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Was the war really over scarce resources, or something else entirely? Did he know? Did anyone? The lines had been blurred and crossed so often that it was hard to tell anymore. What had started out as a simple matter of rationing supplies had turned into a full out battle for control that literally ripped their home planet in half.
It began, he supposed, when he was sparked by his creators—perhaps a mistake on their behalf?—and the two had come into the world facing each other. Perhaps, his creators had thought, that he and his brother would be close—fulfilling their directives together—and for a long time, they had, despite he and Optimus' differences. Megatron had long considered him his better half—his anchor. Where he was cross and bitter—tougher than the strongest metal—Optimus was gentle and understanding, nothing more than a feather-light touch.
However, as anyone quickly learns, good things never do last—and they aren't meant to, he thought—and they began to grow apart. This would have been considered normal on Cybertron, as all living organisms must become independent one day—and it disgusted Megatron to remember just how dependent he was on his brother when they were younger—but it was not something that had had happened gradually. Something had wrenched them apart from the inside, some internal glitch, and he had become a radical—wanting nothing more than to do things his way. He no longer wanted to listen to reason, why he should treat all creatures with the same respect he would his own kind, that they were the superior ones, but Optimus did not agree—and why should he have?—he was programmed differently. Maybe Megatron had meant to be programmed like his opposite—free of flaws, free of anger and hate—or maybe his creator just had a warped sense of humor, he wasn't sure. Whether it was a glitch or intentional, he was sure that they had not expected his programming to cause a full-out war.
When he had started to become selfish in his uses of resources and Energon, hoarding it for himself, Optimus had originally turned a blind eye. It was in his nature to avoid confrontation, and when Cybertronians began to gain independence for themselves—feeling their way around as they separated themselves from their "brothers"—it was normal for individuals to experience things that were not normally accepted in Cybertronian society, such as greed, power, and anger. It was, in a sense, an encouraged learning process (and it made Megatron wonder, did Optimus make the same mistakes as he in his youth? Surely his brother wasn't perfect?). But when the Energon stores had begun to be used as a bartering item for weapons and mass power, Optimus had finally started to notice something was wrong. However, Megatron was in far too deeply—too consumed with his conquest of ultimate power—that there was nothing he could do. The link in the chain that had held them together — bonded them strongly towards one another — had finally snapped and he was his own. He had grown weary of his horrible dependence, wanting to make something of himself—to prove his own worth—and yet, even now, he felt some remorse that he was no longer close to his only kin. However, most that remorse had been smothered in utter loathing, almost wishing that Optimus had recognized the problem sooner, that he should have pulled him away from this path before he had traveled down it too deeply.
And thus began the splitting of Cybertron.
Megatron was a skilled speaker—he was not a stupid mech by any means—and had no problems using his sharp tongue to rally those with similar interests and morals around him. Those who had joined the Decepticon cause were normally those who had just released themselves from those that were created with them. The first of these warriors was Starscream, a rather loud and obnoxious scientist who had just broken free from his two brothers. Under normal circumstances, Megatron would have hated him (and his own way, still did), but unlike the others, he had seen a small fire burning within the seeker—a spark of rebellion against society (and if only I had known how far that rebellion would extend, he thought bitterly)—and had taken him under his wing. The jet had immediately set to work, seeking improvement under his new master, and it quickly became apparent that Starscream was not as stupid as he looked; quite the opposite actually. In the beginning, he seemed to aim to please, and Megatron could tell he took great pride in his accomplishments, and while not humbled, was enthusiastic about pushing himself to his limit after receiving his master's praise. However, while Starscream had detached himself from the others, it was obvious that the rest of his trine had not, following him almost loyally into the Decepticon cause (it wasn't until much later, after the two factions of the planet had been well-established, that Thundercracker and Skywarp would begin to form their own independence). Perhaps it was because Starscream knew he could lord over his brothers with little protest from them that began his chain of traitorous actions against Megatron, but no matter what the reason, others continued to rally around the cause, with Soundwave soon following (though what his reasoning was or why he was absolutely loyal to the Decepticons still remained a mystery).
As the vorns passed, however, Megatron began to become withdrawn and overbearing, his original cause starting to become lost. The war wasn't just over resources, as others had thought, but over personal differences—ones that his subordinates were incapable of understanding, or perhaps they just didn't care. And now it strikes him each time he is on the battlefield, locked in combat with his brother, that there really is only just one who understands him—one shred of hope—that maybe, just maybe, he could return to what he once was.
Author's Note: Same old, same old. Originally written for the holiday exchange on the tfic_contest community on LJ. Constructive criticism is much appreciated.