computing actions.”

“This is EXACTLY why they weren’t ready to be deployed yet!” groaned Optimus.

“What’s done is done!” replied Victorion. “We must focus on Bruticus!”

“TEAR THEM APART!” Eggman shouted to Bruticus. Bruticus only kept Morgane and Eggman out of his targeting systems. Everyone else was fair game. He grabbed Optimus and squeezed, causing Optimus’ systems to overload.

“Bruticus’ left leg is right!” growled Bruticus. “Megatron’s greatest mistake was ever allowing you to live, Prime!” The new Autobot Gestalt then swatted Bruticus’ hand, forcing him to release Optimus.

“Combat.exe…engaged!” snarled the new Combiner. He then walloped Bruticus straight in the chest. Bruticus was winded.

“H… How?!” demanded the combined Combaticon form. “How did you-?!”

“Probability that Optimus would survive Bruticus’ attack with no intervention of any kind: 27.98%. Probability WITH intervention: 89.21%. Probability of Bruticus’ victory: unknown. Intention to let him: none!” Just then, the Enigma glowed and shot chest armor onto the new Combiner. His optics flashed and he grinned. “Probability of success now that I have a Maximus to help filter the thoughts of my individual components: 98.3%!”

“Wha…HOW?! Bruticus didn’t…!”

“Your individual components didn’t focus on a single thought so quickly. Mine, on the other servo, already went through a hiccup that helped them realize their single goal! Bruticus, you face your better! You face…COMPUTRON!” The newly named Computron then decked Bruticus in the face and followed it up by driving his left knee, armed with a drill, into Bruticus’ chest!

“Damage Critical.” warned the Bruticus Maximus. “Time over.”

“WHAT?!” yelped Bruticus. He then fell into his individual components.

“…Huh,” mused Computron. “I guess that’s another weakness us Combiners have.”

“Thanks for the heads-up!” laughed Megatron as he transformed and fired at Computron’s joints from behind the gestalt. Computron collapsed to his knees as Megatron flew by his head, transformed to robot mode, and slammed the Combaticons into the ground.

“M-Megatron!” begged Onslaught. “The Autobots! Optimus!” He pointed behind Megatron. “Right there! Waiting for you!”

“My greatest mistake?!” growled Megatron. “I HAVE made a few…” he paused as he allowed screams of pain to echo throughout the dunes, their sources originating in the Erazor Djinn, Morgane Le Fay, and Dr. Eggman, “…but there is ONE I do NOT intend to make again!” He then fired streams of purple lighting at the Combaticons, sending them into agony for a good two seconds before ending it and examining the smoking bodies of the Combaticons. He then activated the radio and set it to only Decepticons. “Security check! What’s safe?!”

“Right now, only Robotropolis,” replied Laserbeak. “The moon base had a third organic ally, but she left the place and opened us up to Autobot Spies. We’re still closing it, but we can’t exactly go there now.”

“Open a Ground Bridge to Robotropolis!” ordered Megatron. “Gather up those that tried to make slaves of you and have them prepped for punishment. Leave Eggman to me! This has him written all over it and I intend to voice my complaints to him…personally!” The Ground Bridge opened for them, leaving the Autobots and their allies to pant in the sands. “Decepticons, retreat!” The Decepticons gathered their wounded, bar the Erazor Djinn, and fled through the portal. Megatron covered the retreat. “Oh, Optimus, we have yet to finish this little quarrel! Though Eggman was crass in declaring our intentions, recall what I said as we were made award of Unicron. With him gone, our alliance served its purpose!” He entered the Ground Bridge and it closed behind them.

“…Autobots, mission accomplished,” panted Optimus. “Gather up the wounded…and the dead.” He turned to Arthur’s lifeless body and picked him up. “…Teletraan, we need a Bridge back.”

“Got it, sir,” answered Teletraan.


Everyone returned to the base. King Arthur’s Knights and Guinevere gathered around his body and knelt. Guinevere sobbed over him as Excalibur unsheathed itself and bounced on its tip. “Rest in peace, my friend,” it sighed. Everyone let Guinevere and the knights cry. Once they left the body, Cliffjumper turned to Shahra.

“What the Erazor Djinn said about bound genies…”

“I’m sorry, Master, but it applies to all genies,” sighed Shahra.

“So, he can’t come back. Thanks anyways.”

“Arthur sacrificed his life to save your world, Shahra,” muttered Optimus.

“A world I can’t go back to, and neither can the Erazor Djinn.” Shahra was about to retreat into her ring.

“Shahra, would you grant me one last wish?” asked Cliffjumper.

“…What is thy wish, Master?” Cliffjumper took a deep breath and then spoke his wish.

“Shahra, Genie of the Ring, I wish for you to be the master of your own fate and the sole master of your vessel!”

“What?!” yelped the young Genie. The ring then vanished from Cliffjumper’s finger and fixed itself onto Shahra’s. The genie was in disbelief. “Bu…but, why…? I mean…!”

“I’ve heard it from Optimus numerous times,” answered Cliffjumper. “Freedom is the right of all sentient beings. A RIGHT, not a privilege. I never felt easy at having a slave at my fingertips, so I did what anyone would do, I freed that slave from its bondage, whatever it was. Shahra, you’re your own master now and-” Shahra then grew to Cliffjumper’s size and hugged him. Optimus could see her eyes closed as she cried happy tears.

“…Thank you,” she mumbled. “Thank you!” Cliffjumper reciprocated the hug.

“You’re welcome, you magnificent woman.” Optimus smiled, then activated base-comms.

“Autobots, we’ve won a victory against the Decepticons, set back Morgane’s plans, and kept the stories safe, but we lost a friend. King Arthur gave his life to save everyone. He helped a genie woman from another region learn about freedom and taught us all that seeking eternity isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. We grieve for Arthur but will continue fighting in his name. ‘Til all are one.” After that, he turned to Computron as he disassembled into his individual selves. Scattershot was about to explain his actions, but Optimus held a hand up to cut him off. “You lot disobeyed a direct order,” he growled. “I told you that you were too emotionally unstable for active duty, and you threw yourselves into the fray without my consent. …But, in doing so, you gave Victorion the time she needed to recover, you minimized casualties to their absolute lowest, and you gave us an edge over how many stable Combiners we have on the Autobot side. With all that in mind, I can’t punish you but so hard. You will be denied field missions for a week. After that, you will be fully recognized as Autobots with the rank of Lieutenant. Does your team have a name yet?” Scattershot looked at his team for ideas.

“I was thinking…we’d call ourselves…the Technobots,” mumbled Strafe.

“…You know, I like that!” cheered Lightspeed.

“Same here! We’re born from Tails’ tech, weren’t we?” asked Afterburner.

“And it gives our allies the idea,” mused Nosecone, “that we are rightly good with technology.”

“…I WAS considering something else,’ remarked Scattershot, “but ‘Technobots’ sounds better. Sir, we’re calling ourselves the Technobots.”

“Splendid,” replied Optimus. “And, Scattershot, am I right in assuming you’re the team leader?”

“We’ve already had the discussion, and yes, you’re correct to assume so.”

“Perfect. We’ll have you undergo the Rite of the Autobrand after Arthur is buried.” Nosecone then snapped his fingers as if he remembered something.

“Optimus, before all that, you need to see Ratchet and talk to him and Chromia as soon as you can.”

“I better talk to them now,” mused Optimus, “get it out of the way. Excuse me.” He headed off to the repair bay.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-18

The fight raged on; the World Rings being forgotten. The two Combiners slugged it out as the Autobots fought the Decepticons. Megatron kept flying overhead and firing potshots at Victorion. “That’s it! OPTIMUS PRIME, SUPER MODE!” Optimus’ trailer appeared and he assumed his Super Robot Mode before flying into the air and slamming a fist down on Megatron’s front. Megatron went down, then regained his flight pattern and fired on Optimus.

“You know, I tested Robot to Vehicle Transformation!” laughed the Decepticon Lord. “Let’s reverse it, shall we! MEGATRON, TRANSFORM!” The middle thrusters and canopy folded to the underside while the side thruster assemblies slid outwards as the sides of the jet split away and sprouted hands. The front of the jet then split away and twisted so the wider ends allowed feet to fold out so the tips could become knee armor. The head then sprouted from the chest, revealing that he still had the bucket design, but in a darker shade of gray. He flew as deftly as in vehicle mode and was laughing all the while. “An excellent change in alt mode, wouldn’t you say?!” he cackled. Optimus deemed a response unnecessary and just fired. “Not interested in talking, eh? Fine, I’m flexible!” Guns then popped out of each of his forearms, and he fired rapidly, one after another.


Sonic, his friends, and Eggman continued fighting in their usual manner. Eggman sent out robots and Sonic kept spin-dashing into them. “Can’t you come up with anything creative?” laughed Sonic.

“Laugh all you want, rodent!” snarled Eggman. “At least I still survive!”

“What about living?” asked Shadow.

“Despite what you hear, surviving and living ARE the same thing!” Eggman continued doing his thing.


Arthur, his knights, Guinevere, Merlin, Sira, and Natalie fought Morgane, countering any spell she flung at them. “You idiots don’t know what you’re doing!” she snarled. “With the World Rings and the Sword of Parallels, I could restore Camelot and make it eternal!”

“What about the world around it?!” challenged Arthur.

“Arthur’s right,” remarked Merlin. “If Camelot becomes eternal, it becomes unchanging and a blight on a prospering world.”

“A blight?!” snarled Morgane. “Camelot would be the cure to the cancer that is death!”

“Everything has a point in which it ends!” pleaded Guinevere.

“Even Natalie and I,” agreed Sira, “will fade with time! Once Mobius dies, we die!”

“Don’t you fear the end, though?! Don’t you want to see it again?!”

“Are you kidding?! I enjoy the modern conveniences! I enjoy living in times when plague is only read about in history books! I enjoy drinking water without worrying about worms in it! I enjoy reading about things in an instant instead of needing to hear it all from a monk reading a book that’s had numerous translations! That was only possible because our ways of life changed as the old ones died off! Morgane, there’s nothing wrong with things dying! It is, quite literally, natural!”

“Then you are a fool!” Morgane then cast a giant circle in the air and a massive, Transformer-sized blade then appeared. “I won’t be shackled by the natural world! Eggman had the will to attempt to cast it off! He and I shall rule an eternal empire! England shall be our capital! I shall make our kingdom…eternal!” She then fired off magic blasts and lifted the World Rings up to the Sword’s handle. She cast a shield around herself and her allies and started singing as the sword glowed.

And did those feet in ancient time

Walk upon Englands mountains green:

And was the holy Lamb of God,

On Englands pleasant pastures seen!

And did the Countenance Divine,

Shine forth upon our clouded hills?

And was Jerusalem builded here,

Among these dark Satanic Mills?

Bring me my Bow of burning gold:

Bring me my Arrows of desire:

Bring me my Spear, O Clouds unfold:

Bring me my Chariot of fire!

I will not cease from Mental Fight,

Nor shall my Sword sleep in my hand:

Till we have built Jerusalem,

In Englands green and pleasant land!” As the song finished, she inserted the World Rings into the Sword. “Sword of Parallels, In the name all that I command, I command thee, thou blade! Open thy hidden ways! Restore Camelot to its former eternal glory!” The Sword glowed brighter…then the World Rings vanished. “Wh-what?! What’s going on?!” Arthur then started laughing.

“A very good slight of hand, Merlin,” he praised the wizard. “I almost believed it myself!”

“What slight of hand?! What did you do?!”

“I simply created false World Rings,” answered Merlin. “That cumbersome thing can’t get the full charge without the real ones, can it?”

“…You gave it enough charge to only open a gateway to another world!” realized Morgane. “It couldn’t even summon one BRICK from Camelot!”

“Nay, it could not,” agreed Arthur. “If thou art wondering where the true World Rings are, well…” he then showed off his hands. On his right, the yellow, cyan, and white Rings rested on his pointer, middle, and ring fingers. On the left were the blue, purple, red, and green rings, each on the pointer, middle, ring, and pinky fingers.

“You…you can’t be serious!” muttered Morgane. “Didn’t you hear that there was a price?!”

“Aye, I did, and I be willing to pay it!”

“My Lord, NO!” called Lancelot.

“Merlin, take my knights and Queen out of here!”

“…As my King wishes,” sighed Merlin. He then gathered himself, the Knights, and Guinevere in a golden light. The light then obscured everyone as it got brighter.

“ARTHUR!” wailed Guinevere. They then vanished.

“Fare thee well, My Queen and Friend. I pray that the two of you are happy.”

“You cannot stop my plans so easily! I am eternal!”

“And I…am Arthur Pendragon, son of Uther Pendragon, King of the old country of Briton and Lord of the once proud Holy Roman Empire! Long afore, I took Excalibur from a stone and now I give my life to save the stories of the Arabian Nights! My life inspired stories to be written about me, may this short rebirth produce the same results so man and beast may learn both from my follies and my triumphs!” Arthur snapped his fingers and the power of the World Rings coursed through his body as they vanished from his fingers. As the World Rings vanished, the Erazor Djinn saw what was going on as he batted away Thundercracker’s sword.

“NO!” he shouted in disbelief. “I WILL NOT BE TRAPPED HERE!” He charged towards Arthur, hoping to snatch at least ONE World Ring, but it was too late. Arthur crumpled to the sand; his fingers now bare of any rings. “…No!” whimpered the Erazor Djinn.

“Yes!” proclaimed Shahra. “We’re now stuck here! The Arabian Nights have created two new Genies of the Ring and Lamp!”

“Wait, hold up, you’re the original Genie of the Ring that helped Aladdin out of that cave?!” asked Cliffjumper. Shahra didn’t get a chance to answer his question as the Erazor Djinn slashed across her back.

“DIE! JUST DIE!” he roared. Cliffjumper then fired on the psycho Djinn and scooped Shahra up.

“Shahra, if it’s within your power, I wish for you to be healed of that wound and never be physically harmed again!” Shahra panted as she looked at Cliffjumper.

“The first part, I can grant,” she gasped, “the second, however, I’m sorry. I cannot grant it.” A gold cloud surrounded her, and her wound healed.

“Drivel!” grunted the Erazor Djinn. “It’s all drivel! All stories were meant to be carved up and reshaped by me alone!” A Ground Bridge then opened, releasing Scattershot and his team.

“Scattershot and team, reporting for duty!” he announced.

Categories
Transformers: Mobian Chronicles Transformers: Mobian Chronicles (Arc 17: Living Stories)

TMC 17-17

Everyone got the coordinates from Shahra and arrived at the site where the World Rings rested. Arthur and his knights and Queen were stunned at the size of them. “By the Lord!” breathed Arthur.

“Pretty big, huh?” chuckled Sonic. Arthur then grabbed them all. “…Huh, I guess you can pick them up like I could.”

“What power do they possess?” asked Arthur. Shahra then came out of the ring and began her explanation.

“They are the very hearts of the Arabian Nights, their very souls. Each one contains the aspect of each emotion the Nights evoke; blue for prayers or hope, purple for sadness, red for rage or anger, green for hatred, yellow for joy or happiness, cyan for pleasure or joy, and white for wishes or desire.”

“They can grant power to anyone…but at a price,” muttered Sonic.

“…That price being…life?” guessed Arthur. “Merlin hath warned me about the World Rings.”

“And Shahra told us about the price already,” confirmed Optimus. He then flinched. “Arthur, YOU’RE the target now that you have the World Rings.”

“Indeed, he is!” laughed a well-known voice. The Decepticons and Eggman’s forces then popped out of the sand!

“…In mine era,” muttered Arthur, “a person with a large waist meant they were rich, but a waist of YOUR size? I must call thee greedy and gluttonous!”

“How droll, my dear half-brother!” snarled Morgane. “I see you’ve returned.”

“And thy cousin, Sira, stands with us, along with her wife!”

“So, Sira and Natalie finally tied the knot, did they? And both are on your side? I must admit, I’m disappointed. I would have made sure your type of love was legal in an instant.”

“Are you kidding?!” snarled Sira as she and Natalie made themselves known. “The only kind of non-straight love you would have allowed was woman on woman. Men would have been treated as second-class citizens as we women once were!”

“Still are, last I checked!”

“Not even close!”

“Morgane Le Fay, end this now or face the consequences!” warned Optimus.

“I won’t be deterred!” snarled Morgane Le Fay as she brought out the lamp and rubbed it. “Erazor Djinn, my final wish! I wish for you to kill Arthur and grant me control of the Seven World Rings!”

“Reneging on the deal, are we?” remarked the Erazor Djinn as he came out. “In any event, I cannot do that in a bound state.”

“…What?!”

“You can’t be serious!” snarled Eggman.

“Come on, now, what did you expect? Mistress Morgane, have you learned nothing about bound genies? We cannot kill anyone, not even a master that abuses us. We cannot warp a person’s emotions for our master’s end. We cannot raise the dead, even if they died before their time. Now, recently, I made a bargain with someone else.” He looked to the sky. Everyone cast their gaze upwards to see a shape flying around.

“…Is…is that the…Decepticon logo?” asked Grimlock.

“A Symbol Ship?” quizzed Optimus.

“Too small, I think,” remarked Grimlock. “Besides, Symbol Ships don’t have wings near the points.” Thundercracker grinned, then he swiped the lamp and rubbed it.

“Erazor Djinn, I have but one wish before I decide!” he announced. “I wish to know if that bot flying overhead has the armor of Unicron’s old body!”

“Wish granted. He does, but it’s tailored to his own ends.”

“Then my second and final wish is this: I wish for you to become master of your own fate and master of your own vessel!”

“NO!” shouted Eggman. Too late. The lamp attached itself to the Erazor Djinn’s belt.

“Dad! They locked out the shock programs!” called Onslaught. “We can’t discipline them!”

“Now, we’re masters of our fate, and we have an ally with us!” cheered Knock-out.

“…About that,” chuckled the Erazor Djinn. He then summoned what looked like a giant straight-edge razor and unfolded the blade from its sheath, revealing that it was a scimitar as tall as himself.

“What?!” hissed Thundercracker.

“Did you really think I would honor any agreement with any soldier of a side that called themselves Deceptive Constructs? You thought me a mere Autobot?”

“That was NOT the bargain!” snarled Thundercracker as he drew his own sword. “You would fulfill Shockwave’s wishes to help us find our Lord, we would free you, and you would join us!”

“Ah, see, not a very good bargain, that one, considering the Decepticon faction’s predilection for enslaving organic races. How about this; my world, and everyone in it as my subjects?”

“About THAT!” rasped a voice…a voice everyone knew. Optimus’ optics went wide as he looked up to see a hedgehog leap out of the flying Decepticon Symbol and land. The hedgehog was dark gray, had a dark red-purple, sleeveless coat, a neon purple-pink, sleeveless shirt, blue-purple pants, dark colored shoes, and fingerless gloves of the same color as the coat with studs on the knuckles. He had a tattoo above his red eyes of angry eyebrows, and he bore a wicked grin. The Erazor Djinn then saw what the Hedgehog meant.

“Why you dog-born lump of scrap!” snarled the Djinn. “Your soldier promised me a deal!”

“And I gave him orders to renege on the deal before you even touched the World Rings!” replied the Hedgehog. He then turned to Optimus. “How fares the war, brother?”

“Megatron!” breathed Optimus in fear.

“M-Megatron!” gulped Eggman. “You’re…you’re all right! Oh, thank heavens! It’s a miracle we could find you at all!”

“Oh, it WILL be a miracle, all right, Doctor,” snarled Megatron, “if you survive what I have planned for you!”

“Wait a minute, why am I afraid?! Combaticons! Take care of these idiots!”

“Combaticons,” called Onslaught, “form Bruticus!” Onslaught turned into the torso as his brothers formed the limbs and they attached as Bruticus’ head popped up.

“Bruticus awakens!” he announced. “Now, Bruticus shall destroy all his enemies!”

“SCATTER!” called Optimus. Everyone ran and fired on Bruticus.

“Torchbearers! Unite into Victorion!” The Rust Renegades formed Victorion, and she grappled Bruticus.

“Bruticus is unimpressed thus far!”


Scattershot’s team got the news about the fight. “Great, we’re benched and they’re risking their lives!” snarled Afterburner.

“They’ll come back,” remarked Ratchet as he entered the room.

“…With too many casualties,” muttered Scattershot as he took the Enigma. Everyone saw this.

“Hey, whoa!” called Strafe. “Optimus said-!”

“I’m aware of what Optimus said,” replied Scattershot, “but, given the circumstances, it’s a stupid-ass decision, so we need to ignore it and throw a wrench into Bruticus’ works as best we can.”

“Oh no, you don’t!” snarled Ratchet. “You’re staying right here and that’s final!”

“Like hell we are!” argued Afterburner. “I ain’t gonna let no wimp Decepticons make me angry all the time!”

“It’s time to put my nerves to better use!” declared Strafe.

“I have deduced,” remarked Nosecone, “that to stay here would leave the Autobots to a grisly fate!”

“And I want to see how powerful the Decepticons are, so I can better plan for them!” called Lightspeed.

“And I ain’t going to let my brothers be benched when we have something to help us,” finished Scattershot. “Teletraan, Ground Bridge to Optimus’ coordinates!”

“No, I’m not going to-!”

“Either you do it or Nosecone does it for you.” Teletraan balked at this threat. He then sighed and opened the Ground Bridge. “All right, brothers! Let’s get it on!” Scattershot’s team cheered, transformed, and entered the Ground Bridge.

“Better prepare more berths,” Teletraan muttered to Ratchet.

“Yeah, sure, it seems to be all I’m good for these days! No one listens to Ratchet, oh no! No, we’re the younger guys, WE know what’s best for old Rust Buckets like you!” The old medic continued grumbling as he stomped back to the Repair Bay.