Disclaimer: 2021 is not going great for me right now, and it's not due to Writer's Block for once. Quick heads up; I changed the chapter name.

Like always, I do not own the rights to the Transformers franchise.


Chapter XXIV

"Long have I waited for the return of the Allspark, the very life force of the planet Cybertron of which I have constituted since the dawn of existence itself. Long have I waited since I imprisoned myself and my twin, Unicron the Chaos Bringer." the voice seemed eerily calm, compelling and soothing all at the same time.

"You spoke my name. You know who I am?" Primal wondered.

"I know who you are and who you are destined to become. The Matrix of Leadership has chosen its next bearer, despite the stigma that hangs over you." the voice claimed.

Primal was confused but not overly intimidated. "Stigma?" he asked.

"You and your fellow Maximals were forged on Cybertron, this is true, but by the hands of an outsider, an amalgamation of Human and Cybertronian. But that has not stopped you from fighting for those you hold most dear. That is why you are worthy to lead all of Cybertron into a new Golden Age."

Although he was still confused, the words spoken to Primal gradually made him to whom he was speaking. "Primus."

"Indeed, young one. I have remained in slumber for eons, waiting for the moment when the Allspark would return to Cybertron. You have brought it here, thus proving yourself worthy to be the next Prime." Primus stated.

Primal was still trying to process the revelation of his true origin. "You said that an outsider created me and my friends. If that's true, then I'm not worthy of anything, certainly not of becoming a Prime."

"Even now, you deny your true calling?" Primus wondered.

Primal found himself pondering his words and the self-doubt within them. "I didn't come all this way to return the Allspark because I thought I was worthy of anything. I know I'm not, more so now that I know the truth of my origins."

"Then tell me, Optimus Primal? Why are you here? Who are you?" Primus asked, almost as though he was asking a riddle.

Primal was left to ponder the strange question as it came from Primus. There was nothing literal about it. Primus had already known his name from the moment he released the Allspark into the core. Primal wasn't being asked to say his name out loud. It started to set in that Primus wasn't asking Primal for some introduction. Primus was asking Primal; Who was Optimus Primal? Primal had learned of his true origins, that he was merely a construct of a Human/Cybertronian hybrid that he'd yet to encounter. Yet, there Primal was standing before Primus himself, the very center of Cybertron revived with the Allspark. There Primal was, with the Matrix of Leadership set firming within his chassis. He was there at that very moment for one reason above all else.

"I'm... I..." Primal tried to reply, but he couldn't find the words.

"I WILL ASK ONLY ONCE MORE," Primus bellowed though not out of malice. "WHO... ARE... YOU?"

This time, Primal stood tall and unyielding. He replied, "I am nobody. I came here not because I sought honor or glory or recognition or power. I came because the fate of the universe hangs in the balance, because I've been tasked with the greatest of responsibilities... the burden hardest to bear."

"You seek to restore not only Cybertron, but those who have long been lost to conflict and war." Primus surmised.

"I do, because I believe that a united Cybertronian race of Autobots, Decepticons and Maximals together, can defeat Unicron and protect worlds like Earth and avenge worlds like Nebulos. A united Cybertronian race can save the universe. If that isn't good enough, then that's just prime." Primal said with defiance in his tone.

Primus seemed to go silent without a single word. Primal wondered if he said anything wrong, but he wasn't in the mood to apologize. Every word was honest and to the point. They came from his Spark and wasn't going to take them back. Then the runes on the core started to glow brightly. The center space in which the contents of Allspark were absorbed shown through in a bright blue light, blinding but oddly welcome. The light grew brighter to the point where it seemed to almost expand, and Primal was of the belief that he was about to join the Allspark itself.

"Your words are spoken in a way similar to those of the Original Thirteen. Confident but humble. Strong, yet compassionate. You've claimed that you are not worthy to lead, and yet time and again, you've shown the conviction of any great leader before you. You, Optimus Primal, are indeed worthy." Primus proclaimed.

"What of Cybertron itself? Can it be restored, and can every Transformer that gave their life be brought back," Primal asked, but Primus seemed to go completely silent. "Primus?"

Primal waited for a reply, but none came and he grew concerned that Primus had gone dark on him. But then, the light engulfed him and his entire body went rigid. He could almost feel the Matrix of Leadership pulsating in his chassis, as though it was about to burst out in brilliant light. Primal thought he should've been scared, terrified even that he was being potentially torn apart. Instead, he felt eerily calm and unafraid. Then, he felt his body begin to physically change. He wasn't changing into his beast form but into something else entirely. With each passing nanosecond, Optimus Primal was slowly fading away and someone else was emerging in his place.


Megatron landed on one area, standing across from Unicron. Optimus Prime landed in an area adjacent from Megatron. Both had the long-range weapons aimed at Unicron and both pulled the trigger. Two sustained blast of energy shot forward and collided with the Chaos Bringer. Unicron appeared to have brought his hands up to blocked the attacks, but he still felt himself being forcibly pushed back. Megatron and Optimus pressed their attacks and pushed forward. But then out of nowhere, Unicron retaliated with an optical blast that surprised both leaders. He turned his attack on Optimus Prime first and forced him to retreat, and then he turned his attention to Megatron. The blast hit near Megatron and dropped, but he was already upright and charged forward with his mace in full swing.

As soon as he was close enough, Megatron swung his mace directly at Unicron's head. He missed and Unicron grabbed the chain link. Drawing Megatron close, Unicron battered Megatron with a string of hard strikes. Megatron answered with a head butt, and Unicron replied with an even harder strike. Shaking off the impact, Megatron landed another head butt. Unicron didn't move and hit the hardest blow that dropped Megatron to a knee before tossed him aside.

Unicron moved to finish Megatron off only to be blasted from behind. Optimus Prime came rushing the Chaos Bringer with his rifle firing shot after shot. He dropped the gun and drew the Star Saber. Unicron formed his own melee weapons and met Optimus Prime. They clashed weapons and engaged in another furious battle replete with slashes and swipes. Every blow they tried to land was met with resistance by an opposing weapon. At some point, Unicron knocked the Star Saber from Optimus Prime's grip, and the weapon landed nearby to where Megatron had fallen. Optimus Prime wasn't about to surrender and he took to battling Unicron hand to hand. He managed to land several strong strikes before Unicron retaliated against Optimus and they traded blows. They then locked hands in a strength test, and they appeared to be evenly matched.

Megatron was beginning to recover when he noticed the Star Saber nearby. As he started to reach for it, the metallic surface of the planet started to glow. The glow seemed to originate from the Well of Sparks and eventually, both Optimus Prime and Unicron noticed the glow. Seeing Unicron distracted by the light, Optimus Prime quickly took advantage and broke free from the Chaos Bringer's grip. He started pummeling his foe with rapid-fire punches, making sure that every strike landed. Unicron managed to counter one strike and landed a brutal blow on Optimus Prime, cracking his face mask. But Optimus continued to battle back until Unicron stabbed Optimus in his lower left side. Optimus looked down; it was the exact same point where he was once mortally wounded long ago.

Before Optimus had a chance to register, Unicron battered him with a single backhand strike. Optimus went spiraling across the battlefield and crashed into Megatron, and the resultant collision sent them both down. Megatron got back up and charged at Unicron, only to be caught mid-sprint and thrown backward in the opposite direction. Both leaders were down in adjacent areas, with Megatron laid out behind Unicron and Optimus ahead of him. Optimus Prime saw the Star Saber and reached for it, but Unicron was already standing over him and pinned his foot down over the Saber's blade. Unicron looked toward the Well of Sparks... and then it happened.

Within moments, a cascade of bright lights streamed out from the Well and lit the sky above. The lights streaked across in every direction. Megatron was starting to recover when he watched the many lights flying every which way. He smirked at the sight of it all. The sky itself began to change from dark to light and then the very surface of Cybertron turned from a dead metal shade to an almost golden hue.


The Autobots, Decepticons and Maximals all gazed up at the sky as it lit up bright as Earth's Sun. They witnessed the surface of Cybertron attain a golden shimmer as if new life was beginning to rise up. Everyone present was in stunned disbelief, unsure of what was even occurring around them. Breakaway, Windblade and even Blitzwing all launched into the air to get a better view of the sudden changes. Thousands of streams of light shot across the sky and spread out so fast that the optics could barely follow. Fortress Maximus and Skorponok, who had a wounded but still alive Zarak standing on his shoulder, stood stoically as the sky was brightly illuminated by the countless lights streaking across the sky. Even Giga and Mega, still in the care of Blackarachnia, were in awe of the scene.

"You guys are seeing what I'm seeing, right?" Breakaway asked.

"I'm seeing it, but I'm having a hard time believing it." Blitzwing replied.

Down on the surface, Starscream looked to Shockwave and said, "I'm assuming you have some logical explanation for this, Shockwave."

Shockwave offered no reply, but Rhinox did have a smile on his face. "It's the Allspark. Primal did it."


Unicron gazed up at the lights and his optics lit up with seething anger. He soon turned that anger onto Optimus Prime. "What have you done?"

Optimus Prime took the brief moment to push against Unicron with everything he could muster. Unicron pulled his foot back and drove the point into Optimus Prime's face mask, shattering it and then picking Optimus Prime up by the neck. A loud boom suddenly sounded from deep within the Well, but Unicron paid no mind to it. Optimus Prime did momentarily catch a glimpse of an extremely fast object shooting from the Well and vanishing into the newly bright sky. A moment later, that same object returned. It appeared to resemble a jet, but it was like nothing Optimus had ever seen before. Within a fraction of second, the jet transformed into a large robot with a metallic orange, blue and red color scheme and large silver wings. The mysterious robot came right at Unicron and waylaid him with a swift punch to the face. Unicron was sent crashing down to the metal surface, while the robot landed next to Optimus Prime. Collecting himself, Optimus noticed the robot offering his hand to him. It was right then and there that Optimus Prime recognized him as Primal.

"Primal, is that you?" Optimus asked, genuine surprise in his tone.

"It's me, Optimus, with a bit of an upgrade." Primal replied, and Optimus noticed the Matrix of Leadership resting within a compartment like a canopy.

"You're looking... robust." Optimus Prime commented.

Nearby, Megatron was getting up and muttering to himself, "You must be joking."

The three of them heard Unicron's protesting growl, and the Chaos Bringer demanded, "Who dares now to stand against the Bringer of all Chaos?"

"I do, and when it's all said and done, you will know who it was that finally defeated you." Primal deployed his newly altered shoulder cannons and blasted Unicron, actually dropping him to his knees.

Unicron shouted in rage, "Who are you?"

Taking a step forward and standing tall, he declared, "My name is Optimal Optimus."

Unicron was nonplussed by the announcement of this so-called Optimal Optimus and morphed his arms into the familiar weapons. He pushed forward without waiting for anything. Optimal Optimus gunned a set of rocket boosters under his feet and jetted forward at a speed not even Megatron could've matched. Optimus Prime watched as Optimal and Unicron closed in on each other. Unicron said as the first to rear his right-side weapon, but it was Optimal who landed the first strike.

It was a swift but strong uppercut that connected with Unicron's jaw. Unicron was instantly lifted up and sent flying backwards, crashing with a might thud on the metallic surface. Sensing an immediate advantage, Optimal fired his shoulder cannons and struck Unicron as he was getting back up. The ensuing blast put the Chaos Bringer down again, and Optimal sprinted forward. Midway into his run, Optimal transformed into a tank-like ground vehicle. He plowed into Unicron and flipped him up and over where he hit the surface hard again. Thrusters beneath the vehicle sent it the surface where it transformed into its jet form and launched airborne.

Unicron rose back up to his feet and fired his optics blasts at Optimal as he soared along the newly golden skyline before banking back around. Optimal Optimus deployed a string of rockets that streaked along the sky toward Unicron, while both Optimus Prime and Megatron quickly dispersed from the intended impact point. The rockets slammed down on the surface just in front of Unicron, sending a wall of fire spewing up. Unicron took a step back and fired his optics blast again. He first heard another sound of transformation, followed by what sounded like multiple metallic footsteps. Through the fire, a massive robotic gorilla charged forward and landed its right fist across Unicron's face while running past him.

Still in his beast form, Optimal stopped short and spun back around as Unicron collected himself. Optimal closed the distance and landed a stiff and heavy strike that rocked Unicron. He landed more heavy blows, one right after the other and each one finding their mark. Unicron tried to fight back with only his bare hands, but Optimal just kept landing blow after blow without pause. Each strike pushed Unicron back further and further, until he dropped to his knees again. He actually had to cover up to block the blows even as Optimal wouldn't relent. Optimal transformed back to his robot form and continued to pummel Unicron, and it seemed as though the Chaos Bringer couldn't fight back anymore.

Finally halting his assault, Optimal coldly asked, "Had enough?"

Unicron slowly replied, "Not... just... yet."

Optimal was already finished with the games and armed his shoulder cannon. Without warning, Unicron brought his hand up and unleashed a blast of electrical energy that flung Optimal backward. Optimal fell back and managed to right himself before firing a sustain blast from his cannon. Unicron quickly answered another blast of electrical energy. The blasts met head on in a massive collision of light. For the next several chaotic moments, it appeared as though neither Optimal nor Unicron could gain any momentum. Then, Unicron appeared to be gaining ground while it seemed that Optimal was being pushed back.

A sudden plasma shot struck Unicron from his right side, and he looked to see Optimus Prime joining Optimal Optimus with his own sustained blast. Another blast from the left caught Unicron by surprise. The shot came this time from Megatron, and he quickly joined Optimus and Optimal in their efforts. Optimus Prime and Megatron spread out cover further cover more ground, forcing Unicron to move his own arms to match their movement. Optimal Optimus remained where he stood while maintaining his attack. Unicron took much of the attack before he fired his optic blast to match it. Then Unicron increased his efforts and unleashed an even bigger assault on all sides.

Two much larger current of electrical energy shot forth and hit both Optimus Prime and Megatron and sent them flying. Optimal pressed his efforts even as Unicron unleashed a larger optical attack. Unicron started pushing forward, step by arduous step. Optimal matched his movement and the two drew closer to each other without faltering. As soon as they were within arm's length, their attacks canceled each other out and sent both of them skidding backward. Optimal managed to recover, and Unicron rushed him before he could react. Unicron thew his hands onto Optimal's chassis and blasted him across the battlefield, and Optimal was suddenly out of sight.

Optimus Prime couldn't begin to believe what he witnessed even as he grabbed the Star Saber and rushed Unicron. He took the mightiest swing he could possibly muster and brought the mighty down onto his intended target. A heavy clang sounded. Optimus Prime was left in even more shock than when he watched Optimal Optimus's apparent defeat. Unicron had the blade of the Star Saber in one hand, and then he stood up to face Optimus optic to optic. Megatron came rushing in from afar with his mace in full swing, but Unicron felt him coming and grabbed hold of him. Lifting the two leaders up, Unicron slammed them into each other before tossing down. Both Optimus and Megatron slammed hard onto the surface and were unable to get back up. Unicron still had the Star Saber in his hand and tossed it aside before gazing at the Well of Sparks and the lights rising from it.

Optimus Prime looked toward the Well and said, "You have lost, Unicron. Cybertron lives again."

"Nothing has been changed. You have only delayed the coming of oblivion." Unicron proclaimed.

"Not as long as we still function, Unicron." Megatron declared as he rose up to a knee and Optimus Prime followed.

Unicron was clearly finished dealing with Megatron and Optimus and prepared to unleash on final attack, only to be struck by an unseen shot. Optimus and Megatron looked up toward the sky, and Starscream flew into view. Transforming mid-flight, he landed right beside Megatron but didn't take the chance to kill him. Instead, he helped Megatron up while Shockwave and Blitzwing arrived soon after. Windblade, Breakaway and Sky-Byte arrived as Optimus Prime started to get up when he was helped by Drift. The rest of the Wreckers arrived as did the other Autobots, the Maximals, Predaking and Blackarachnia. There was strangely no sign of either Fortress Maximus or Skorponok.

Unconcerned by the sudden appearances, Unicron declared, "Lead as many of your minions to their doom as you wish, Optimus Prime. You shall not halt the rise of a dead universe."

Unicron then started lifting his arms up, while the Transformers prepared for the next fight to come. They weren't ready to the see the thousands of fragments of Unicron's head levitate into the air. None of the Transformers were sure of what to make of what Unicron was doing, until one of the fragments began to seemingly change shape on its own. Others like it began reshaping and forming crude constructs that seemed to adopt bipedal forms. The first of the fragments took on the most unexpected shape in the form of – Optimus Prime himself but in a pure black color scheme.

Several of the larger fragments formed on either side of the faux Optimus, nay, Nemesis Prime. They all took on the forms of beings that once served Unicron; Sideways, Thunderwing, Cyclonus, Scourge, Tempest... and Galvatron. Then, the many remaining fragments reshaped into constructs resembling Unicron himself. They seemed to number in the thousands, but it was clear was that they outnumbered the Transformers.

The thousands of avatars all spoke out in unison and in the voice of Unicron, "We are all Unicron, and we condemn you all to oblivion."

TO BE CONTINUED...


Author's Note: That's it for this chapter and in case it wasn't obvious, things be getting biblical. It's time for the Apocalypse, so stay tuned.