Drifting in space, a purple, metal t-rex stomped around on a spaceship (the former Decepticon Flagship, the original Nemesis), grumbling to himself and gnashing his teeth. As he griped, he approached the conference room and found his ragtag group of various bots that served Megatron once. “Saurion, Terrorize,” grunted the t-rex as he converted to robot mode. “Thunderblast, report.”
“No significant changes to the galactic standings yet, Sir,” sighed the femme-boat.
“Saurion, this is ridiculous!” complained Dirt Boss. “We’ve been drifting with no real end in sight!”
“Wee Dirt Boss is right,” rumbled Mole Dive.
“Saurion, what ARE we looking for?” asked Lugnut.
“Something. ANYTHING,” grunted Saurion.
“Yeah, that ain’t vague at all,” rumbled Dirt Boss.
“Hold up,” called Thunderblast. “Space Chatter’s been cleared.”
“Finally!” sighed Saurion. “Tell me, how will the Decepticon Empire fare now?”
“Combing the data now and…” Thunderblast’s sentence faded. “…Oh my.”
“What?” asked Saurion. Thunderblast hesitated. “…Your current commander asked you a question!”
“Er, say, Saurion, Baby, how do you feel about Nebulanese foo-?”
“Do NOT change the subject! What’s…going…on?!”
“Well, Sir…the…er…the Decepticons…that is… the Empire, it’s sort of…well-”
“Spit it out already!” Thunderblast stayed silent, then sighed in defeat as she reported the latest news.
“The war is over. Megatron’s serving a House Arrest sentence for war crimes and reparations are currently being made for the worlds the war touched. Earthia’s the second Galaxy Convoy.”
“Then the Decepticon Empire…is GONE?!” yelped Mole Dive.
“Yeah, it is. So, about that-”
“RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHH!” Saurion’s roar echoed throughout the ship. “THAT’S IT! I’M DONE! I QUIT!”
“Quit?!” protested Lugnut. “Sir, you can’t quit conquest when we’ve barely started!”
“Not conquest, you idiot, no! I quit this whole slagging universe!”
“…What?”
“Everyone, I refuse to live in a universe where a feared empire loses its nerve, and a damned talking flower runs a slagging interstellar alliance! So, pack your bags! We’re leaving!”
“To where?!” protested Mole Dive. “Sir, we can’t just leave a universe! It’s…it’s…well, it’s impossible!”
“…Not if our little prize in the vault’s the real deal,” mused Thunderblast.
“…You mean that sword?”
“Well, might as well see if we need to give lie to the myth right now, yes,” rumbled Saurion. “Dirt Boss, fetch the sword.”
Everyone on the ship gathered around the Sword of Parallels. It spoke to them in demonic whispers, as it always did since its initial forging. “No, I’m not going to waste my life controlling Mini-cons, Energon, or Cyber Planet Keys,” grunted Saurion. The Sword whispered again.
“That sounds like a bad 80’s cartoon!” complained Thunderblast. “Next!” The Sword whispered once again.
“The Frack are O Parts?!” asked Dirt Boss. The whispers continued. “No scrap, that’s contrived!” More whispers reached their ears.
“…You know, having the Allspark in our hands COULD prove useful,” mused Lugnut.
“Perhaps, but it might also be more trouble than it’s worth,” replied Saurion. “Let’s put that on the ‘Maybe’ pile.” The Sword whispered again.
“No, I’m not going to let a human girl kiss me!” gagged Mole Dive. The Sword whispered once more.
“…Control both Primus AND Unicron, you say?” asked Saurion.
“How?” quizzed Lugnut. The Sword whispered its explanation.
“The Twelve Primal Keys, you say? Go on,” urged Dirt Boss as he and Thunderblast leaned in. The Sword continued its explanation.
“So, find all twelve, unlock the Infinity Gate, travel sideways in time to get to the God Realm, and then use the Keys against Primus and Unicron?” Mole Dive summed up. The Sword whispered its confirmation. Mole Dive smiled. “I’m game.”
“Me too,” agreed Lugnut.
“Let’s control some gods!” declared Thunderblast.
“Sir, I think we have a majority,” reported Dirt Boss. “I’m in.”
“Majority? You mean unanimous decision,” rumbled Saurion. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must open the gate to that universe. All hands, to the bridge!” Everyone charged off to the bridge and Saurion unsheathed the Sword, reading off the inscription. “In the name all that I command, I command thee, thou blade! Open thy hidden ways! Lead me to my destiny!” He then made one quick, animalistic slash and a large, purple portal opened. The Sword faded as it opened its last universe. “Our destiny awaits, my Decepticons, yes!”
“Sure you don’t want to say goodbye?” joked Thunderblast.
“…Well, I suppose it would be rude not to say anything.” Saurion then cleared his throat. “To my old friends in this universe, I would like to say it’s been a pleasure living here, but it wouldn’t be true, no. You’ve constantly upended my schemes and derailed my plans! So, to that, I bid adieu, yes! To my new universe, I give you this warning: I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end! I am that which is, which was, and is yet to come, and you will know my name is Megatron when I lay my vengeance upon you!” He turned to the crew. “All hands, you may now refer to me as Megatron, yes! Full speed ahead!” The old Nemesis fled into the portal. Once it entered, the portal closed.
Angel Island, home of the Master Emerald and its guardians, Knuckles the Echidna and Rouge the Bat. It was Knuckles’ turn for guard duty as he sat by the Master Emerald altar, reminiscing about how much things have changed in his life. Sonic was now King of Mobius, G.U.N. was now inclusive of magic wielders, Eggman and Morgane went into retirement (he’d trust that as far as he could throw Eggman), and Rouge was giving up her quest to steal the Master Emerald. As he rested, he heard metal against the ground in a rhythm. He looked to see Optimus come up to the altar. “Prime?” he quizzed.
“Knuckles the Echidna, I presume?” replied Optimus.
“Kid, what are you doing here? I thought you were heading back to Cybertron.”
“I ain’t due for another hour. Just thought I’d wrap up my farewell tour where it all started.” Optimus looked past the altar. “I see you haven’t filled in the craters our stasis pods made when we landed here.”
“I still remember the voices coming out of the pods. Goldbug was still Corporal Bumblebee and he reported that you guys successfully landed and Ironhide grunted that it felt more like falling than landing. After that, you threw up.”
“I remember the shock I felt when I saw that we were in the air.” Optimus’ comment elicited a chuckle from the two. “And what an adventure that kicked off! 15 years on this crazy planet!”
“Do you ever wonder what would happen if you DIDN’T chase after Jazz?” Optimus got a faraway look.
“…Often. But you know what, I still wouldn’t change a thing. I’m gonna miss Mobius.”
“You can still visit us, can you?”
“Oh, of course. The Space Bridge still has Mobius’ coordinates locked in. I’ll be sure to bring Blackarachnia in two months. Wouldn’t want to leave an ally behind.”
“You know, I’ve been meaning to ask Rouge, it looked like G.U.N. was more prepared for you guys.”
“Tails alerted them to us when he found us entering the atmosphere.”
“Good thing he did.”
“No kidding. The last thing we needed was to be shot at while picking up Jazz.” Optimus sighed as he reminisced. “…Well, time to bring the farewell tour to a close.”
“Need a lift?” Knuckles held up a ring.
“The old warp ring! Let me try!” Knuckles handed the ring over and Optimus flicked it into the air. It expanded and projected a golden portal. He then stuck his head through it, then pulled it out. “That’s the place. Well, goodbye, Knuckles the Echidna.”
“See you later, Optimus Prime. ‘Til all are one.”
“‘Til all are one.” Optimus then stepped through the ring, and it disappeared behind him. Knuckles looked to the sky and sighed.
“Well, I guess this is it. …You know, I wonder if Eggbreath really IS retired.”
“So ends our involvement in Cybertronian affairs,” sighed Eggman as he sat in his chair. “And so ends the Eggman Empire’s dreams of conquest.”
“Now, Eggy!” protested Morgane.
“It’s true! Morgane, I’m not getting any younger and I don’t have an heir! Let’s face it, my dreams are nothing more than dust!”
“I don’t believe that for a minute. We still have a chance to make this a planet for Robotniks to rule!” Eggman then decided to address something.
“Morgane, you’ve been rubbing your belly for a while now. Are you hungry or something?”
“Not right now, but the little one will need nourishment.”
“Little one? …Wait, are you saying…?!” Morgane grinned.
“No heirs? A load of rubbish, I say.”
“And you’re SURE I’m the father?! Please say yes!”
“I had your medical bots confirm. This child is yours.” Eggman gave a cheer of happiness.
“Then what am I doing sitting around and feeling sorry for myself?! I must make sure my child has something to command! They shall make this world a techno-magical paradise!”
“Adding magic to their repertoire?”
“Given that mages exist, I’d be a fool if I didn’t have my child learn how to defend themselves against offensive magic.”
“I’ll take care of that front; you train them in science.”
“Exactly what I had in mind, my dear! Look out, world! The Eggman/Le Fay Empire’s not done yet! OH HO HO HO HO HO!”
The day had finally arrived. All Cybertronian refugees that wanted to return home were now onboard the ships. Optimus headed to the transport pad and looked at the crowd gathered. “…Everyone,” he said, “it’s been a pleasure to explore your world, but the time has come for me to return to mine. However, the possibilities of me visiting Mobius again are 100%. And if you ever need help, just say the word!” The crowd then cheered as many held up signs wishing Optimus good luck, telling him to come back soon, and that Mobius would miss him. Optimus waved and smiled. He then activated his comms. “Optimus to Ark. One to beam up.” He then shimmered out from view.
“Space Bridge coordinates confirmed,” reported Cliffjumper.
“Fleet reports ready,” announced Prowl. “They’ll follow us on your command.”
“Helm…get us home!” Cliffjumper keyed in a command.
The Ark turned to face the Space Bridge as it opened. Once the portal stabilized, the thrusters of the mighty starship spun to life and fired. Once the Ark moved, the fleet followed. They went into the portal, and it closed behind them. On the Space Colony ARK, Shadow and Maria looked out the window, watching the whole thing. “Good luck, Optimus,” bid Shadow.
“Come back soon!” called Maria.