Usually, the junkyard was busy as the inhabitants responded to distress calls sent from Autobots or dealt with those desperate enough to visit them in person. He wasn't like the others. He wanted to rest, and await the arrival of a leader, any leader.
His team was lucky upon earthfall, easily finding vehicles to scan and use. Their luck almost ran out immediately, as humans began to sweep the area and found his team out. They scattered, hoping to find any group of Autobots who they could group up with. One had surrendered, but the others… his team were all slain. He had managed to find an area to hide, but not before he had a track blown off.
Then he came. A human, who managed to get him fixed. With him were two of the most unlikely Autobots, a former Decepticon and the well-known Hound, who was just as surprised to see him.
"Treadbolt, where are the others? Did the TRF beat us here?"
With a solemn nod, the buildbot confirmed Hound's fears.
"Dammit! That means Granite, Blacktop… guys we could use to get a ship and get off this mudball. Any survivors?"
It took a moment for Treadbolt to find his voice.
"One. He surrendered, after seeing Blacktop and Grimstone killed. Granite's alive, but I don't think he'll be with us soon."
Hound looked at the dead land they stood in. Then he sighed and put a hand on Treadbolt's shoulder.
"We'll free him some day. And any other Autobots who might be held captive."
The yellow Autobot looked at his saviors, and reverted back to the digging vehicle he scanned. Hound chuckled, before also changing to his wheels and rumbling forward. For a moment, Treadbolt was worried the about the Decepticon.
"It will be good to have a worker with us. Hound and Cade can only do so much when one of us is injured."
He was safe. To Treadbolt, that was all that mattered.
Time passed, and it was apparent that outside the quartet of Bumblebee, Hound, Crosshairs, and Drift few other Autobots were in the scrapyard. Somehow, the lost souls Grimlock and Slug joined them, alongside a salvage worker named Wheelie. As the others argued, Daytrader came and went, and Cade left with the others to try and save other Autobots, Treadbolt rested.
He would help with repairs when needed, but otherwise he simply rested in his vehicle mode. Until the female human came with an infiltrator named Sqweeks. That day, not only had a lost member of his team, Canopy, been confirmed as dead…
The Decepticons were coming. His rest interrupted, Treadbolt rose to join Hound in defending the scrapyard. As he saw Onslaught and Dreadbot bearing down on him, he knew his time was up.
Only Granite was left of the old team, and he doubted anyone would remember his passing.
"Treadbolt! Fall back and regroup with the others! I'll hold 'em off!"
Hound's arsenal wasn't enough. Treadbolt could delay them for a brief period of time.
He didn't show the pain as Onslaught and Dreadbot ripped him apart. He didn't yell out as Mohawk sliced open critical fuel lines. He did his duty of delaying them at the cost of his own life.
So he could be with his team once again.