The Human Prime
Chapter 51: Apocalypse
"The Spark Eater." Artemis read off the translation of the tablet. "It was said in with Covenant of Primus that in Unicron's passing, the Spark Eater was born from his circuits. Constantly hunting for the Primes and his master's greatest enemy."
"I recall the Spark Eater." Alpha Trion extended his arms, preparing to tell a story. "My brother's and I confronted the beast once. And, in doing so, brought the beast into stasis. He was lost to stars last I remember."
"Why are we talking about this now?" Bulkhead shrugged, looking over at the space bridge.
"Yeah, who cares about an old bots tale?" Smokescreen looked over at his teacher and scrambled. "No offense. It's just; we're a flick of a switch away from locating a way to revive Cybertron. Why bring this up now?"
"Because the tablets I found, at least the one's I was able to steal off the Decepticon's database, tell this exact story." She sat down onto the stairs, cradling her helm in her servos. Bumblebee buzzed, in which ShadowVolt rephrased.
"So, there's evidence of the Spark Eater here on earth?" ShadowVolt tried to look at the screen in which Artemis was reading off of, but couldn't make out what it said.
"The tablets…show the coordinates and instructions in order to revive the beast once named the Spark Eater." She mumbled, not looking up at them.
"Wait…it's here?!" Smokescreen exclaimed, looking down at his peds.
"And if it's in the Decepticon database, no doubt that Megatron is trying to revive the beast himself." Arcee said with choked words, as if she were exhausted.
"Where are the coordinates, Artemis?" Ratchet asked, not able to read the text himself.
"In Illinois…a few clicks outside Chicago." Artemis answered rubbing her helm as she did so.
"'Chicago, the third most populated city in the United States.'" Drexel echoed from what seem to be from some documentary.
"If that beast goes for a stroll, after his million year nap, a lot of people are going to get hurt." Smokescreen whispered solemnly. Optimus turned toward Ratchet and began giving off orders.
"Ratchet, contact Agent Fowler. Have him evacuate the city immediately, starting with the area closest to these coordinates." He turned back to the others. "We need to stop Megatron from awakening the Spark Eater."
"They're probably digging up the beast now. But considering Decepticon resources, they'll probably be done soon." Artemis stood up and watched the others gather towards the bridge. Before Optimus could join them, she grabbed his servo. "Optimus…if we don't stop them here, that monster will go after you. Maybe you should stay behind."
"I will not stand by and permit all of you to put yourselves in danger." He turned towards her and frowned. "If the Spark Eater indeed awakens, I will gladly sacrifice myself while you lead the others away."
"Optimus, I can't not stand by and permit YOU to put yourself in danger. If that thing does awaken, we will fight it together." She crossed her arms and felt a servo clamp over her shoulder.
"I will come too." Alpha Trion patted her shoulder once more before heading towards the ground bridge.
"Is that wise?" Artemis frowned, following him steadily as if he were fragile.
"I might be old, but I have plenty of fight left in me." He wound his shoulder, but that didn't help convince anyone. The joint creaked and groaned at the exercise as if it were literally complaining.
"Big A, what if you get hurt?" Smokescreen asked, letting the Archivist walk passed him.
"Then I will gladly rust in peace." Alpha Trion stood in front of the portal, looking back at the others. Light stood next to him and bowed.
"I won't leave your side, master." She looked up at him, her optics focused. "I won't fail you again." He put a servo on her shoulder then looked back at the others. His optics saying 'do you need more convincing?'
"Autobots…roll out." Optimus said reluctantly.
Mira POV
I stood above the giant pit in the ground. I took a deep breath, taking in the dark energy emitting from the chasm. This was definitely the spot, over my shoulder stood the mighty Megatron clutching a shard of Dark Energon. I waited for the drones to clear the work zone before kneeling and placing my servo to the earth. As the tablets instructed, I chanted:
"Great Incarnation of Destruction and Chaos, hear the plea of your loyal follower. Allow us access to your greatest spawn, that who hunted your enemies in your name. In your name we call forth, Spark Eater!" I shouted and let my voice echo down the hole to the beast below us.
There was a long silence which made me nervous. Perhaps it did not work? I was about to repeat the chant when a gust of air burst from the hole. It had moved. There was only one thing left to do. Offer it the life force of its master. Lord Megatron walked up next to me and was about to drop the shard down to it when the sound of screeching tires drew our attention.
"Megatron, stop this now, or forever regret your decision." Artemis was alone, extending her servo towards us as she pled.
"Return to the pit you crawled from, Autobot." RazorMane answered her in my stead. "Your pleas fall on deaf receptors."
"Megatron, my memory far outstretches yours. If only in my dreams, I have witnessed the destruction this monster can unleash. And I guarantee you, it will be mutually grave." She got closer to us, in which the troopers stood in front of her. "Don't do this."
"Artemis, human chosen by Primus, the only destruction this creature will bring will be your own…and that of Optimus Prime." Megatron turned back to the hole and prepared to revive the beast. "Take care of her." He whispered to me in which I stood with a grin.
"Certainly," I was about to charge towards her when the unmistakable sound of blaster fire ran to my ears. I shifted to see Optimus in hot pursuit to Megatron. The blaster had knocked the shard out of my master's hand. While I flung myself to catch the shard, my chassis made contact with something hard which stopped me. I found that I had run into Artemis' assassin.
Light had the shard in her hand and before I could take it back she took off running. I found myself preoccupied by an unfamiliar blade. I followed it to its owner, the old one named Alpha Trion. I chuckled and motioned RazorMane to go for Light while I took on the Archivist.
"You are way out of your league old timer." I positioned myself in a ready stance and laughed. "I will gladly send you to the All Spark, if that's your game."
"A general can tell the difference between a declaration of battle," He stood up straight and retracted his blade. "And an act of deception."
"Huh?" I glared at the old man in confusion, convinced he had blown a circuit. It was then I tackled by a flash of white and blue. I managed to regain my composure enough to dodge the next incoming attack and take to the sky. The old fool had distracted me from the green horn, how embarrassing.
Artemis was tag teaming with Optimus to keep my leader at bay. I was angry knowing that perhaps she thought me not worth her time. I flew down low enough to sweep her off her peds. I chuckled when I saw I had gone even further to send her tumbling over the edge into the hole. Unfortunately, she had managed to grab hold of the side before she could go screaming into the dark abyss.
I then remembered my master's words. 'I have no interest in indulging your efforts!' I shivered and realized I was letting my hatred for my sister cloud my true mission. I made haste to locate Light and the Dark Energon shard.
Chicago, Illinois
"Artemis!" ShadowVolt dropped down from where he shot from the air and pulled Artemis out from the hole.
"Shadow, go help Light!" She shouted her orders before rejoining the battle against Megatron. She hit him between his shoulders, making him turn toward her in anger but leaving his blind spot toward Optimus.
Bulkhead and Breakdown were locked in battle. Knockout unable to come to his partner's aid thanks to the resilient Bumblebee. However, without warning, when Arcee was trying to kick Knockout out of style, Dreadwing had opened fire not only on her, but on the others as well. RazorMane, who had given the task of fetching Light to Soundwave, took to the sky in order to hinder ShadowVolt.
Everyone was in battle, even Alpha Trion who was fending off troopers with the help of Smokescreen. The chaos made it hard to keep track of the shard. Once Soundwave took it from Light, Arcee got hold of it, then Dreadwing, then Bumblebee. It exchanged hands many times. Hardly anyone even noticed when a lone trooper picked up the shard in the commotion.
"Excuse me." Light stomped over to the trooper and held out her servo. "Hand it over." The trooper foolishly clung to the shard and backed away from her. She reacted by charging towards him, unfortunately the poor trooper was so frazzled that he flung it without even thinking. "NO!" Light saw the shard fly through the air and noticed it was just short of the dirt around the hole. "ARTEMIS! THE SHARD!"
Artemis looked over and located the Dark Energon immediately. It fell slowly and she knew it would never clear the chasm. She dashed towards it, but made the mistake of not keeping an eye on Megatron. He turned towards her and swung his mighty blade through her side, clean. She fell to the ground instantly. Optimus wanted to help her, but found Megatron still out for his Energon. She dragged herself to the edge of the pit and reached desperately for the falling shard, but it was just beyond her digits.
"NO!"
Artemis POV
The ground shook as energy from the Dark Energon that fused with the beast below. It roared loudly as it began to awake. I had tried so hard to prevent this end, but I had literally fallen short. I forced myself up to look at Optimus, who had the same sullen look on his faceplate. The sound of metal scrapping against rock signaled the beast's journey to the surface. Our leader was quick to react.
"Fall back!" He called, but found his soldier locked in combat. The Decepticons were not as star struck as we were. They fought now to keep us in place while the beast made its way to seal our fate. "Light, clear us a path!"
Light, the loyal soldier she was, broke herself away from her fight and drew her rifle. In quick motions, she had stunned both Dreadwing and Breakdown with warning shots, leaving Arcee and Bulkhead free to run. I took out the remaining troopers surrounding Alpha Trion and Smokescreen so they could run as well. ShadowVolt brought Knockout to his knees, letting Bumblebee rush off too.
I turned back to help Optimus get Megatron off of him. Megatron desperately kept him in blade lock, knowing that once the beast rose from his prison he would go after him first. I pushed Megatron from him, readying my blaster to his helm once his servos cleared my line of sight. However, when I was ready to open fire and take the leader of the Decepticons, large claws emerged from the pit.
"Artemis," Optimus pushed my shoulder. "Run." He said with a voice that was chocked with surprise. "RUN!" He screamed louder in order to bring my own mind from shock. This time, I did. I ran quickly, Optimus on my heel struts.
"PRIMUS, I SMELL YOU!" Spark Eater spoke in a loud booming tone, like thunder. His purple optics scanned the battle field for us, and in an instant they fell on Optimus and me.
I looked back only for a moment to see the large monster covered in purple markings, its middle shriveled to bareness as if it was starving. Its chest held an open spark, beating and humming as if it were calling for food as well. The only thing that shielded it from being open to attack was a layer of crossing cables that seemed to move across as if they were alive as well. Its lower half was still buried in the hole. The only trace of it was a single foot, in which its talons clung to the ground in order to keep its body from plummeting back into the pit.
I bared witness as it opened its large skeletal wings and roared in our direction. Spark Eater's large servo came towards us at a speed that was unexpected from a monster his size. I noticed now what those cables were. Not cables at all, but smaller arms that looked more like pincers. The servo landed right behind us and I noticed it was simply getting in range for its pincers to grab onto us. No…not us.
"OPTIMUS!" I turned quickly enough to push Optimus back, but not enough to get myself out. The weight of Spark Eater bore onto my shoulders from the two pincer-like servos that pinned me down to the ground. I groaned and tried to force myself out of his grasp, but it wasn't working.
The monster's spark was now completely exposed, but instead of something beautiful, like the sparks I've seen in my memories, it was atrocious. It dripped Dark Energon onto the ground below and glowed deeper purple, as if it were charging. Finally, it stopped and I felt something pulling on me. Not at my body, but my very soul. The Spark Eater's spark was literally eating up my spark.
I couldn't speak. It felt agonizing and yet whatever screams that were trying to emerge from my mouth were mute. I couldn't move. I knew I should try to fight back, but whatever energy I had was being taken from me. My vision was blurring. I could barely even see the monster in front of me or the stream of energy flowing from me into him. My hearing was hazy. I could barely make out the screams of my comrades as they called my name. I felt my consciousness slipping. Slowly, but surly, I felt death was coming.
All at once, the monster removed himself from me and cried in pain. I took in a sharp breath as some energy rushed back into me. I could feel my senses returning to me as I could hear someone shouting.
"Over here you senseless beast!" I could hear them calling over and over. I felt someone picking up my limp body, helping me to my feet. The sound of the Spark Eater pouncing on someone and the whirring of the transferring of energy started again.
"ALPHA TRION!" Optimus? I thought, before looking up at him. He held me close, but his head was turned towards something else. I followed his gaze and found Alpha Trion pinned against a rock formation.
"GO!" Alpha Trion called with the last of his strength. His spark was slowing being drained out. As Optimus called for a ground bridge, I could feel my consciousness finally slip from me as something wet touched my faceplate. Optimus was crying.
Decepticon POV
"Look, my Lord! See how they run at our might! Like cockroaches in the sun." Mira laughed, pointing at the Autobots rushing through the ground bridge.
"I do not want them afraid, I want them dead!" Megatron screamed at her, but it didn't dampen her disposition.
"But, my lord, we did manage to slay Alpha Trion, one of the thirteen original primes." She pointed to the limp body of the archivist lying on the ground.
"You did not slay anything! It was I, the vicious Spark Eater, who slayed the wisest of the Primes!" Spark Eater glared at them, boring into their sparks to see traces of his master within them.
"You will speak when spoken to, beast!" Megatron shouted back at him. "I am your master! Now bow before me!"
"I will lower my head to only one. I serve only one master, and it is neither you nor the one who called my name." Spark Eater shifted so that his entire body faced them. "I serve only Unicron, the chaos bringer! And it is my eternal mission to bring an end to Primus and all who spawn from his spark."
"We awakened you! We are disciples of Unicron! You must obey us!" Mira stepped in front of Megatron, feeling the aggression from the monster.
"You are foolish to believe you are nothing more than Unicron's servants. An oversight I will soon correct." He approached them slowly with deadly intent. Even the troopers screamed in terror as the Spark Eater began his feast.
Autobot Base
Artemis opened her eyes slowly, finding Sam right at her side. She looked over herself and found she had at some point reverted back to human form. Moving was painful, but she managed to sit up in order to look over her surroundings. Back at the base, the Autobots sat around with their heads hung low. It was then she remembered the tragic scene that had brought her to medical bay in the first place.
"Artemis, are you alright?" She slowly looked up at Optimus, who had made his way next to her. She burst into tears at the very sight of him. He was quick to comfort her, but found that when he brought his servo to her she clung to it.
"I am so sorry, Optimus… If I had gotten out of the way in time, maybe Alpha Trion would still be-"
"No…" He stopped her before she could finish. His face was filled with pain, but he continued. "The moment I confronted my teacher, the day he had awakened, he told me he had a destiny to fulfill. I see now that the events we witnessed he had foreseen."
"Why didn't he tell us?" Smokescreen interjected; his face as miserable as his leader's.
"He once told me that trying to change a fate that was prewritten can only worsen the circumstances or have it brought upon you all the more swiftly. I feel that he accepted his fate willingly. You should not morn his death." Optimus felt Artemis hold onto him tighter. In that one gesture, they had a silent conversation.
She told him that she knew. She knew he was trying to force himself to play the role he was meant to play. To not show emotion and to be the pillar his team could rely on. However, she knew he was hurting and there was nothing she wanted more than for him to let those feelings out. So, as the only outlet he could find for his anguish, he squeezed her tiny hand lightly back.
"That thing…Artemis, what happened?" Arcee brought Artemis back. She let go of Optimus and tried to compose her thoughts into a definite answer.
"It was like he was taking me. Eating up my very existence, my soul, my spark…" She paused and got onto her feet. "That beast has no true soul of his own. Instead, he takes it from those he consumes."
"Did you see the size of that thing?" ShadowVolt scoffed. "That beast can do some real damage."
"ShadowVolt is correct. We must stop it before it puts humanity in danger." Optimus stood up as well and looked over at Ratchet, who was going over data they had gathered about the beast.
"Why don't we just do what we did with Unicron?" Bulkhead suggested. "Put that thing back into the ground where it belongs."
"We do have a space bridge now. We could easily get back to Vector Sigma." Arcee nodded, but Bumblebee buzzed in disapproval. Though, they were all short of ideas so risking their leader seemed like their only choice.
"No." Artemis said sternly. "Alpha Trion is trapped in that thing's spark. If we let it live, he will never be able to join with the All Spark. I refuse to condemn him for an eternity of suffering." She transformed back into bot form. "I won't rest until Alpha Trion can once again be at peace with his brothers."
"How do you suggest we kill something that size?" Ratchet looked over at her, but she didn't waver. In a second, she looked at him with a plan.
"That weapon we got from Quickstep, is it still in our vault?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Whenever that beast goes to feast, he has to expose his spark. Maybe a weapon of that caliber will put an end to it." Artemis explained in which Optimus nodded to Smokescreen to go retrieve the weapon.
"I could make modifications. Perhaps maximize the output." Ratchet suggested.
"Looks like we got a plan." Bulkhead smiled and patted the shoulders of his companions.
"Artemis, Light, Arcee, come with me. We must track that monster and see where it had made its nest." Optimus pulled the lever for the ground bridge himself. "The rest of you stay on standby. I trust you to deliver us the weapon when Ratchet is done with his modifications."
Without a second thought, they all went into the ground bridge. The coordinates were set to the position they used previous. Within moments, they had found themselves at the pit where the Spark Eater rose from the ground. However, they were greeted with the horror of lifeless husks. Hundreds of them spread across the field which once was there victory.
"It…turned on them." Light looked over the troopers and found each one of them dead.
"I am not surprised. I wouldn't trust something that was literally spawned form Chaos." Arcee skillfully maneuvered around the bodies. Artemis followed until she found a familiar face.
"Soundwave?" She walked over to him, but when she went to touch his cracked visor, the faceless spy grabbed her servo. "Hey, he's still alive!" The others immediately went to her position.
"Maybe we should take him back to base, get him to spit out everything he knows." Arcee suggested, but Artemis ignored her. She transformed into Solstice and, with a surgeon's skill, disconnected his pain receptors.
"What are you doing?!" Arcee shouted, but again Artemis ignored her.
"Soundwave…please. You know now that that creature can only bring uncontrollable destruction. Tell me, who do you know?" She pleaded with him, but the spy did not answer in anyway. Instead, he pointed towards a crevice. She lied him down gently before moving over towards the direction he pointed. She gasped at the sight.
"What, what is it?" Light dashed over to her, but Artemis answered anyways.
"It's Megatron."
