Ironhide walked back to the barracks, ready to put a long day behind him. They'd faced another battle in a war that seemed unending. Death, destruction, sorrow. He pushed it from his mind. But if things went according to plan, it might soon end.

Hope. An emotion he hadn't felt in a very long time. He stopped, offlining his optics.

"Sleeping where you stand? You can't be that tired, Ironhide."

Ironhide's optics snapped online. He was getting sloppy indeed if he wasn't able to hear this particular mech sneak up on him. But then again, after years of familiarity, this one out of them all probably knew how best to get by his defenses.

"What do you want?" Ironhide said, seeing who it was. "I already told you my answer."

Ultra Magnus stepped from the shadows.

"I just thought. . ."

"That maybe I changed my mind?"

"Ironhide, I need you with me on this," Magnus said. "Your loyalty is commendable, but you have a duty. . ."

"My loyalty is to Prime and I know my duty," Ironhide said. "And it seems it must fall to me to remind you of yours."

"My duty is to Cybertron," Magnus said, walking away.

-----

The next morning, Ironhide saw Hound and Mirage walking across the square. That was. . .interesting. He hurried to catch up with them.

"What are you two doing here?" he asked.

"We got bumped at the last minute," Hound said. "Magnus gave us a couple of days off. We're just going to drink to the suckers on the team that replaced us."

"Why?" Ironhide asked.

"Didn't you know? Rumor has it the mission is a one-way trip."

-----

Ironhide didn't knock. He let himself in. He found Ultra Magnus staring out the window.

"Did you change your mind?" Ironhide asked.

"No," Magnus said. He didn't turn around.

"Who replaced you? And why? Was it High Command?"

"Again, no."

"Then who? The Council?"

Ultra Magnus finally turned to look at him. "No. I was replaced by someone whose loyalty was unquestioned."

"What do you mean?" Ironhide asked, confused.

"I can't talk about this now," Magnus said. "And I want you to leave."

-----

Several days passed, and it was business as usual for Ironhide. Yet something was missing. He tried to ignore it, but how could he ignore the absence of someone who was a part of his life for so long? He and Ultra Magnus weren't bonded, but they had an understanding between them. They'd had disagreements before, but nothing like the row leading to their current situation.

They'd never gone so long without even talking, but this time, it felt final. Like there was no fixing it.

If it ended that way, Ironhide could accept it.

And here he was, another day gone. He settled into his berth, hoping recharge came quickly.

:Ironhide:

He sat up.

:What?:

:Can you. . .:

:I'll be there as soon as I can:

--

Ultra Magnus again stood at the window, this time in his quarters. The magnificent view of the capital city spread out below him gave no comfort this night. He heard the door chime, waited when he heard footsteps.

Ironhide walked up beside him, stopping.

"The mission was a failure," Ultra Magnus said.

"I don't want to know specifics," Ironhide said.

"I won't tell you anything you won't hear in the next few days," Magnus said. "Three days ago Kup's unit retrieved what we thought was left of them. A few hours ago, a patrol flying over the area picked up one survivor."

"Who was it?" Ironhide asked.

"Hot Rod. He's not expected to live the night," Magnus said.

--

Ironhide sat up, staring down at Magnus. In recharge, the lines of anger faded, leaving his face smooth, like Ironhide remembered it. They'd been through much together and apart. Magnus had gone from being one of Megatron's generals to working at High Command, the Council of Ancients now pressing him to reign in Optimus Prime, who they now considered a threat equal to Megatron.

Ironhide knew Prime was their last best hope of ending the war, but not all the council saw it that way. Magnus' own loyalty was torn, divided between his old friend and his duty. Ironhide respected it but it was one of the many reasons of late he didn't see eye to eye with Magnus, and the news of the latest mission was no exception.

It didn't matter who made the decision. Magnus was given orders, should have followed them, but if he knew the mission was certain to be a failure, maybe that was why he stepped aside, or didn't press the issue.

And Ironhide couldn't accept that. A good leader watched out for his soldiers, wouldn't do anything he didn't ask them to do. Like Prime.

His decision made, Ironhide rose from the berth, taking one last look back.

"Goodbye, Magnus."