Disclaimer: I do not own the Transformers! This is a sequel to my other story, Antarctica, as previously stated. Review please!
A figure stood at the prow of the ship, as he had done for most of their journey, its visor blank as it stared off into space.
It looked detached from the world around it, in waking recharge even. The hazy expression on its face showed nothing, but seemed to radiate sadness and grief. Some would call it downright insane, as it appeared to be in a state of emptiness.
However, beneath that emotionless visor, a mind was working. A processor was furiously thinking and calculating, reminiscing on the past, concentrating on the present, and planning the future.
The figure's fingers curled slightly, subconsciously forming fists.
After their funeral on Cybertron, they had taken off again. It had been spark-shattering to see their cold, lifeless shells lying on those slabs of grey metal, being taken down into the burial chamber where they would rest forever. The citizens of Cybertron had also taken a heavy blow- although most of them had never known any of the recently deceased bots, the fact and knowledge that Decepticons were still existent in the universe, and that they were capable of such acts of cruelty, was enough to put any Autobot on high alert.
They were now soaring through the Milky Way. Tears ran down the lone figure's face, trickling down from under its visor, as the sight of the beautiful galaxy registered with its optic sensors, reminding it of the friendship they had once shared, crushed by the sentiment it now felt. Unable to control its emotions anymore, the statue broke down crying, retracting its visor to allow the tears to fall freely. Surrounded by the emptiness of the universe, it stood mourning its loss, finding nothing but memories in the radiant stars and planets surrounding it.
Revenge.
The voice came unexpectedly, and as softly as the morning dew. Yet it was as clear as daylight, and the figure froze as it rang out.
It froze, and slowly, a smirk spread its way across his face.
It ran through the ship, hopping into an escape pod and setting course for Earth.
Bumblebee stretched his arms upwards, reaching up high and then letting them drop to his sides as he studied the metallic landscape around him. The shiny steel and crystals sent a strange feeling tingling through his frame. For once, the cheerful joyrider felt the desire for quiet, for the silence required to properly enjoy the feeling, to let the sensations come and go.
As he stepped forwards, passing a crystal, Bumblebee brushed his arm alongside it, feeling the smoothness of its surface. He observed the fascinating way the light passed through the transparent material, casting a gentle glow over the surrounding area.
Then, a rush of what humans would call adrenaline surged through his frame. Bumblebee answered his sudden need for a thrill, grinning as he transformed and took off, tearing around the seemingly never ending landscape. He zoomed up a crystal, flipped in mid-air, and thudded back down to the ground, feeling the wind.
Prowl groaned, shaking his helm to rid himself of the minor processor ache he still felt. Focusing his vision, the cyberninja found himself sitting cross-legged on the ground, a steely metal world around him.
So this was the Well of the Allspark.
Prowl had known he'd offline soon, and had felt himself go. But this was awfully confusing…
Then, a cloud of warmth and energy that seemed almost ethereal washed over him. It was a feeling like nothing he'd experienced before, and he sought an answer to his questions.
Prowl offlined his optics, entering the state of deep meditation known as processor over matter, and gasped at what he saw.
The Allspark's energy surrounded him, giving him the warmth and support he'd known he'd feel someday, after the iciness of life.
He was offline, and with Primus in the Allspark.
Prowl kept his optics offline, indulging himself in the feeling, never wanting to let go, even though he knew he'd have infinite opportunities to experience it again in the future. He simply hadn't had the chance to feel freedom and peace for so long…
Another being was near him. Prowl could sense its presence, and reluctantly brought himself back to the present.
Yoketron himself stood before him, looking as patient and capable as ever. Prowl stood up, pleasantly surprised.
Yoketron smiled at his apprentice, who found himself sharing a pleased expression too. Nobody said a word, until Prowl broke the silence.
"Master," he slowly said, holding Yoketron's gaze.
"You were right. Thank you."
Ratchet stepped into a silver landscape, with red crystals scattered around. He gazed at each crystal individually, before expanding his point of focus to all his surroundings, not used to the sudden peaceful sensation that waved through him.
The feeling he hadn't felt for stellar cycles.
The feeling of youth, the feeling of the wind.
The feeling of freedom.
Ratchet smiled, his intense blue optics glowing with pride and the overpowering prospect of eventual freedom.
The sheen of the smooth metal floor reflected in his eyes.
Bulkhead observed the silver of the ground, reaching out a digit and gliding it across the surface, feeling its texture, studying its every aspect. The more he stared at the seemingly meaningless, plain metal, the more he found beauty in it. Bulkhead traced his digit over a crack, feeling the sharp edge.
He knew this was exactly where he wanted to be.
Optimus stepped into a field of blinding white light.
It wasn't uncomfortable, and nothing hurt, at least. There was a lofty feeling buzzing around him, like he was being elevated. He could also feel a warmth about, that felt quiet comfortable and soothing, and the Prime allowed himself to be lost in the moment, savouring the sensations.
Soon, the light mostly faded away, into a steely metal environment. The warmth he had experienced on his journey remained, now joined by the feelings of purity, and freedom. It was all clear now. He was finally one with the Allspark.
The same light that had escorted him here lingered around, lighting the area, causing the scattered scarlet crystals extending from the metal to cast a crimson glow all around. Meanwhile, the metallic ground itself seemed to shine, creating a dazzling scene to entreat one's optics to.
"Optimus!"
Bumblebee. His loyal scout and teammate, famous for his playful pranks and antics, but also his incredible speed and endless determination.
Four figures appeared beside the Prime, showing themselves to be the other members of Team Teletraan. Optimus turned to them, fond memories flickering across his mind as his gaze swept across each of them in turn.
Bulkhead stood as caring and observant as usual, taking in all his surroundings. That was one thing among many that everyone liked about the big green mech. He loved nature and all living and non-living things as much as Prowl did, possibly even more so.
Prowl stood towards the back of the small group, quiet and mysterious as usual. However, it seemed that a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders. The cyberninja certainly looked happier, and positively carefree. That was unusual, but a change for the good. Prowl had certainly learnt a few details about teamwork and friendship in his relatively short time with the rest of the team.
There was Ratchet, looking exactly the same as usual physically, even the grumpy expression on his face. But something had definitely changed about him. Prime couldn't quite pinpoint just what it was, but Ratchet now appeared as ready to embrace freedom as the youngsters.
As Optimus looked over each member of his team, a smile spread its way across his face.
Nobody said anything.
They were together.
They were reunited.
They were content.
Starscream transformed and landed, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips as he entered the Decepticon base, his wings held high.
"It's done, and dusted!" he announced proudly, his steps echoing through the empty cavern.
"Thanks to my superior intelligence and ability, those scraps of Autoscum will offline at the cruel hands of Mother Nature!"
The Constructicons winced as Starscream's screechy voice rang out through the Decepticon base.
"What's a Mother Nature?" asked Scrapper.
Mixmaster shrugged. "No idea. He lost me at 'intelligence.'"
Starscream face-palmed and walked away, muttering something along the lines of "If that's all I get for doing Megatron's bidding…"
"Well, we're finally free," stated Ratchet, finally ending the comfortable silence.
The team had continued walking in the direction Optimus had originally been heading, sharing a feeling of quiet unity and peace. Bumblebee wore a silent smile on his face, and Bulkhead occasionally stopped to study the crystals as they ambled past them.
Optimus observed all of his team again at Ratchet's statement, musing at Bulkhead's curiosity, Ratchet's sudden shine and Bumblebee's newfound sense of calm, before his optics settled on Prowl. The ninja-bot was quiet as always, but clearly content. Optimus let his mind flicker back to the present moment.
A deep, yet soothingly gentle voice, then called out. It whispered, in a way that was seemingly swept along by the soft breeze, that this was the Well of the Allspark.
Team Teletraan gazed into each other's optics, hearing the voice as clearly as daylight. Their shoulders slightly brushed against each other's, as they felt, and shared, the emotion of beauty and finality coursing through their sparks.
The feeling eventually ebbed away, leaving the Autobots standing harmonised, almost transfixed, in the shiny metal terrain.
"So, we're all happy now," Prime finally observed, the wind gently blowing against his servos.
Prowl gazed quietly in the direction of Earth, and finally spoke up.
"Not everyone."
Jazz pulled himself up a particularly seamless rock, and climbed on top of the hill the Decepticon base was formed in. After spending the last ten minutes scaling the hill while avoiding detection, the cyberninja wasn't as excited as he was a while ago about the prospect of a fight, but his thirst for revenge remained.
Jazz silently slipped through a hole in the roof and clung to it, watching the area below him for any sign of a trap or Decepticon, as it seemed deserted- save Lugnut sitting in a corner. Jazz quickly knocked him out with a precisely aimed throwing star, which cut into his processor and stuck there, rendering him unconscious without a sound.
He wasn't sure who had killed his comrades, but logic soon narrowed it down to a certain warlord. Common sense ruled out Blitzwing. Nobody wanted a jet carrying cargo to randomly switch into a tank in mid-air.
Lugnut would be too slow, and too short-tempered. Any negative comment about Megatron would set him off in a rage, clouding his (already somewhat lacking) judgement and probably letting the Autobots find a way out.
The Starscream clones were untrustworthy, particularly the femme one, who seemed to possess Starscream's cunning, as well as his treachery. The others were no good for a task either, as Skywarp, Thundercracker, Sunstorm and Ramjet were too cowardly, egotistical, subservient and deceptively confusing, respectively. And Starscream himself was no loyal subject, either.
Therefore, Megatron was the obvious suspect. Chances were he hadn't actually dumped the Autobots in Antarctica himself, but instead sent someone else to do it.
It was still his fault.
Jazz climbed along the roof, creeping like a spider, until he reached a section of wall that was situated directly above a door. Taking out a thin knife he sometimes took on dangerous missions like this one, he cut a hole in the wall as quietly as possible, and slipped through the hole.
Below him, Megatron sat at a table, reading a data pad. Just the sight of the Decepticon leader was enough to make Jazz tremble with silent rage, but it was the fact that Megatron was smirking at something that threatened to force him to lose him temper. Jazz forced his fury back down. The last thing he needed right now was anger blinding him.
Jazz snarled silently, plotting a plan.
Yoketron stood on the edge of a metal cliff, watching his ex-apprentice.
"Jazz… I should've told you. I should've told you to never sacrifice a piece of the future to balance the past."
His voice echoed around the valley beneath him, ricocheting off the edges and rising up into the air.
Never sacrifice a piece of the future to balance the past.
Jazz dropped down silently behind Megatron, grabbing his laser nunchaku. He'd finish him, once and for all. He'd avenge his comrades.
That, he had vowed.
As Jazz took a step closer, however, the warlord casually tossed his data pad backwards, hitting him on the helm with a loud clang.
Megatron spun around.
"Cyberninja," he growled, and grabbed Jazz while the latter was still off-balance. Locking his servos in a pair of stasis cuffs, Megatron smirked as Jazz collapsed to the ground.
"So much for quiet," he taunted.
Jazz groaned as he temporarily offlined, defeat and self-fury coursing through his mind.
Jazz's visor slowly lit up as his processor booted up. The whistling of the air blowing against his entire frame was slightly annoying, as it caused his audio receptors to fill with static.
Air?
Jazz's vision immediately focused, and he promptly realised that he was dangling from a chain. Looking down with some difficulty, he found his servos locked in stasis cuffs.
Oh, great.
The cyberninja dangled from his chains for a while, furiously thinking. He had to figure out where he was. He had to figure out how to escape.
He had to figure out how to kill Megatron and get his revenge.
He struggled to raise his helm, and managed to catch a glimpse of a pair of twin propellers.
That meant that Megatron was taking him somewhere. It wasn't good, but at least he knew where he was now.
Why was it getting colder?
Jazz suddenly developed a very bad feeling about where he was headed. He froze for a very long second, as he remembered how his friends had offlined, and his rage caught up with him again. Jazz bit his lip, and entered a sequence of Processor over Matter, attempting to unlock the stasis cuffs. It was difficult to concentrate. He could feel the air getting colder by the second, and the swaying motion of Megatron's flight certainly wasn't helping. The conditions were challenging, but vengeance was on his side. Jazz focused through the motion and soon, a click sounded.
Beneath his visor, Jazz onlined his optics, grabbing hold of the chain and beginning his climb up. Megatron had clearly noticed his awakening, and swerved, swinging the cyberninja around, forcing him to cling on and slowly struggle up the chain.
The cold air was already immobilising his joints. He knew that he would freeze before Megatron, and flyers had much better temperature regulators due to their regular hours in up in the cold of the sky. He'd have to do this quickly. Jazz was about to reach for his spare nunchaku when Megatron suddenly dived down, soaring over a field of white. The cyberninja hurriedly replaced his weapon and clung onto the metal chain, feeling the wind fiercely hammer down on his frame as Megatron swooped down lower and released his hook on the chain.
As the Decepticon warlord began to gain height again, Jazz didn't waste a second in springing up and activating his jet pack, not caring that it was frozen. It would cause him a lot of pain later, but it was his only chance to accomplish what he had set out to do.
A clang sounded as Jazz grabbed onto Megatron, taking him down with him as his jet pack spluttered and died. Megatron growled, transforming in mid-air. His servos switched into guns, and bullets of energy were soon sent whizzing towards Jazz, who dodged them the best he could- moving while falling to the ground was not one of his specialities. Pain was shooting up his side from his ruined jet pack engine, but he didn't have time to ponder the thought as both cyberninja and warlord landed face-first in the snow.
Jazz, being lighter, was the first to recover. He jumped up and took out his spare nunchaku, ducking as Megatron emerged from a Decepticon-shaped hole and began shooting at him again. A bullet clipped Jazz's left arm, but the cyberninja ignored the pain, dodging Megatron's shots until the warrior transformed and attempted to take off.
For a moment, Jazz's hope slipped away.
The next, he was up and at it again, gripping onto Megatron's frame, forcefully ripping his propellers off and disabling his flight. A small part of Jazz's processor was aware that he wouldn't be able to get back home either, but the majority was pleased that at least the Decepticon would perish with him now.
His servos were half destroyed, splattered with his own energon from the spinning of Megatron's propeller blades. It didn't matter- it wouldn't greatly hinder his ability to fight. The duellers crashed into the snow in a heap, and were instantly attacking each other again, Megatron drawing his swords and Jazz taking out his nunchaku.
Jazz lashed out at the warlord, who deflected most of the attack with one sword, but still staggered back a bit. Simultaneously, he reached out with his other blade and cut a deep gash in the cyberninja's arm, adding a punch and knocking him over.
Jazz recovered quickly and struck out again, missing deliberately and sending a snowdrift cascading down onto Megatron. Part of him wanted to stop fighting. What was the point? His friends were dead, he would die, and Megatron would go down with him.
In the brief moment of respite when the Decepticon warrior was buried deep under the snow, a realisation struck Jazz like the cutting edge of an axe.
Coincidence or not, this was the exact spot where his friends had offlined.
The fact sent Jazz falling harder and faster than any bullet or blade, and his resolve hardened accordingly.
The cyberninja waited for Megatron to emerge from the snow, watching intently. As soon as the warlord stepped free, he lashed out, blinding him temporarily with a kick to the optics before knocking him back with his nunchaku. Megatron growled, slashing out at Jazz with both his swords. Jazz blocked one of his blows, but the other clipped his shoulder. With another punch, Megatron sent him flying and falling to the ground.
As he lay there, dazily watching Megatron approach, Jazz realised that he couldn't win.
He also knew that he couldn't run away. It was the most he could do to fight- he owed that much to Team Teletraan.
Jazz disabled his pain sensors, and jumped up at his attacker, setting his fuel exertion to maximum. He slashed at his optics unexpectedly, forcing him back as he continued striking out, blinding his opponent.
Jazz laid him optics on the energon leaking from the Decepticon warlord in half a dozen different places. It somehow served to encourage him.
As Megatron was still off balance, Jazz lashed out again, sending him staggering and falling back into the snowdrift without a sound. He had clearly also deactivated his pain sensors, knowing there was no hope that Starscream or any other Decepticon would come to his rescue. Not since Lugnut had been temporarily deactivated.
Jazz stood over him, taking one of his swords. He raised the sword above his helm, preparing to finish his enemy.
"Got anything to say?" he growled, forcing the words out of his vocaliser.
Megatron just glared at him, and suddenly pierced him through the tank with his other sword.
Unable to feel the pain, Jazz forced his body to continue. He struck a series of blows at Megatron, who, being the more experienced swordsmech, deflected all of them. Jazz was soon to busy defending to care about attack. Finally, out of simple chance, he managed to slice Megatron's arm cleanly off.
Megatron roared, despite not being able to feel pain, and activated his thrusters, taking off into the sky in robot mode, wobbling. There was no chance of leaving Antarctica before his thrusters died from the cold, but anything was worth it to get away from that wretched cyberninja for a few moments.
Jazz, on the ground, scowled and forced his jet pack into action. There wouldn't be more than a minute left in them, damaged and cold the way they were. He took off in a cloud of dark smoke, using his heat sensors to find Megatron. Now, all he had to do was catch him.
Jazz knew that his jet pack was consuming his low energon supplies way too quickly, but he didn't care. He activated his auxiliary tank, and rocketed after Megatron, grabbing him as his jet pack finally coughed, spluttered and died- and this time, there was no chance of getting it back.
The pair wrestled as they fell back to the snowy ground. Megatron landed on top of his opponent, and stood up, preparing to plunge his sword home. Jazz rolled over just in time, and jumped up, pouncing on Megatron without thinking. He tackled him to the ground, discarding the sword, and tore his optics out. Megatron growled and struck out with his remaining sword. Jazz took the blow, but grabbed the sabre, and sliced both of Megatron's legs off. He watched the furious remains of Megatron's optics flicker, before offlining, his systems giving way.
A smile etched itself on Jazz's features.
"Now I'm ready."
"Jazz!"
Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Ratchet and Optimus caught up with Jazz, who turned around, tears of joy clouding his vision as he saw his comrades.
"Hey, I kicked Megsy's aft for you," he informed them.
Bumblebee gazed up at Jazz's visored optics.
"Jazz… you didn't have to."
The rest of Team Teletraan stood silent, watching the exchange.
The cyberninja smiled, surveying his surroundings.
"Fancy place," he commented. "Anyways, about what you said…"
Jazz let the smile recede, leaving a light expression on his face.
"I'm happy- I'm content now, knowing that Megatron's dead. It had- someone had to do it."
As the team continued watching him, Jazz turned and let a grin slip onto his features.
"Always did want to go out in style."
Briefly noticing the appearance of Jazz a distance away, the silver mech sighed to himself and walked forwards, unsure about where he was going. This place was... nice, to put it simply. He couldn't conjure another word for it. There was a sense of peace that he could barely remember. How along ago had it been since he last felt peace?
Megatron turned and watched the Autobots reuniting. He felt an impulse to run over to them, to share in the joy, but it didn't seem right, somehow. They were Autobots- he was a Decepticon...
The feeling of peace intensified, and Megatron realised.
There were no factions anymore. There was no war anymore. That was what the Well of the Allspark was about. Peace and unity forever.
Hesitantly, the ex-warlord stepped towards the group of Autobots, who turned to him.
The black and gold cyberninja- Prowl- looked somewhat philosophical as he studied Megatron's appearance and expression. He seemed content to remain silent and take in his surroundings.
The scout, Bumblebee, was just as hesitant as he was. Ratchet the medic shared his apprehension, probably thinking about something that happened in the past.
Bulkhead looked more interested in the crystals around him than in the silver mech, but he was smiling.
The other cycberninja, Jazz, the one he'd duelled with to their deaths, seemed to not know what to think. The uncomfortable air around him gave off the impression that he wanted to end their quarrel, but was uncertain if he would agree.
Megatron internally sighed.
"I'm sorry," he said.
Bumblebee gasped out loud in surprise, to be shushed by Prowl clamping a servo over his mouth, smiling.
Jazz took a step back, as if he didn't believe what he's just heard.
"I'm sorry," Megatron said again. "For..."
"It's okay, I understand," Jazz said, regaining his composure and moving forwards again. "It's okay now."
Optimus put a hand on the cyberninja's shoulder.
"Uh, Optimus. I have apologies for you too-"
"No need, Megatron. There's no need."
"Okay. But you know, Optimus, I'm wondering- do I really deserve to be here?"
Optimus looked surprised for a moment, but Jazz nodded in agreement.
"Yeah- I'm having the same thoughts. I never wanted to kill you, or hurt you that much. It was just..."
"You're not as bad as me, Jazz, I offlined all those Autobots..."
Suddenly, they all had their arms around each other, torn between laughing and crying, as thousands of years of walls were broken down and replaced with bonds of trust and friendship. It felt good to speak out about their pains and worries, to let someone else know and offer comfort.
"You are all my children," came a voice. The group of Cybertronians looked up and sighted a robot-shaped nebula in the universe around them.
"P-Primus?" blurted Bumblebee.
The Creator smiled.
"You are all my children, and share an equal right for peace. You have all achieved as much as you needed to, and more. You have all done the world deeds for the greater good. No matter what path you chose, you deserve everything you will recieve."
Two cyberninja were sitting on top of one of the taller crystals, observing the view from their vantage point. The gentle breeze blew at their faces, offering a form of calm freedom.
Prowl turned to Jazz, simply gazing at the older mech, the same smile that had adorned his face as he's offlined lingering around his features once more. Jazz, sensing his shift in focus, turned and returned the smile, not saying a word.
They locked their optics together, both of them reminiscing their past, reliving their moments with each other.
Finally, Prowl broke the optical contact, sighing as he gazed over the horizon line.
They were at peace once again.