Ultra Magnus was now in a cell, in the same restraints as Megatron. He glared at everyone that visited him. Soon, everyone gathered in the brig. \u201cErm, isn\u2019t there an occupancy limit?\u201d asked Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMegatron, we\u2019re letting you out of the cell,\u201d said Optimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWHAT?!\u201d roared Ultra Magnus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re still keeping your inhibitor chips,\u201d continued Optimus, \u201cso you won\u2019t access your offensive systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I\u2019m having a hard time following your logic,\u201d muttered Megatron as the restraints released him and his cell opened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause I need you free for what\u2019s about to be said. Jazz, you\u2019re up.\u201d Jazz\u2019s hand then moved towards his visor. Windblade then grabbed his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you sure?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWindblade, please,\u201d replied Jazz. Windblade looked at Jazz for a few seconds, then released his arm. Jazz then placed his hand over his visor and removed it. His optics were offline\u2026then they slowly switched on\u2026revealing a RED color. Ultra Magnus goggled in horror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Optimus Prime, how long did you know\u2026?!\u201d he snarled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA few years after I met him,\u201d answered Optimus. \u201cBefore you go on your tirade, Jazz has a little story about his life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese optic lenses,\u201d began Jazz, \u201cthey were grafted onto me at birth. My parents were devout Decepticons, even calling the Decepticon belief system Decepticonism. They wanted me to be a good little Decepticon. \u2026They were abusive as scrap and I kept running away from that house. I found my way to the police, kept hiding from them when they suggested taking me back home, then they got the hint and arrested my parents on child-abuse charges. I found myself at an orphanage and was adopted by an Autobot couple. I soon learned love and tried desperately to get my optic lenses to be changed to blue. \u2026My birth parents were too thorough. If any other doctor tried to surgically remove them, I\u2019d lose my sight. So, my new parents gave me my visor. After becoming friends with him, I showed Orion my real eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI still remember my comment to this day,\u201d remarked Optimus. \u201cI said \u2018Your optics are as red as my armor! Cool!\u2019 He then told me the story and I told him I was glad he got out of that situation, otherwise, I wouldn\u2019t have a best friend like him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut\u2026but he\u2019s\u2026I mean, he\u2019s a\u2026!\u201d Ultra Magnus still couldn\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf that\u2019s wracking your brains, then drink this in, Boy!\u201d snarled Windblade as Jazz put his visor back on. \u201cYou know Arcanus Pax, your father?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat about him?\u201d asked Ultra Magnus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, you said you knew his greatest secret,\u201d remarked Optimus. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid you know that Arcanus wasn\u2019t his real name?\u201d asked Windblade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSee?!\u201d interjected Megatron. \u201cI WASN\u2019T lying back then!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, shut up,\u201d grunted Optimus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo you DO know, good.\u201d Windblade then mustered her courage. \u201cArcanus Pax\u2019s real name\u2026was Treadshot.\u201d Everyone was stunned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Treadshot?\u201d asked Jazz. \u201cAs in the most notorious Decepticon Assassin?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut\u2026but that\u2019s\u2026no! You\u2019re lying!\u201d snarled Ultra Magnus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think I know your father\u2019s past more than you, Dion,\u201d said Windblade. \u201cLike Jazz said, Treadshot Pax was an assassin, notorious even among the Decepticons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPax? He\u2019s always been a Pax?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes. Believe it or not, for a family famous for breeding Autobots, the Pax Family had its black sheep. Treadshot was one of them. He was still loved, just that the arguments usually centered around his beliefs. \u2026The instant the Praxian Occupation happened; he broke with the Decepticons. Sure, he initially helped the Decepticons build the internment camps, but he found a manifest that had his wife and daughter as occupants. He tried everything\u2026but he found them in a mass grave.\u201d Optimus\u2019 optics widened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe was married before and\u2026lost them at the hands of his own team?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd there was no one else he felt he could blame but himself. \u2026But he DID find out who gave the order to put them in that camp, Lugnut! Every chance he got, he helped break prisoners out of the camps, all to make Lugnut look bad. It all came to a head when Lugnut\u2019s personal camp lost over 75% of its prisoners.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHold on, our lives was saved by Treadshot of all bots?!\u201d asked Prowl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know. It was then that he changed his name to Arcanus and turned to sorcery to try and heal what he believed to be a scarred soul.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf he tried to save himself and atone, I\u2019m sure he became a great mage,\u201d mused Pyra Magna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis whole story is a lie!\u201d roared Ultra Magnus. \u201cMy father was always a good mech! A paragon of honor and virtue!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe was paid to take out Autobots!\u201d argued Windblade. \u201cHe and I shared a Cortical Psychic Patch so he could confirm his story to me!\u201d Ultra Magnus then gave an unearthly howl and broke his restraints! He ignored the pain of his inhibitor chips, broke down the cell door, and leapt onto Windblade, slamming her against a wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMY FATHER WAS NOT A DECEPTICON!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCYBER KEY POWER!\u201d invoked Windblade. Her Cyber Key inserted itself between her wings and released a hand-fan from the helmet. She combined it with her sword, spun her wings\u2019 rotors, and swung the sword at Ultra Magnus while firing twin tornados at him, knocking him into the wall opposite of her. She got up panting, using her sword to steady herself, and barely noticed Ratchet tending to Ultra Magnus. Her eldest son\u2026then started crying. Megatron, after seeing the whole thing and giving only a few seconds of silence, chuckled, then laughed, then went into hysterics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOH, THIS IS JUST TOO RICH!\u201d he cackled. \u201cUltra Magnus: Deceptiphobe par excellence, yet he\u2019s the son of Treadshot! Oh, Primus! You know, you always said that the spawn of Decepticons will follow their parents\u2019 programming! Well, by that logic, you and Optimus should be joining me! Ah, but you don\u2019t FEEL like a Decepticon! You don\u2019t detect that bit of programming! Oh, what\u2019s a Deceptiphobe to do when his own logic is turned against him?! Brother, you should see your face right now!\u201d Megatron laughed again, using a nearby console to steady himself. \u201cWhoa, never laughed so hard\u2026feeling a bit light-headed.\u201d Optimus then stood over Ultra Magnus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDion Pax,\u201d he snarled, \u201cyour actions proved Bumblebee\u2019s reasoning for invoking the Crisis Act on you. I regret what I must do, but I have no choice. I won\u2019t have a second in command who\u2019s so emotionally compromised and so rock-brained. I won\u2019t even have a soldier like that. Do you have any words before you\u2019re relieved of your position and duties as a soldier?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026No, Sir,\u201d answered Ultra Magnus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen, as Prime, I hereby strip you of your title of Magnus and strip you of the Autobrand!\u201d Optimus then tore the Autobot symbol off of the former Ultra Magnus, Dion Pax. \u201cOnce you\u2019re repaired, you\u2019ll be returning to Cybertron.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOptimus, I\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBe quiet! At the moment, I have nothing more to say to you! Prowl, confine him to quarters and retrieve the Magnus Hammer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, sir.\u201d As Prowl obeyed, Optimus knelt to his mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMom, I\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou did what you had to as Prime,\u201d interrupted Windblade. \u201cTo be frank, I would have done the same.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026It still stings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah\u2026it does.\u201d Windblade switched her optics off and began crying. Optimus hugged her and did the same. Megatron, for once, stayed respectfully silent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ultra Magnus was now in a cell, in the same restraints as Megatron. He glared at everyone that visited him. Soon, everyone gathered in the brig. \u201cErm, isn\u2019t there an occupancy limit?\u201d asked Megatron. \u201cMegatron, we\u2019re letting you out of the cell,\u201d said Optimus. \u201cWHAT?!\u201d roared Ultra Magnus. \u201cYou\u2019re still keeping your inhibitor chips,\u201d continued […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[98,650],"tags":[146,337],"class_list":["post-3947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles-arc-13-clearing-the-air","tag-sonic","tag-transformers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3947"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3948,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3947\/revisions\/3948"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}