My ROTF fic Tales of The Last Prime is over and now I move back into the realm of TFA.
After an encounter with Blackarachnia that resulted in a transwarp accident, Optimus has been stranded in his Academy past on Cybertron and has met a young Elita-1 again. Is this a second chance to right the mistake he made by leaving her behind? Or is it just a cruel reminder of the special friend he lost...?
In Another Time - Part 2
Over a thousand stellar cycles into the past, on Cybertron, Optimus Prime was stood in Elita One's quarters at the Autobot Academy, looking around himself in silent wonder. There were plaques of achievement hung proudly on Elita's wall, pictures of her and her friends on the table, including one of her, Sentinel and himself... It was as if he was reliving an old memory, back in a place that no longer existed in his future time, back again with Elita One... A small part of Optimus questioned whether he was in some virtual reality again, like the time Soundwave had trapped him and his team in simulated human bodies...
"You're definitely radiating residual transwarp energy."
Optimus brought his attention back to Elita who was standing in front of him. She was running a scanning device over his body, a look of fascination on her lovely, familiar turquoise face as she stared intently at the readings on her device. She finally lifted the device away from Optimus and, after one final check of its readings, let it fall to her side.
"Maybe your story about coming through a transwarp portal isn't so far-fetched after all," she conceded.
There was an awkward pause of thinking between them.
"So you really are from a future time?" Elita questioned again.
Optimus nodded.
"Over a thousand stellar cycles from now."
"Incredible. I've read of theories for the possibilities of creating 'temporal gateways' with transwarp technology. But as far as current science goes, it's never been done before. I guess your presence here proves those theories."
"Yeah, you made a breakthrough in transwarp technology..."
Elita raised an optic ridge. "What?"
He had let slip too much information, he realised. He had to be more careful about what he told Elita of the future. Optimus dropped his head quickly and shook it.
"Nothing." He quickly moved onto another question. "I don't suppose you'd have any ideas about how to open up another transwarp 'temporal gateway' to get me back to my time, would you?"
Elita shook her head apologetically.
"I'm sorry, Optimus. I may be studying science here at the Academy, but I'm far from a groundbreaking expert. This kind of scientific advancement is beyond me."
You'll get better at it, Optimus thought grimly.
Elita noticed the heavy expression on Optimus' face. She approached him and hesitantly placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, don't worry too much. We'll find a way to settle you in here somehow. This is all the past to you as you say. You've been here before, done everything already. You can't be too surprised by anything happening here."
Optimus gazed at Elita's hand on his shoulder, conflicting thoughts and feelings running through his processor. Blackarachnia...Elita...hatred...trust...
Elita tilted her head to one side, her bright and sympathetic blue optics studying Optimus' turned face.
"It...could be interesting getting to know an older and more experienced Optimus," she said thoughtfully. Her gaze fell to his windowed chest plates. She placed the tips of her fingers against them. "You know, this is a good look for you."
Optimus turned back to her face and smiled slightly at her. It was like a dream, seeing Elita curious, innocent and trusting once again. Then Optimus' expression became serious once more.
"I have to stay hidden for now," he stated firmly, "I don't want to draw unwanted attention to myself or cause any further alarm."
Elita raised a hand to her chin as she thought.
"Let's get you outside and see if we can find somewhere for you to lay low for a while," she suggested.
Unintentionally, her optics travelled down Optimus' broad body frame again, then to her recharge table behind him. She turned away from him toward the door of her quarters. A mischievous smirk appeared on her face as a very private thought entered her processor. She glanced seductively over her shoulder back at Optimus.
"Comfy as my quarters are, I don't think you want to be recharging in the same berth as me tonight."
Optimus' optics widened. He felt an uncomfortable heat rising in his face.
Elita peered out into a corridor from beside a wall. She glanced left then right to either side of her, checking the length of the corridor for any other presences. Satisfied that no-one else was along the corridor, she turned behind her.
"The coast is clear. Let's go, Optimus," she hurriedly informed.
Elita was about to dash out of their narrow turning when Optimus, fast as lightning, grabbed her wrist and pulled her back beside the wall. She ended up with her back pressed against the wall and Optimus leaning right over her, his arms pressed on either side of her against the wall.
"Optimus, what...?" she began, but Optimus raised a finger urgently to his lips to silence her. Then she heard the reason for Optimus' actions: approaching footsteps and voices from the end of the corridor.
Both of them kept utterly still as the forms of Sentinel and a smaller red bot walked past them along the corridor.
"You know, Cliffjumper, I don't get fembots sometimes. She asked whether Optimus would be coming along then said she was feeling tired," Sentinel was grumbling.
The smaller red bot, Cliffjumper, shrugged. "Maybe she wasn't keen on partying with you tonight. Maybe she's more into Optimus."
Sentinel froze in his tracks and glared down at Cliffjumper.
"Elita more into Optimus than me?" he almost bellowed in disbelief down at his small red friend, "Don't be ridiculous, Cliffjumper! Why would she be into a boring and stiff mech like him? Aren't I much more fun and exciting to be around?"
"Hey, just sayin'," Cliffjumper mumbled in defence, "you never know."
Sentinel scoffed and continued on his way along the corridor. Cliffjumper followed after him.
"Elita liking Optimus better than me? Most ridiculous thing I ever heard," Sentinel was mumbling as his voice travelled further away from Optimus and Elita's position.
When the sound of Sentinel and Cliffjumper's footsteps and voices had gone, Elita gazed up into Optimus' face which was inches from her own. She shifted slightly under him against the wall.
"You know, this is kinda exciting," she commented in a hushed voice, an animated look in her optics, "You, me, sneaking around and hiding together. Sentinel was wrong about you, Optimus. You can smoulder."
Optimus made a nervous clearing noise with his vocaliser and promptly stood back from Elita, releasing her from her pressed position against the wall.
"Let's...not linger in this position any longer," he advised, struggling to control his unsteady voice.
It was quiet. Elita and Optimus had made it outside into a warehouse storage area. Square buildings used to store fuel and supplies surrounded them. Elita was performing quick visual scans of each storage building as she passed them one by one.
"Maybe you could stay in one of these warehouses," Elita suggested to Optimus beside her.
Optimus looked around himself briefly. There were a lot of warehouses. He lifted his gaze to the flat roof of one warehouse building.
"Let's get a higher view of the area," he advised.
He lifted an arm and launched a grappling cable from it onto the ledge of the flat roof. With his other arm going around Elita's waist, he brought Elita toward him and held her securely to his body. She wrapped her arms around his neck as his grappling cable pulled them up onto the flat rooftop. With a final jerky tensioning of the cable, Optimus and Elita were launched over the rooftop ledge. Optimus landed neatly on his feet with Elita carried horizontally in his arms, her hands still wrapped around his neck and her black legs dangling over his left arm.
She gazed up into Optimus' face. Cybertron's large and luminous moon haloed his head from behind, casting mysterious shadows over his face and enhancing the piercing light of his focused blue optics. Elita lost herself momentarily in the sight of him.
As Optimus lowered Elita to her feet, she studied his quiet expression and believed there was a strange sadness lurking in his optics.
"Why do you look at me like that, Optimus?"
Optimus blinked, uncomprehending.
"Look at you like what?"
"Like...the sight of me is upsetting you. Every time you look at me, I can see it, this...deep sadness in your optics."
Optimus did not answer immediately. Instead he looked away into the distance, at the stars in the dark sky.
"A lot of things have changed by my time, Elita, including you."
"Changed?" Elita questioned, her voice taking on an anxious tone. She took a step closer to Optimus, looking at him searchingly for answers. "How? What's going to happen?"
For a moment, Optimus struggled internally with himself. He wanted to tell her. Maybe he could save her from her terrible fate, stop it from ever happening... But...
"Elita," Optimus turned back to look at her, "It's...probably not a good idea for you to know too much about the future. Events as I know them could be altered for the worse. My presence in this time may already be changing the future I come from."
Elita considered his words. Her gaze dropped.
"Maybe you're right," she conceded.
Optimus regarded Elita solemnly. He took hold of both her shoulders and looked earnestly into her face.
"Elita, a lot of things may happen in time to come, things that may change you and others in a significant way, but...they're not what's important. What's important is what you choose to do with each passing moment of your life. Don't look to the future fearing what it may bring you. Live in the present. Enjoy the life you live now, cherish the friendships you share, and most of all, remember always who you truly are, no matter how much you change in time to come..."
Elita, listening intently, nodded compliantly.
"I'll remember what you said, always."
She moved her gaze to stare into the distance, sighing.
"I guess it probably is best if I don't know too much about the future."
She returned her gaze back to Optimus.
"I like to believe I have some free will in shaping my destiny after all."
Her fingers rose to the space beside Optimus' face, an inch away from it. Her lips lifted in a gentle smile.
"Besides, if you're still alive and well in the future, that's encouragement enough for me."
Optimus' face fell at her words.
A short while later, Elita and Optimus were back down on the ground, walking together through the clear pathways between the storage buildings, their combined footsteps the only sounds around. The silver light of Cybertron's moon bathed their surroundings atmospherically. Elita gazed around herself then turned to Optimus.
"Strange how a little quietness and moonlight can make a bland storage area a rather...," Elita seemed to consider her next word before continuing, "'romantic' location for a couple to stroll through."
She turned her head back to face ahead as they walked, but watched and waited for Optimus' response from the corner of her optic. Optimus turned his head to look down at Elita. An uneasy expression took over his face. Then he brought his gaze forward again as well.
"Elita, do you...like Sentinel?" he suddenly queried.
Elita turned her head slightly to eye Optimus curiously at an angle.
"You mean as a friend?" she specified.
Optimus shook his head and glanced down at her again.
"No. I mean...," he seemed to hesitate, "in terms of...affections..."
Elita raised an optic ridge in interest at Optimus.
"And what interest would you have in my romantic relations?" she questioned coyly.
Optimus lowered his head nervously. His gaze dropped to his walking feet.
"I...I have a confession, Elita." Optimus paused. "I have...," he corrected himself, "had a crush on you...in this time..."
Elita abruptly stopped in her tracks and stared at Optimus.
"Really?"
Optimus stopped as well and gradually turned to face to her. He nodded slowly, looking sincerely into her optics.
"I...never got round to ever telling you how I felt...about you." Optimus smiled. "I was never the type to open up my spark so easily."
Elita's lips rose in a genuine smile as well.
"Tell me about it," Elita chuckled lightly, "I have a hard time trying to figure you out sometimes." Her optics searched Optimus's. "I know I shouldn't ask, but...do you...still feel the same way about me in the future?"
Optimus was silent for a moment. He turned his face away from Elita's gaze.
"It's...complicated... I don't know...," he murmured uncertainly.
Elita looked at him puzzled, unsure how to interpret or react to his response. Then she spoke again in a low voice.
"I have confession as well, Optimus." Optimus turned back to face her curiously. "I have a crush on you too."
Optimus' optics rose in mild surprise. The couple froze awkwardly for a moment, optics locked, uncertain what to say or do next. Elita broke the tense silence between them.
"It's weird how I'm telling you this," she remarked. Her head shook subtly from side to side, "but I can't seem to work up the courage to tell your younger self. Guess it's a mutual condition in both of us."
A small smile rose on Elita's lips and she raised her hand to Optimus' cheek, touching it gently. Optimus shut off his optics and sighed. His own hand came to rest over Elita's on his cheek. Then he felt the warmth of Elita's body pressing against his suddenly. He onlined his optics again to see that she had moved forward to lean comfortably against his front. She was resting her head next to his neck upon his boxed shoulder. She had shut off her optics. A look of peaceful bliss graced her features.
It'll hurt even more now, Optimus thought unhappily to himself. His face fell in anguish.
To be concluded...
