The pair flew through Robotropolis with Megatron firing at Eggman. \u201cLike the new look, Doctor? Wings become me, no?\u201d Eggman still kept trying to get away. Megatron kept up the pace. \u201cTell me, has flying always been this easy or are you just incompetent at that?\u201d Eggman fired missiles to try and deflect his tormentor. No dice. Megatron simply took the brunt of it and flew undeterred. \u201cAs 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.\u201d Eggman fired again and ducked into the sewer systems. \u201cAh, it\u2019s a tour of your domain, is it? A hollow pipe for an empty leader!\u201d Eggman then targeted his missiles at the walls and collapsed the pipe they were flying in. He stopped to see the smoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Megatron?\u201d he asked. He then heard the shifting of metal and the whirring of a t-cog, serving as a split-second warning of Megatron\u2019s robot mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cROBOTNIK!\u201d He grabbed Eggman and blasted a hole into the ceiling, returning the pair of them topside. \u201cAnd that, as they say, is that!\u201d 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. \u201cWhat 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\u2019m 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?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHope?\u201d groaned Eggman. \u201cHope took a walk a long time ago.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNO! This is not you, Doctor! I don\u2019t expect a backbone, but I expect some form of self-preservation! You really want to die right now?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou want me to end all this?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Well, think back on the last thing you really wanted, and remember what an utter failure that was!\u201d Eggman then punched Megatron to try and get away, but Megatron continued his pursuit. \u201cIf you truly sought release, you would have stood your ground after emptying your gun into my holo-form! You don\u2019t 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!\u201d Megatron then started slamming his fists into Eggman\u2019s body. \u201cYou look like him! You move like him! When my blows strike you, your flesh reverberates the way his does! \u2026But you are NOT Dr. Eggman! You can\u2019t be! Eggman could talk himself out of anything! You aren\u2019t even talking yourself out of this beating! As pathetic as he was, you\u2019re a mere shadow of what I expected! Every blow I bring down comes from a place of pity, you wretch!\u201d Eggman then did something that surprised Megatron, he grabbed his tormentor\u2019s fist!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTalk, you insignificant pile of scrap?!\u201d Eggman then decked Megatron\u2019s 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. \u201cTALK?!\u201d roared Eggman. \u201cIs that really what you want?! Or do you want me to merely beg for forgiveness?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIs it my forgiveness you seek, Doctor? Is it me who you\u2019ve let down?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou clearly don\u2019t understand! I doubt I even WANT you to!\u201d 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUnderstand what?!\u201d demanded Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Roulette of Trust, that\u2019s what!\u201d Megatron stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m\u2026sorry?\u201d He was genuinely confused at Eggman\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe 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\u2019s superior somehow! We both know the Decepticons are beneath us! We lie to them to keep them beneath us, otherwise our life\u2019s work would be undone! You never knew what it was like to see everything crumble around you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026You think THAT is why I lie?\u201d Megatron took a purposeful step forward. \u201cYou think I don\u2019t know what it\u2019s like to see my work undone?!\u201d He took another step, punctuating each sentence with a step. \u201cYou 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\u2019t know what it\u2019s like to see my life\u2019s work undone and made a mockery of!\u201d Eggman was about to wet himself. \u201cYou and I have one thing in common, Doctor; the person responsible for leaving our lives in tatters\u2026is you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo, go on! End the Roulette of Trust if you hate it so much!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026No. Here\u2019s 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. \u2026But that is in the past!\u201d Megatron charged up a shot from his left fusion cannon. \u201cSo, let it be known that if our resources were not critical, our numbers not low, and our troops not outgunned\u2026I would atomize you!\u201d He fired his shot into a pile of scrap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTh-Thank\u2026\u201d Eggman\u2019s thanks were interrupted by another bark from Megatron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDON\u2019T thank me! It\u2019s your own incompetence and poor judgement that\u2019s saved you today! Instead, Doctor, repay me! The all-consuming self-hatred you\u2019re 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!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Yes, Lord Megatron.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, 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\u2019d prefer to stave that off until the Autobots and Sonic are defeated. Agreed?\u201d Megatron held out a hand to offer a handshake. Eggman stared at the hand, then grinned before grabbing it. The two then shook hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI say, let the games begin!\u201d declared Eggman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI thought so!\u201d 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\u2019s beating. \u201cYou hear me, my Decepticons?!\u201d he called. \u201cVengeance 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!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cALL HAIL MEGATRON!\u201d cheered Thundercracker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cALL HAIL MEGATRON!\u201d Shockwave joined him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cALL HAIL MEGATRON!\u201d Frenzy, Rumble, and Ravage followed suit. Soon, all of Robotropolis was echoing with the phrase \u201cAll hail Megatron\u201d!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The pair flew through Robotropolis with Megatron firing at Eggman. \u201cLike the new look, Doctor? Wings become me, no?\u201d Eggman still kept trying to get away. Megatron kept up the pace. \u201cTell me, has flying always been this easy or are you just incompetent at that?\u201d Eggman fired missiles to try and deflect his tormentor. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1152,"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":[98,667],"tags":[146,337],"class_list":["post-4266","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles","category-transformers-mobian-chronicles-arc-17-living-stories","tag-sonic","tag-transformers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4266","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=4266"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4266\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4267,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4266\/revisions\/4267"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}