Crystal Caves, Jedi Temple; Ahch-To
Jarik POV...
Mara and I both work to push the massive kyber crystal into the cavern, using the floatation magnets to help move it along. Zenna waits for us in there in the cavern with a curious squawk, stomping forwards and giving it a sniff. While its glow is not nearly as bright as the energon crystals, it still gives off a clear green aura, humming with its energy.
We bring it to a stop before Elita, and survey the rest of the items I brought in to hopefully accomplish the goal that we were looking to achieve. R5 was also down here as well in order to help the process, although he was still a little reluctant about spending time in a cave, despite his interest in a race of beings like Cybertronians.
"Alright, so we've got the crystal, we have plenty of energon, we have the energy conduits, infusing tubes, etc," Mara lists off. "So how're we gonna do this?"
"Well, first we need to figure out how we're gonna give her the energon," I explain. "And after that, hopefully a burst of energy from the kyber crystal will bring her online."
"If it's basically their 'blood,' would it be similar to us, like blood veins or something?" she wonders.
"Maybe, maybe not," I remark with a shrug. "But we're about to figure out."
"Ok," she says. "R5, try a scan of her."
R5 beeps in acknowledgement and rolls forwards up to her arm, which was positioned straight along her side. Me and Mara had both worked to carefully roll Elita onto her back, so that she wasn't in any awkward positioning. Standing next to her, he brings out one of his tools and begins to take a long scan of her, and then swivels his dome to project a hologram.
I observe it with an analytical gaze, crossing my arms as I take note of the different mechanical aspects. Along her arm were plenty of different mechanical components to her body structure, including joints, gears, wiring, and other sorts of sophisticated machinery. Yet in spite of all of that the structure is laid out in a similar way compared to humans or other humanoid species, just in robotic form.
"Well isn't that quite the sight," Mara deadpans, not knowledgable enough in mechanics yet to make out much of this.
"I've never seen anything more sophisticated than this, that's for sure," I reply in agreement, a troubled frown on my face.
"Hey, what's that in the center of her chest?" she asks, pointing it out.
I look towards the area she was pointing out, taking it in with some curiosity and wonder. The scan didn't get all of her, but it reached far enough to a portion of her torso, which is where we were looking. Laying in the direct center was a large orb of some kind, giving off an almost unnoticeable pulse, like it was weak. From the way it was connected to so many different parts of her body I could only imagine that this must be a very vital organ for her species. Curious about the very dim signature, I reach out with the Force to see if I could sense it, immediately making a connection.
"That must be what powers her," I realize. "Her life signature is emanating from that."
"So it's like her heart," she deduces.
"From what I'm sensing, it's more like a combination of a heart, and her soul," I observe.
"Huh," she remarks. "Gotta wonder how that works."
"Well from what I can tell... it looks like there are small tubes or veins running throughout her arm, and there are mostly empty," I observe.
"Well thats got to be where we can inject the energon then," Mara theorizes.
"Most likely," I say in agreement.
With a location on where to inject the energon decided, we pushed the canisters over towards her, two for each arm. Pulling out the nozzles of the canisters, I use R5's scan as a reference for where to best stick them into her arm so that the process could work. It took some effort to do, considering I had to get the ends through the metal armor, but eventually they were all set up properly. Mara activates the valve on the first canister, and we watch as it powers up, before successfully filtering the liquid into her body.
"Hey it's working!" she cheers happily.
"I'm not even gonna deny that a good chunk of this is through sheer luck," I comment in amusement.
"How?" she asks.
"Well for starters, it seems to work the same as blood veins for us, so it isn't much different," I point out.
"Yeah, you're right about that," she says in agreement.
Seeing that the process worked, we turned on the valves to the rest of the canisters to start filtering energon into Elita-One. R5's scans showed that it was working successfully, and that the energon was filtering throughout her limbs and body. While this is going on Mara stood by Zenna, scratching her neck while the dragon crooned with curiosity, not fully understanding what it is we're doing. Only problem was that while reaching her 'organs' and head, she still wasn't really responding, but that's where the kyber crystal comes in.
"Now for the final part," I state. "You got the thing ready?"
"Yeah, it's good to go Dad," she replies, attaching the energy infuser to the crystal and giving me a thumbs up. R5 also beeps in confirmation, saying that everything is good.
Satisfied, I take the end of the thick power cable, the flat head of it humming in preparation for unleashing a volt of the crystal's power. I then jump up onto Elita-One's chassis, looking around with a thoughtful frown as I mull over the past place to do this.
"Do you think that 'heart-like' organ would be a good spot?" Mara asks.
"Probably," I reply in agreement. I move over towards the center of her torso, where I notice a strange symbol that resembles a red, robotic face. "Here it goes. Be ready for anything guys."
"Ok," Mara replies, having her and Zenna take a few steps back. R5 rolls away with them as well, beeping anxiously.
Gripping the power cable firmly in both of my hands, I look down at Elita's chassis with a determined glare, and glance up towards her face. The optics were still dull and lifeless, her appearance looking all but dead. Hopefully this will be changed in the next few seconds.
"Come on, don't screw up," I mutter to myself.
Crouching above the Autobot symbol, as it couldn't be anything else, I hold up the cable and then press it straight down in the center, flipping the switch. An immediate, powerful discharge of energy surges forth from the crystal, causing it to glow brightly. It then discharges down the cable and directly into Elita, causing her body to jolt violently. Blue electrical energy sweeps over her body, and along with the discharge of energy a low sounding hum echoes around the cave.
That's when I sense her life signature flare.
Cybertron - moments later
3rd person POV...
While another battle was going on, he was currently at the command center, preparing to head out and join his comrades in the fight. But what happened next stopped him from doing so, filling his spark with shock.
He lets out a groan, collapsing to his knees, as his spark flares up with the reawakening of someone he long since thought lost. Those around him rush over in alarm, including his long-time friends and allies Ratchet and Ironhide.
"Prime, what is it?" Ironhide asks urgently.
While on his knees he brings a hand to his chassis, just above his spark, staring forwards unseeingly with optics wider than ever before.
"...Elita..." he murmurs quietly, powerful emotions welling up within him.
His previously long-lost sparkmate, is not one with the Allspark like everyone has been led to believe... she's alive!
Crystal Caves, Jedi Temple; Ahch-To
3rd person POV...
Moments after the energy surge swept over her body Elita's optics flared up a bright blue, and started looking around wildly. Before I could react I was suddenly thrown off of her by a swat from her hand, rolling across the ground with a few grunts of pain.
"Dad!" Mara cries out, and Zenna squawks in alarm, flapping her wings.
Elita quickly gets up from the ground and scrambles to her feet quickly, whipping her head around left and right. Her right arm then swiftly changes shape, transforming into a large blaster cannon! She aims her cannon around in a panic as I scramble back to my feet before anything else bad could happen. R5 lets out a frightened squeal, beeping profusely as he stayed near Mara.
"Back! Back!" she exclaims fearfully.
"Woah, hey hey! Wait!" I call out, holding my arms out to her.
"Stay back! I'm warning you Onslaught!" she yells while aiming her blaster at me, the barrel glowing a deadly blue.
"Onslaught?!" Mara exclaims in bewilderment and confusion.
She swiftly aims her blaster over towards Mara, causing her to freeze up uneasily, and Zenna squawks in a panic before hissing at the terrified Autobot, beginning to build up her fire.
"Hey, everyone just settle down!" I call out, trying to gain control of the situation.
"Zenna no!" Mara says urgently, standing by her head and attempting to call her down.
Elita whips her blaster between us, still in a panicked daze while I slowly approach her, arms raised in a placating manner.
"I said stay back!" she exclaims warningly.
"You're, Elita-One... right?" I say slowly. She stills for a moment, so I try continuing. "Do you remember who you are?"
Slowly, the sense of panic begins to dissipate from her, and she then begins to lower her blaster, although hesitantly. "I... I am..."
"You aren't in danger anymore," I tell her again.
Elita lowers her blaster fully, and then for the first time gets a clear look at her surroundings, her optics narrowing down on me. She glances at me before shifting her gaze over to Mara and Zenna, the former trying to keep her dragon calmed down. Her optics then widen in realization, and her blaster morphs back into her regular hand. Sighing in relief, I let my arms drop to my sides.
"Oh scrap... I am so sorry for that," she apologizes uneasily.
"It's alright," I reassure her. "You have nothing to be sorry for, based on what the reaction was for."
"See Zenna? Everything's fine," Mara tells her Nadder, calming her down with the Force and with reassuring strokes along her snout.
Thankfully the dragon was calming down, although she still eyed Elita with confusion and wariness. R5 However was still beeping anxiously with a wary tone, sharing Zenna's wariness.
"Probably a good thing that a firefight didn't take place in here," she remarks.
We all look around and realize how right she was with all of the energon and kyber crystals scattered across the cave walls. Elita's optics went wide in realization, and if possible she looked even more ashamed.
"That is a very good point," I reply in agreement.
"Something I should have accounted for," Elita scolds herself shamefully.
"Something bad had to have happened though to provoke a reaction from you like that. You can't blame yourself for it," I advise.
"Yeah, what exactly did happen to you?" Mara asks curiously.
I roll my eyes in exasperation and look at her with a disapproving glare. "Mara!"
"What? It's an honest question!" she says defensively.
"It is alright to ask," Elita adds, crouching down towards the ground to be at a better height level with us. She narrows her optics with a thoughtful hum as she looks at us. "You... you are Jedi."
"We are," I confirm with a nod.
"I must admit I do not recognize either of you," she comments, glancing between us with a questioning look. "Have you recently joined the Prime Jedi's group of followers? Where is he?"
Mara and I both share uneasy glances with her, unsure of how she was going to take the news we were about to drop, while R5 beeps quietly.
"Well, about that..." Mara trails off nervously. "He's... not exactly around anymore."
"What?" she asks in alarm. "Has he been killed by the Decepticons?!"
"No, it wasn't like that," I quickly reply. "Elita, there's no easy way to tell you this, but you... you've missed a lot."
"What do you mean?" she questions wth narrowed optics.
I let out a troubled sigh, but look back up at her with a sympathetic but firm gaze. "You've been in stasis Elita. For over six thousand years."
Elita stares at the two of us for a few moments, blinking in disbelief and confusion. "What? No that- that can't be right..."
"I'm afraid it is," I confirm sadly.
"Six thousand years? In stasis?" she continues in denial, sitting down with a thud from the shock. "How could I have been in stasis that long? I was just under attack by the Decepticons a few minutes ago! That can't be true..."
Mara and I both wait for her to come to terms with the fact, giving her a sympathetic gaze. Neither of us could really imagine what she was going through, since we'd never been trapped in a coma for a long period of time. Who knows if her friends, maybe family, are even still alive anymore?
"What have I missed..." she trails off quietly. "They probably think I'm dead."
"You gonna be alright?" I ask in concern.
"I believe so, but this will take time to come to terms with..." she murmurs uneasily, and then looks up at us. "Thank you for freeing me."
"It was no trouble Elita," Mara replies with a grin, to try and put her at ease.
"It seems that the both of you know who I am, but I do not know who my apparent rescuers are," she remarks.
"Oh right," I say in realization, gesturing for introduction. "Well, my name is Jarik Shan, and this is my daughter, Mara Jade Shan."
She widens her optics slightly in apparent surprise. "You are married with an offspring? I don't recall the Jedi ever doing that."
"Technically I'm adopted, but I don't really think about that too much," Mara corrects.
"We're also, a little different than the average Jedi," I add with a sigh. "A lot has changed."
She glances between us questioningly but nods in acceptance. "I suppose that is true then. Jarik and Mara, I must properly thank you for freeing me from my confinement. I shudder to think of how I could've possibly been trapped there forever."
"I guess it could be considered a sort of 'thank you' for delivering crystals here," I suggest in amusement.
"Yes I suppose that's true," she says in agreement with a small laugh. She then takes notice of Zenna and R5, who the former of which was still eyeing her warily with an uneasy growl. "Who are these two?"
"Well the droid is R5-S7. He's been my companion for years," I answer.
"Hmm. Quite the interesting little AI machine," she comments.
R5 beeps back at her heatedly with less than pleasant words, and I let out a quiet chuckle of amusement as she blinks in bewilderment at his response.
"He doesn't exactly take kindly to being labeled a 'machine,'" I explain. "He does have a personality."
"Of course. I apologize then R5, you deserve your own freedoms," she says sincerely.
R5 beeps back with some grumbling, but accepts he apology nonetheless.
"And this is Zenna, a Deadly Nadder," Mara tells her, stroking the dragon's snout. "She's a little defensive, that's all."
"Understatement of the year," I snort in disagreement.
"I can imagine why," Elita comments, slowly reaching out an arm. "I don't bite."
Zenna growls at the offending arm, backing up a little in response. She does take a few inquisitive sniffs, but otherwise keeps her distance.
"Guess she needs time to warm up to you," Mara says sheepishly.
"Can't have everything all I once," she replies, lowering her arm. "How did you manage to free me?"
"It wasn't easy," I admit. "We were lucky enough that we're surrounded by the right crystals. Your life signature was very faint."
Elita glances around at the energon crystals, and then at the cargo canisters to use them, nodding in approval. "I'm surprised you managed to figure out how to process them. Energon is very volatile when in contact with a flammable source, or something similar."
"Oh I've seen that firsthand," I reply in exasperation with crossed arms.
She smiles in amusement and surveys the rest of the things we used. "Not only that, but you managed to figure out how to inject the energon into my body as well. A bit crude in the design, but still effective. I never told the Jedi about the process, so that's some very impressive work."
"Thanks. I am a bit of a tech genius," I admit with a small smile.
"Oh you don't say," Mara adds with a roll of her eyes, and R5 gives a beeping laugh.
"How is your Order doing currently? Before I was attacked there was a decent sized following," she says curiously.
Mara and I both grimace at her words, and I let out a sad sigh, something she takes notice of with a concerned frown.
"Well Elita, you've seen those from the birth of the Jedi Order," I tell her. "Now you're seeing some of the last Jedi to exist in the galaxy."
She widens her optics in surprise before lowering them sadly. "Oh... I'm sorry to hear that. What... what happened?"
"The Empire happened," Mara answers bitterly.
"For a thousand years the Sith, our ancient enemies, went in hiding, but we thought they were extinct," I explain. "Instead they evolved, and slowly infiltrated the Republic where the Sith Lord Darth Sidious orchestrated a war known as the Clone Wars between two sides of the galaxy, something I took part of. What none of us knew was that Sidious was actually the Chancellor if the Republic, but by the time we realized that it was too late, and he declared the Jedi to be traitors, and thrust us into a deadly purge that wiped us out."
Elita listens intently with a sense of disbelief and sadness. "That's awful," she murmurs. "How could he have accomplished such a feat?"
"Arrogance," I say bitterly. "The Jedi had grown arrogant, and were unable to sense him. There were many factors of why he could keep himself hidden, but by the end the Jedi were accused of treason, and the Republic Army he secretly built for us killed many before they could react."
"I'm sorry to hear that," she says sadly. "It must've been difficult for you when that happened."
"It's been almost two decades, so I've come to terms with it," I reassure her with a shrug.
"What happened to you Elita?" Mara questions. "How were you forced into stasis like this?"
Elita remains quiet for a few moments before replying. "Well, as it seems you are well aware, I was delivering a supply of energon and kyber crystals as a show of good faith for the Jedi, when I was attacked..."
~{Flashback}~
Elita One was transporting a large container of crystals to Ahch-To onboard her single-person ship, soaring through the atmosphere towards the island.
"Once I drop off this shipment I'll rejoin you back on Cybertron," she said into her com.
"Make sure to give my farewells to those 'monks' while you're at it," a female voice replied.
"Of course I will Chromia," she reassured her, rolling her optics before ending the transmission.
"Out of nowhere, a groundbridge portal appeared, allowing a team of Decepticons to ambush me."
A swirling blue, white and green portal then opened in front of her ship, and five Decepticons led by Onslaught flew out of the portal.
"What?!" Elita exclaimed in alarm.
The Decepticons opened fire, shooting the engines of her ship before she could move out of the way. Her ship fell from the sky in the direction of the island, and she scrambled to pull herself out. Opening the hatch, she made a desperate jump from the cockpit, and the crate of crystals was also dislodged.
The container fell into a large chasm near the rocky side of the island, while Elita crashed into the ground near the cliff ledge. Her ship sailed away to crash into the ocean, swiftly sinking to the depths below.
"I managed to escape my ship, but the Decepticons confronted me, led by one of the generals known as Onslaught."
The five Decepticons soared down towards her position and transformed, slamming their feet against the ground with a thud. Onslaught smirked sinisterly down at her while she looked up with a glare, getting to her feet.
"Well well well, if it isn't the fearsome Elita-One," he stated mockingly.
"Onslaught," she growled in reply.
"How low you've fallen, delivering our energon to these filthy organics," he said in disgust.
"The Jedi weren't present on he island at the time, something I'm thankful for. I don't know if they would've be able to take on the Decepticons."
"How did you get here?!" she demanded.
"That is unimportant. Just know that we are here to finally end your wretched life! Prime will be most heartbroken!" Onslaught declared, whipping out his blaster.
The other four Decepticons also readied their weapons, and Elita scowled at them. She brought her arms back and whipped out her arm blades, a matching set shared by her other two sisters Arcee and Chromia. She charged for them as they opened fire, headed straight for Onslaught.
"I tried to fight him off, but because of the sudden ambush I wasn't prepared for how many there were."
Elita jumped over Onslaught slashed her arm blades at the Decepticons, forcing them back. Energon spew from the face of one as she hit him, and then she kicked at Onslaught.
He dodged her strike and brought his own arm down for a punch, but she raised her arm blade to block it. However he then reached his other arm out to grab her, and then threw her against the hard rock. She let out a grunt of pain as the rock cracked from her hit, and quickly tried retaliating.
However Onslaught swiftly stopped her next attack, and then threw her over his shoulder to slam against the ground.
Elita managed to kick her feet out, hitting him directly in the helm as she got back up. Onslaught grunted in pain before growling furiously, and whipped his arm cannon forwards. She was unable to dodge in time as the large red energon blast struck her in the chest, and sent her tumbling into the large chasm.
"I was hit badly, and thrown down the chasm. The damage almost forced me into near-shutdown."
Elita cries out with pained grunts every time she slams into a rock on the way down. Reaching the bottom, she slams into the ground next to the crystals, which were now scattered around the area. Groaning, she slowly looks up to see Onslaught and the Decepticons standing at the ledge far above her.
"Farewell, Elita-One!" Onslaught declares, raising his arm cannon.
"They then buried me underneath the entire mountain."
Onslaught and the Decepticons fired dozens of missiles from their arms the strike against the surface of the rock on the other side of the chasm. Elita widened her optics in horror as tons of boulders and debris cracked from the mountain side and tumbled down towards her. She attempted to stand and raise her arms to protect herself. However all of the boulders hit and fell around her and the energon, crashing against her chassis, trapping her underneath.
Her optics go dark as her systems force her into stasis in one last effort to preserve her life.
~{Flashback Ends}~
The look in Elita's blue optics reveal everything she felt in that moment, how afraid and alarmed she was in that moment as she was trapped underneath the island.
"The next thing I know, I'm waking up here," she finishes, looking down at us. "All thanks to you."
"Wow... that's tough," Mara says sadly, unsure of what else to say.
"How did the Decepticons find you?" I ask her.
From her position on the ground she shrugs in response. "I wish I knew. I can only imagine it was because they were patrolling the area in search of energon and detected my signal."
"Well at least you managed to survive the encounter," I point out with a small smile. "Do you have any plans of how you'll get back to your world?"
"Without a ship, or a means of using a spacebridge, I don't know how I will," she replies grimly.
"What's a spacebridge?" Mara asks.
"A transporter developed by Cybertronians scientists to travel instantly to any location in the universe," she answers.
I blink in bewilderment while Mara was gaping. "Seriously?" I ask.
"There are limitations, and we need to know exact astronomical coordinates to get there, not to mention a lot of energon to power it," she admits. "But the technology has been lost for mega-cycles."
"And what's a mega-cycle?" Mara asks.
Elita blinks before her expression falls glumly in exasperation.
"Oh right. Well, it's basically just a really long time," she answers, and Mara narrows her eyes before shrugging.
"I thought you said that the Decepticons ambushes you using one?" I ask in confusion.
"That was groundbridging, a scaled down version of it," she explains. "Their scout ship had to be close by to do so."
I nod my head in understanding. "Oh, ok. Well if it's of any help, we have our own ship and a decent knowledge of the otherwise unknown areas of space."
"Your offer is definitely appreciated Jarik," she says gratefully. "But I don't know if your technology is capable of reaching my homeworld. Cybertron is not a part of your galaxy, which we call Andromeda."
We all glance at each other in surprise, and R5 beeps irritably in response.
"Well that certainly makes things difficult," Mara remarks.
"Yeah it does," I reply in agreement. "Doesn't mean we can't try though."
"I've only just met you, and you're already willing to help me in so many ways," Elita comments. "I am grateful."
"It's not problem," I reassure her.
"I wonder what Hiccup and the others will think of they ever meet you," Mara wonders with a snicker.
"Who are they?" Elita asks.
"Friends from another island, but they don't possess the means of space travel... well, any technology really," I explain. "So the only intelligent lifeforms they've interacted with are humans and dragons."
"I see," she replies with a nod. "I would be a rather shocking sight for them."
Thinking about helping Elita to find her way back to Cybertron, I then widen my eyes in alarm upon realizing a current problem we have.
"Oh Force no..." I groan.
"What is it Dad?" Mara asks in concern.
"How the heck are we supposed to fit you out of these tunnels?" I point out, gesturing towards the other caves.
The crystal caves weren't exactly small spaces, but for a Cybertronian being? They're like tiny rat holes.
"Scrap," Elita groans as well.
Kaon; Cybertron
3rd person POV...
The Decepticon warlord was seated on his throne at the top of his fortress, named Darkmount. He was tapping his finger against the armrest of the throne, frowning as he thought about how the current battle against the Autobots was going nearby. Optimus Prime was leading the enemy forces in that battle, and he was debating with himself over whether of not to pay a visit to his old friend.
The elevator shaft towards the top of the citadel then opens, revealing Soundwave. He walks towards his leader, silent as ever, while Megatron frowns at him.
"What is it Soundwave?" he demands.
Soundwave's visor then lights up as the screen flares to life, displaying a galactic map. On that map was a Cybertronian signal beacon, which was beeping insistently. Megatron narrows his eyes at the sight of the signal beacon, instantly recognizing the location of it.
"A Cybertronian life signal has been reactivated?" he questions. "In Andromeda?"
Soundwave nods his head in confirmation, and Megatron leans back in his throne with a thoughtful expression.
"None have traveled there since the Autobot scout's little, misadventure," he comments. "Who is it that thought to do so now?"
The screen of Soundwave's visor then shifts to reveal the face of a familiar Autobot, one that he hasn't seen for thousands of years. Seeing the Autobot displayed, Megatron widens his eyes in surprise and stands up from his throne, bewildered.
"What?" he asks in disbelief. "Elita-One yet lives?"
At another nod from Soundwave, Megatron glances down in thought before looking up with a dark look on his face.
"Then it would seem that Onslaught, has much to answer for," he scowls irritably. "Soundwave, plot me a course for Andromeda! I wish to properly greet Elita, on her apparent return from the dead, in due time."
Soundwave nods in confirmation with these words, and heads off to complete the task. Megatron marches over to the edge of the throne room and looks down on the city, observing the battle occurring far off into the distance.
He folds his arms behind his back, his mind no longer thinking on the battle, but instead on the prospect of how Elita-One survived Onslaught's ambush on her six thousand years ago. And more importantly, who could have possibly revived her from whatever state she was in?
Well here we have the first interaction between a Jedi and a Cybertronian for thousands of years! Now we know the full story of how Elita was trapped underneath the caves! Scientifically I'd say that during the passage of time, the shifting of rocks is what sealed her into the wall and made the cave conditions the way they are currently.
And now there is an even bigger problem with Soundwave detecting the signal burst that was sent out when Elita was revived! This isn't good, and who knows how long it'll be before Megatron finds them...
Thank you all for continuing to enjoy and support my series! Really means a lot! :D