Authors Note: hello there fellow Transformers Fans! I would like to introduce to you my very first story on Fan ! I am some what new to submitting my own writing on this site. However, I have been an avid reader of many great fictions here for years. Mainly in relation to the Transformers fandom! One of my absolute favorites is "Tinman" by Leah Wood aka Fire Redhead. If you have yet to read it I greatly recommend the story and its Audio over at AudioFanfic! I would also like to give Leah a big thanks for assisting me in my own as my Beta Reader and for feeding my bunnies hehe. ;)
On that note I like to explain to you a bit on what my story is about. The setting takes place in a very distant future of Cybertron where 3 great colonies made up of the decendants of the Autobots and Decepticon ancestors have returned to rebuild a destroyed and deserted Cybertron. Much of their history has been buried or destroyed all they know is that the wars have ended for some reason or another. They have rebuilt to a certain extent in a fragile peace but life is still tough. I so link my story to many classic G1 and comic references to tie it in with the past however it probably is best to look at this world as an original universe of the transformers based loosely around Generation 1 and comic book mythology.
The main character in my story is Lutrex, a young mech who later struggles to understand his purpose in life. Those of you who follow my artwork on Deviantart will know him by his nick name Laserbot. This story in its essence is his tale starting from the his very beginning, however through his optics you will come to know a cast of diverse original characters whos dynamics and intereactions with eachother you may relate to certian cannon characters quite easily. :)
There will be fluff, there will be drama, there will be action, and there will be mystery. It's now up to you if you like to stick around for the ride hehe. ;) I will also be posting up pictures and character sheets of these fan characters on my Deviantart account if any of you are interested in seeing what these fellas look like. I hope those who decided to give my story a chance do so enjoy! And I thank you for taking the time out of your day to read it! I sincerely look forward to your critic! ;)
The Saga of Luminosity
By
Rachel Macari
Edited By
Fire Redhead
Chapter 1 Dawn
A blazing comet streaks across the heavens, its destination unclear and its journey never-ending. Like countless times before it drifts by another celestial body, its inanimate form ablaze, unable to gaze upon the other's presence below.
If it were to see, it would have observed that this planet was unique from countless others. The planet's stark and uneven landscapes glimmering and reflecting the light of the comet's stellar passing. Its scarred surfaces covered in a metallic crust long ago destroyed and time and again rebuilt. The planet is ever-changing and transforming, much like the unique life forms that exist within its atmospheric embrace below.
The comet is only seen by a few as it passes the planet and continues on its journey. Its mindless, gaseous body unaware that the planet beneath possesses a name—Cybertron.
Under the black night sky, lights shimmer and dot the planet like fireflies. However the patterns of the glow seem to clump together, forming clusters and sections, suggesting that the planet's inhabitants are separated and captive to three great colonies. It is, however, on this night, that a few curious fireflies have ventured forth from their great cities, their trail marked by dimly glowing lights made feeble against the boundaries of neon brilliance.
It is apparent they are on a journey as they move down between giant chasms that would dwarf even Earth's Grand Canyon walls. Moving at a steady pace, growing ever brighter against the shrouded depths and the steadily shrinking horizon above, they travel deeper into the abyss. A deep rumbling stirs centuries old dust from its resting place and the signs of unpolished and scarred metal are revealed. The vibrations continue to grow in strength and volume as the lights flicker closer. The lights become shrouded from view for a brief moment as they round a corner following a trail along the cliffs walls.
Suddenly, they appear once more, brighter then ever and accompanied by the roar of machinery! The convoy is revealed out of the darkness of night. Mechanical vehicles roll across the narrow path of a cliff outcropping, the sounds of crunching debris from giant, armored treads echoing across the canyon walls. The lights from each unite, casting an eerie shadow easily three times as big as the behemoths themselves.
"Hey Tungsten! Did you see that!" The one possessing an angular form adorned with drills and saws calls out.
"See what lad?" the other responds with a hint of amusement, his larger frame working to stay steady as he climbs down a steep decline.
"That comet, up above... aw now it's gone! Well Did ya see it?!" the other replied with a hint of excitement in his vocalizer.
The other Mech seemed to be rather preoccupied as his treads dug into the ground below, leveled out, and cleared the steep decline.
"No I did not… For the last time, get your head outta the stars, Razorgear. You should be focused on where your rolling. These canyons aren't as forgiving as I." Tungsten replied with a huff of smoke from his two exhaust pipes.
"Aw, come on! I've told you Polyhex lights make it hard to see the stars. I wana see them while I still can!" The younger Razorgear exclaimed.
Suddenly the bladed mech surged forward, causing some of the metal scrap beneath his tires to shift and cause a scrap-slide that buried part of another mech just ahead of him.
"GAHH!! Look what you did now! That's exactly what Tungsten is talking about! Now I have to transform just to get outta this heap of scrap!" the mech covered in debris shouted.
"O… oops…" the younger mech replied sheepishly.
" 'OOPS' is all you can say! Nggh, get offa me!" the smaller mech shouted angrily in reply, his frame not as heavily armored as the other two.
There was the sound of shifting panels and two large thuds as a much larger mech at the very back of the line transformed and walked over to find out what the hold up was.
"Cool your circuits Repatch, I'll get you out. Kid, transform and do what the Doc says." the giant mech replied in a deep, gravelly baritone.
"I got it the first time Ironcrusher! Err, sorry Patch. I didn't mean to…" he trailed off as he got off of the pile that was covering the smaller mech.
With that, Ironcrusher began to clear the rubble, scooping it up in both his gigantic hands and removing it from Repatch.
" Ahh…thank you Ironcrusher." the smaller med bot transformed dusting off his frame.
After he was satisfied with clearing his frame of debris he turned on the younger, but much larger Razorgear.
"And as for you! You either listen to Tungsten or I'm not going to pick out those irritating sacramental shavings out of your circuitry next time they get caught in your drill! I mean, honestly! The guy is here to make sure we live through this pit of an excavation. At least follow what he says!" he ranted before transforming back into his vehicle mode and moving back into the line up.
"Cut the kid a break. You've all been slipping and sliding on the scrap metal for over one hundred breems now." a voice came from the air above.
"Hurmph! Easy for you to say Bladewing, you're not in it 'Mr. Pair of Wings'." Repatch argued.
"Enough all of you, please," the reply coming from the smallest mech of them all, following just behind Tungsten, "We're almost to the camp dig site. The sooner we get there the sooner we can rest our wheels. Primus, we'll need it come sunrise."
"Gearbox is right, we're almost there. No sense in stopping to bicker." Tungsten replied evenly, his temperament having not changed despite the exchange.
"Heh, yeah, he is the real processor of this outfit after all." Ironcrusher chuckled while transforming back into his own colossal alternate form and reattaching to the large trailer he had been pulling.
"Yeah I said I was sorry, geesh! Can we hurry it up already!? Wait… HEY! Iron what's that supposed to mean anyways?" Razorgear huffed annoyed.
"Hahaha!" Ironcrusher only laughed in reply, the sound accompanied by the crunch of metal and the others' sighs of disgruntlement as the group continued on its way.
…
Just as Gearbox had predicted, daylight had broken and the team was up from a short recharge making preparations for the excavation of that day.
"Uhhg remind me why I do this every solar cycle?" Repatch stretched his gears, each one creaking from the last cycle's travel.
"Because you care about us?" Ironcrusher smiled cheerfully.
"Don't flatter yourself. Hurmph, the creds are much more appealing." Repatch looked out to see the others readying equipment by the dig site.
"You remind me of someone I read about." Ironcrusher mused as he watched the glowing orb in the sky rise steadily, casting beams out over the metallic grey landscape and reflecting in random directions.
"You always relate mechs to those mythological mumbo jumbo stories that you read…" Repatch replied waving a hand to dismiss the other's comment.
"Heh! The funny thing is, his name started with an R just like yours and he was a great healer." Ironcrusher looked back down at the smaller mech from his towering view, "Perhaps you two are related somehow?"
"Aren't you supposed to be helping the others with preparations?" Repatch grumbled unamused he didn't known who Crusher was talking about.
Not that he really cared.
"Heh. Don't worry. The berths will seem softer as you get used to them." Ironcrusher replied, lightly patting Repatch on the back before walking off to meet with the others.
"Ouff! Bumbl'n glitch, how can he always be so positive?" Repatch grumbled to himself before stretching his gears one last time. "Welp, better get the med bay ready. Primus knows what they're gonna get themselves into this time!" Repatch thought to himself rolling his optics.
Ironcrusher made his way to the others. He observed Razorgear preparing their tools for the digging that day while, Tungsten was busy lifting heavy beams and scrap out of the entrance to the old Energon mine shaft. Last time they had been to this site they had discovered the mine while digging their own route. They had found it still relatively stable to use other than a few reinforcements at a few unstable points. From then on the group set up HQ at its entrance and utilized it as a launching point to dig out more tunnels in search of buried ancient citadels and artifacts.
"Oh There you are Ironcrusher. I've been looking for you."
Ironcrusher looked down to see Gearbox looking up at him holding a holo-data card in his smaller delicate hand.
"Good solar cycle Gearbox what is it you need me for?" Ironcrusher smiled looking down.
He was looking forward to getting back to duty. Gearbox optics took on a amused glint.
He smiled slightly, refreshed by Crush's positive demeanor, "Indeed! I have a good feeling about today Ironcrusher! I need you to take over for Tungsten in removing the barricades from the entrance so he can direct his efforts toward mixing some stronger bonding agents to stabilize the deeper tunnels."
"Huh I thought we sealed those tunnels up good last time?" Ironcrusher shrugged. "Heh. Ah well not a problem Gear. You know I like working my hydraulics in the morning heh!"
Ironcrusher gave a quick nod before walking off to go relieve Tungsten of the heavy-duty work. Gearbox looked back down at the data on the holo-disk as it displayed the data picked up by the underground scanners they had installed last time. It flickered and changed rapidly, Gearbox's quick processor comprehending and absorbing the information as it flew by in a blur.
"Ah, Cybertron, what new discoveries do you hold for us to find today?" Gearbox thought to himself.
It had been too long since he and the others had been able to get out to this excavation site. After their last excavation the group had returned only to find that they had been drafted into searching for Energon deposits in another scrap metal desert in the other hemisphere of the planet. Apparently, if they had the resources to go out and search for historic treasures they had the resources to mine Energon for the greater good of the Metrocon colony.
Though Gearbox understood the politics and the importance of the draft system set in place for recovering energy and other resources, it had come at a rather inconvenient time for them. They had been scheduled to return to this location around that timeframe and as a result were forced to push the date to a later time; despite the fact that they had been close to discovering something big.
Gearbox was suddenly startled from his thoughts as a beeping came from his hand held device. It beeped and displayed a red flashing warning in Cybertronian.
"Oh no…" Gearbox sighed in disgruntlement.
…
"This is sooo boring…" Razorgear sighed aloud, crossing his arms and leaning against the side of the now cleared entrance. "Are you done with the mixture yet Tungsten!" Razorgear grumbled, showing the extent of his patience.
"Not yet Kid the molecules haven't bonded to each other yet. That will take a few more clicks."
" Hurmph! The sooner you're done, the sooner we can get in there and start digging and constructing the last stretch to that cavern!"
"If the cavern is in fact a cavern. The interference from residual radiation can trick the scanners you know. It's better we take our time and play it safe instead of rushing in with our drills spinning." Tungsten replied as he sat in his alt form.
His systems were working on the bonding mixture within the tanks on his back.
"Yeah, not to mention there's volatile, raw Energon crystals down there. You don't want to accidentally tunnel into one of those deposits and cave the whole place in." Ironcrusher chipped in.
"Unfortunately, that may have already happened." Gearbox walked up to the others overhearing their conversation.
"What has happened?" Tungsten sounded concerned.
"The scanners read that there has been some displacement in the crust. The tunnels and most likely a few of the caverns we plotted before have collapsed." Gearbox explained.
Razorgear stood up, "What! But how? Last time all our readings said this place was stable! Energon crystals or not, there was nothing down there to set them off!"
"That's true. However, the strange thing is that the readings indicate that there are no longer any Energon crystals within a mile of this region. It's like they all suddenly disappeared." Gearbox rambled on confused and intrigued by the new information, despite being concerned about the overall situation.
"It's not like we could have used that energy source. It's too unstable to harvest with current technology. But it's concerning that it would all suddenly disappear out of nowhere." Gearbox replied as he clicked and went through data on the disks screen.
"Isn't that a good thing though? Now we can dig without worrying about running into those crystals and the interference to our scanners should be gone." Ironcrusher Assessed.
"You would think so… but there is some sort of field hampering the scanners. In fact, it's fluctuated. It's different than the radiation before. Gearbox answered looking back up to the others, "As far as the crystals being gone, that's actually the cause for the problem."
"The layers that make up Cybertron's crust are unstable in this region now. With so much of its structure gone it's more prone to quakes. It seems that our tunnels have held back most of the collapse though…at least for the time being, which is a good sign. That is thanks to Tungsten's bonding agents and Razorgear's engineering." Gearbox explained.
"Hah! That just goes to show the quality of my work!" Razorgear rubbed his nose smugly.
Tungsten remained quiet in his alternate mode, the others couldn't see the roll of his optics.
"So what should we do now?" Ironcrusher looked to Gearbox.
"The evidence I have recovered from previous missions suggests this site was a major historic landmark; highly important during Cybertrons past." Gearbox paused. "Though, under the circumstances, I would suggest for all your safety we leave this site and move on. The risks are rather high." Gearbox sighed giving in to the inevitable.
Tungsten transformed looking to the others, "Humph, I would hate to see such a rich resource go to waste… wouldn't you all agree?"
"Yeah! I mean, we came all this way and I still want to study the structures the ancients made. It's not like I need to, I'm just curious." Razorgear stated in agreement.
"It would be a shame to have come this far and give up now." Ironcrusher commented.
"Yeah, that, and my bonding agents are finished mixing so I have to use them on something." Tungsten crossed his arms and walked over to Gearbox putting a hand on his shoulder. "What about you Boss? You're not going to give up yet are you? We can't do this without that processor of yours."
Gearbox looked to each of them, pleasantly surprised by their unanimous agreement to keep going despite the risks, "No…no! If you're all willing to take that risk so am I! Statistics be slagged."
Gearbox chuckled a little at his attempt to speak the other gruff bot's term. He wasn't much for speaking slang. The others laughed in response and headed for the tunnel's entrance. Transforming they all began to roll forward into the tunnel.
"Wait I need to come with you this time!" Gearbox exclaimed causing the others to stop in their tracks.
"What do you mean? You can't go down there. It's still too dangerous for you to accompany us!" Tungsten exclaimed, his normal demeanor shocked into outburst from the absurdity of Gearbox's request.
Gearbox's response was to transform and pull up behind him.
"Yeah, no offense Gear, but you aren't built for this." Razorgear uttered.
"Normally you don't come down till the site has been stabilized. Why are you changing the procedure?" Ironcrusher commented more confused than upset.
"Several of the scanners have been damaged and need to be recovered and repaired in the incomplete tunnel to the underground citadel. I'm the only one besides Repatch who can repair and reset them for you onsite." Gearbox replied evenly.
"Why don't you just let us recover them and bring them back up to a more stable area for Repatch to fix? Then we can relocate them below." Ironcrusher paused "Not to mention you could just talk us through it too." Ironcrusher reasoned.
"I thought of that too Ironcrusher. The problem is this new interference is making it hard to even pick up the data from the scanners on my receiver. I wouldn't be able to tell you how to fix them. I must inspect them. I also suspect our communicators would not function clearly at such depths, as they would be fully enveloped in the energy fluctuations coming from that area."
"Oh… I see…" Ironcrusher replied understanding.
Razorgear laughed, "Besides, Primus knows Repatch never set foot down there. He's totally claustrophobic, not to mention if he knew what we were doing he'd wrench us all good."
"No, he's right. They are our markers. If we move them we could slag everything up. Without their signals we risk getting lost down there. Not to mention we'll be digging blind without any clue as to what materials or chasms lay beyond that point. Our sensors can't extend as far without the boost from their signals. And with the cave-ins we have even less of them to rely on." Tungsten grumbled despite not wanting to agree with risking the smaller, lighter framed mech.
Gearbox revved his engine a bit and did a systems check, as they began to travel down into the tunnel entrance. It had been a while since he had driven underground and he wanted to be ready for anything.
"It would be better for me to accompany you all down. The signals from the scanners will be stronger as we near them. My receiver can locate them faster then if you were all to search with your own receptors.. AH Ouf!" Gearbox explained but suddenly hit a particularly steep bump and skidded forward bumping into the back of Tungsten.
"Be careful Boss, it's steep. Break with your back wheels to avoid flipping over." Tungsten stated always looking out for the others.
"Th-thank you Tungsten I'll take that advice." Gearbox sighed just glad that the larger mech had been there to break his tumble.
Perhaps this wasn't such a good idea after all?
To Be Continued…