Jewel of the Primes

My name is Aurora Prime.

Yes. I said Prime. Believe me, you aren't insane, but after my story is told, you probably will be. However, in light of the circumstances I have decided, after some urging by my companions (and one very insistent sparkmate) that nevertheless I need to record my journey for future reference, in case one day soon my story ends…

But I won't dwell on that. For now, I have the time to write these very words, and pray to Primus that, even if I should die, you will read, and learn, and use that knowledge to save your world, which was the duty fate has charged us…and me.

Before I begin, there are a few things you should know. My history is long and very complicated, filled with things even I don't understand. I could write for millennia about everything I have been through, but there is not enough time, and there are some things no human could ever comprehend, things I could never translate into this language. So I must settle for a few confusing basic facts.

Firstly, the title of this narration is also my true title: Jewel of the Primes. On Cybertron, my ruined homeworld, each generation of sparklings born contained at least one special child, marked as a future Prime by Primus, for which we are named. These "destined children" would be raised by the current adult Primes and their companions and mentors, until as adults it would be their turn to make their mark on our planet. It has been this way since the first of our race rose from the shadows of nonexistence, farther back than time can measure.

My generation was a troubled time, for while our war was still many years away from breaking out, the leaders of Cybertron were starting to tear apart and away from each other and from their former choices, and rumors of the Fallen's part in it were rampant. Three Primes, foretold in astronomers' readings as all of us were, were born in the span of seven of our years. One was Megatron. Second, born five years later to the very same parents, was Optimus. And two years after that came me, Aurora, born to a weakened, lonely young femme on the outskirts of society. For those who don't know, female primes are extremely rare. In all of recorded history there have been four before me, millennia apart, and all have been extremely important. Pryma, the first, rose to reunite Cybertron when no other Primes had been born and disagreements over leadership started a war that would have destroyed us. Moriah gave her life as a sacrifice to Primus to save us from Unicron when her brethren insisted on fighting the planet-eater himself. Audra, who sparked the great Seven, kept the All-spark from the hands of otherworld invaders with her immense leadership and combat skills, thus establishing Cybertron as a universal power. And Kadira, born after the Fallen's betrayal, and his brothers' deaths on earth, banished her predecessor and reunited Cybertron after the loss of their leaders. And then there was me. My sparkmother, Acalia, died very shortly after I was born. The Primes took me to be raised with Megatron and Optimus. We became closer than friends, closer than comrades. Brothers and sister, three of the most powerful ever to be sparked, foretold to one day decide the outcome of our greatest War. And, in my case, to one day awaken with the power of Primus in my spark in the darkest hours, to save the lives of many…

We were young, I was 18, when the Fallen emerged, Megatron betrayed us, and I became Jewel of the Primes. War began to break out, the beginning of a battle that had been waiting to happen for centuries. Optimus, my closest friend, and I fought as Autobots. I chose him to be my sparkmate, something that had only happened twice—a Prime and Prime duo, making both of us stronger and intimately connected, and whatever sparklings we might have one day both immensely powerful. But that is another story, one that I will fully explain later.

Optimus and I became separated by Decepticons while we were desperately searching for the Allspark. The Fallen wanted me killed for my power; Megatron wanted me alive for the same reason; and I was driven across the galaxy by their forces, ending up on a small moon, alone except for my companion Ace, gravely injured. They believed me to be dead and so we were lost, from our pursuers but also our comrades. We stayed there, healing, until one day, my sparkmate managed to contact me and told me about how he was on Earth and about Megatron's demise. And so we traveled and we arrived to Earth. Having not seen my friends and my sparkmate in years, it was an immense relief to be with the team again, although the loss of Jazz and the need for secrecy darkened the occasion somewhat. Optimus and I were forced to explain who I was to the humans in charge, and keep me hidden extremely well to prevent my powerful signal being detected..

…Which is where my other secret comes in. Ratchet was studying human DNA to see how it might affect an Autobot, and I was helping him organize his materials. He slipped and I ran to grab the vial of concentrated DNA he dropped, but it spilled directly into my spark by accident, and made me .385% human.

I know what you're thinking, that that's ridiculous, and maybe it was once. But not anymore, not after what I've been through because of that one little vial and that one little slip. It shouldn't have affected me, but it did. It was extremely painful and nearly lethal the first time, but I transformed into a human. Now, maybe you know what a Pretender is—a Cybertronian (usually a Decepticon) who can either cast a very realistic illusion of being human, or is small enough to cover their bipedal mode in a human guise. I am not a Pretender. I have never been small—I'm taller than Ironhide—and my human mode is not an illusion. I am completely human from the inside and out, except for my brain activity, but I can transform at will into any of my original three shapes (bipedal, small jet, and golden 2011 Ford Mustang). In human form my signal is undetectable. I am human and yet not human. I walk both ways.

That's all well and good, huh? The downsides outweigh the benefits. The human taint in my spark weakened me greatly and left me more vulnerable in my normal form than before. Whatever happens to me as a human carries over to me as an Autobot. Obviously, this isn't the case with things like colds, where my other modes lack the organs needed, but if I get shot, or burned, or break an arm as a human, the injury stays with me when I transform. Since Optimus is my sparkmate, he, too, was affected by the DNA spill. It made our connection somewhat weaker. It used to be I could hear his thoughts from across the solar system. Now that ability is limited to a few hundred miles.

The real curse of being part-human is much more painful.

You see, a Prime child could be picked from the most mundane of creators and the humblest of backgrounds, like I was. Should a Prime and a normal Cybertronian happen to produce offspring, there is a somewhat greater, but not definite, chance that their child will also be Prime. But if two Primes have a child, their offspring is always Prime. As you can imagine, seeing as there have only been five female Primes in our entire history, this has only happened once, when Audra and her sparkmate produced my ancestors, the original Seven. You see where I am going, don't you? I am extremely valuable to either faction because not only am I still one of the most powerful of our race to exist, but I am a female Prime and any child I have with my sparkmate or his brother will also be Prime, and therefore could decide once and for all who wins our War.

Because of my value to the Autobots, Megatron, the very bot I once considered a dear friend and a companion as a child, is after my blood. I am still powerful, still a fighter, but I'm no match for an entire army of Decepticons. So Optimus begs me to stay in human form while the rest of our team fights for the lives of billions. That way I can't be tracked by Decepticons, and thus I'm much, much safer, hidden in plain sight, one of the crowd. The logic makes sense. The pain it causes doesn't.

I am an Autobot. I am a warrior for two planets. I love my comrades; we are a family, as motley and odd as we all are. And I love Optimus as well, dearly, with all my spark. Since before I was even born I was supposed to fight, to lead, to help decide the fate of two collided worlds. That's my destiny, not just as Jewel of the Primes but as an Autobot and a leader and a Cybertronian. I was not intended to hide as a human, weak and defenseless; while everyone I cherish fights and dies far away. Jazz and Optimus already gave their lives, and I was powerless. I wasn't even there. I felt my own sparkmate die an agonizing death while I was sitting on the couch, waiting for someone—anyone—to call and tell me if they were alright and relieve me of some of my fears. And I couldn't do anything. I know Optimus and the other Autobots want me safe and hidden because they care for me. They're not trying to hurt me, and I'm not trying to hurt them. But I am Aurora Prime. I am not supposed to cower, helpless and human, while my comrades die. I should be the one sacrificing myself.

Prime. The title is ancient, honored, respected. It has never been associated with cowards or with deserters or with people who stand by and let things lose control when they could have helped. Primes fight; they give their lives to save others. Primes sacrifice all that they can for what they believe in. Primes have always been warriors and leaders and upholders of the weak and the outnumbered. That has always been my destiny.

But enough on that now. You'll see what I am saying soon enough. You'll know. But for now, time is short and I must control myself, leave my background behind, and get on to the real story. My story. Before we begin, though, take heed of this warning, reader: the fate of billion may very well soon rest on your shoulders, just as it rests on mine. Take caution, and learn from me.

Till All Are One,

Aurora Prime

Author's Notes:

I apologize to you people who strictly adhere to the Cybertronian measure of time in your fanfics. But I found it just way too confusing to use. Also, I think it fits Aurora well, that she would refer to Cybertronian things in a more human way, seeing as she has a foot in both worlds. That being said, I'm not an expert on all things Transformers, so Aurora's not going to use a ton of technical terms. Oh, and I don't own Transformers. But my story is mine.