a/n: I've updated the prologue, and there's some dialogue referencing the rewritten prologue in this chapter. If Winter defeated Bumblebee with a bolt of Lightning in your last readthrough of the prologue, then I'm afraid you might want to reread it. Also, I KNOW he's a bull, I was referencing a FNDM meme!
TW: Adam and Blake are still together in this chapter. I don't like it, Blake doesn't like it, Adam DOES like it but that just makes it worse.
Chapter 2: World of Cybertron
"Adam, I have news regarding Specialist Schnee."
Adam Taurus looked up from the papers and reports on his desk to face the speaker, a golden-eyed girl with black hair, a bow adorning her head.
"Oh really?" he asked. The girl threw another paper on the desk.
"Most of this was redacted on the server," she explained, "But from what I can tell, someone stole a piece of the bomb and then managed to shake the Atlesian Military's pursuit at a business near the excavation site."
"Anything else?" Adam asked.
"Nothing we can use, just a look-out for a black and yellow, self-driving motorcycle," the girl answered.
Adam quirked an eyebrow.
"I don't know either," the girl answered the unspoken question, "Either way, it doesn't look like the Atlesian Military will be able to use the bomb against us."
"No, but that also means that we can't use it against them," Adam replied.
"I'm sorry, what?" the girl asked.
"High Leader Sienna Khan made it clear that we need to strike fear in the hearts of humans if we want them to respect Faunus kind," Adam replied, "The bombs Mantle used in the Great War used the right mix of Dust Types that is still classified to this day to devastate their enemies. Unfortunately, the schematics have all been destroyed, but seeing how destructive they were, can you imagine what would happen if one of those knocked old Ironwood and the Schnees right off their pedestals and into the pits of Hell where they belong?"
"They wouldn't be the only casualties," the girl replied, her voice low.
"Can you think of anyone in Atlas who honestly doesn't deserve to die?" Adam asked, "Remember what Ilia told you? Would you defend her assailants and abusers the way your parents did?"
"No!" the girl shouted, "Adam, I would never!"
"That's a relief!" Adam said as he walked around his desk, "You had me worried there for a moment, Blake. You must never forget the thing about Atlas: Every human who lives there has made their living exploiting the Faunus, and every Faunus who works for them is complicit in their crimes. Do you understand, darling?"
"Yes, my love," Blake replied.
"Be careful to never become like those traitors," Adam replied as he headed out, "Now, I've been pouring over those maps all day, would you be a dear and pinpoint where the Atlesian Military lost the thief's trail?"
"Of course," Blake answered. A predatory grin found its way onto Adam's face.
"Good night my darling, you can give me your report in the morning," he said as he exited the tent.
"Goodnight, Adam," Blake said with a sigh. What am I doing with my life?
"Woah, woah, woah, back it up!" Taiyang interrupted, "Are you telling me that you're an honest to God alien?"
"... Yes? Why is that what people on this planet have trouble wrapping their heads around?" Bumblebee asked, "Judging by the tech I've seen, you should have space travel by now."
"Dust doesn't work outside of Remnant's atmosphere," Yang answered.
"Then why not just use something other than Dust?" Bumblebee asked, "And why do you call it 'Dust' anyway, doesn't that get confusing?"
"Look, these are all interesting questions, but maybe we can get back to the matter at hand," Taiyang interrupted before they could continue on that tangent, "What's this about a visionary?"
"Oh uh, let's just say that Cybertron, even if it didn't have a bunch of Sparkless abominations wandering the wilderness, did have it's own share of issues," Bumblebee continued, "You see, way before I was even constructed, Cybertron had been devastated by a war, and so Zeta Prime, Cybertron's leader at the time, enacted a temporary rationing system, and assigned different 'functions' to each body type and alt-mode. Unfortunately, Zeta Prime went Offline before the Energon shortage ended, opening the system up for exploitation…"
"What's Energon?" Ruby asked.
"Think if your Dust was a liquid, and also your only source of sustenance," Bumblebee answered, "Now, like I was saying…"
"When Cybertron's repairs were done, rather than end the caste system, Sentinel Prime instead opted for mass production of protoforms in hopes of starting up a golden age. It was under these circumstances that D-16, a nameless soldier among a crowd of nameless soldiers, was built. If not for the one and only campaign he ever went on, history would've never even remembered him."
D-16 scowled as he fired multiple energon blasts across the wastes of Tsiehshi, striking the drillers and scraplets that had mutated from exposure to the especially potent "Destruction-Type Energon" found on this planet.
"What's the point of taking Energon we can't process?" his comrade in arms, D-17 asked. Their commanding officer answered with a single shot of his fusion cannon, breaking the soldier's projected spark field and letting the magnetic radiation from the Deestruction-Type Energon fry his circuits.
"That's why we're here!" the commander answered, "Process this stuff into usable ammunition, and that'll be our enemies' circuits that burst into flame! Any other questions?" None of the soldiers were brave or stupid enough to take up that offer. "That's what I thought. Now, focus on clearing out these beasts so that the miners can trade their Sparks for some good old fashioned firepowAUGH!" A Driller had burst from the ground beneath the commander's feet, the Transformer in question caught between the serpentine creatures three, drill-like fangs. "What are you worthless rustbuckets doing?" the commander asked, his purple Projected Spark Field flaring to protect his body, "SHOOT IT!" D-16 raised his ion rifle, and fired a single shot to disrupt the commander's Projected Spark Field, while the others shifted focus to the Scraplets.
"While the commander most certainly had it coming, he was also the only one authorized to call in the extraction shuttle, meaning that nobody ever came to take the battalion back to Cybertron, and so they were left stranded on one of the most dangerous planets in the galaxy. It wasn't long until D-16 was the only one left."
D-16 groaned as he took shelter on a stone far from the deadly Energon Ores and mutant beasts that had ravaged the planet.
"What the Pit am I supposed to do now?" he questioned, "None of the energon on this Primus Forsaken rock is safe for consumption! How is anyone supposed to survive here?"
"Simple, you adapt," a new voice answered. D-16 rose to his feet, ion rifle in hand, and spun around to face the speaker. Then he froze, and looked up, and up, and up, until he saw a pair of glowing, orange optics staring back down at him.
"By the AllSpark," D-16 lowered his weapon, "Who are you?"
"My name was taken from me eons ago," the newcomer said, fire in his mouth and optics, "By that egomaniacal coward who thought he could command my people." Orange circuits lit up all over the newcomers body, and D-16 had to step back as it soon became clear that the newcomer was also some kind of living furnace. "Still, for convenience's sake, I must ask, what do you call the Prime who's name was stricken from history?" D-16's optics widened in realization.
"The Fallen…" The living inferno laughed.
"So that's what they call me now!" the Fallen bellowed, "The Fallen? I'd be insulted if it wasn't further evidence of how terrified of me Prima is. Tell me, has that old fool's god complex gotten any worse?"
"Prima is now one with the Matrix," D-16 replied, "As happens to all Primes when they-"
"The rank of Prime means nothing!" The Fallen shouted, his flames erupting for emphasis, "It's just a title Prima used to con us all into joining his cult! Understood?"
"Y-yes sir."
"Good," the Fallen answered, "Now, I've given you my name, so what's yours?"
"D-16," the soldier answered.
"Not that name! Your new one!" the Fallen snapped, "The one I gave you!"
"I don't understand," D-16 replied, his voice shaking.
"Of course you don't, Prima made sure to keep all of his followers in the dark," the Fallen replied, "No matter, I'll see if you're worthy of my old name by the time we're done with your training."
"I didn't understand the significance of any of that," Yang interrupted, "What's a Prime anyway, some kind of god?"
"No, they're just the highest authority on Cybertron and its colony worlds," Bumblebee replied, "The original Thirteen Primes were a bunch of tribal leaders who united to defend Cybertron from an invasion of monsters, before dispersing to colonize a bunch of worlds, with Prima, the original Prime, staying behind to rule Cybertron. The Fallen saw this as Prima just trying to take Cybertron for himself while exiling the other leaders, there was a very messy Prime War, and then the Fallen was exiled to his own colony world. While Liege Maximo was the mastermind behind the operation, the fact that his tribe didn't go extinct is the only reason people remember his name."
"Liege Maximo?"
"... You know what I'll just explain the relevant bits as they come up," Bumblebee replied, "Now, where was I?"
"The Fallen taught D-16 how to get safe energron from the scraplets and drillers, how to stop the 'Destruction-Type Energon' from frying his circuits, trained him in the use of his Projected Spark Field-"
"Projec-"
"It's what he calls Aura," Ruby interrupted her father.
"-and how to use it to power his Distinction."
"And I'm guessing from the context that you're talking about his Semblance?" Taiyang asked.
"Are Semblances special abilities fueled by your 'Aura?'" Bumblebee asked.
Taiyang nodded.
"Then yes."
"Anyway, time passed, and eventually Sentinel Prime was destroyed in a suspiciously convenient energon explosion, leaving the office open for Nominus Prime, a real exhaust pipe of a Transformer, to take control of Cybertron. His first order of business was to try and reclaim the failed colony of Tsiehshi. It proved to be the worst decision he ever made. The expedition had been forced to abandon their dead and wounded, but brought back an interesting discovery."
"Nominus Prime!" a blue and red truck shouted as he drove up to the Prime's throne and transformed into a large robot with yellow optics, "I have news regarding the attempt to recapture Tsiehshi!"
"Well, how soon can we begin moving in the new generation?" Nominus Prime asked.
"Erm… Never," Ultra Magnus answered, "90% of the colonization team was wiped out."
"WHAT?!" Nominus Prime shouted, jumping from his throne, "Do you know how many protoforms I had forged and brought online? Who's responsible for this?"
"From what we can tell, nobody," Ultra Magnus answered.
"Well look again!" Nominus Prime ordered, "I want you to find and arrest the responsible party!"
"I'll see what I can do, my liege," Ultra Magnus replied, "But the survivors were able to bring something, or rather, someone back."
"Oh?" Nominus replied, "And who would that be?"
.
"My name is Megatron," D-16 answered.
"And it's thanks to you that the survivors were able to escape at all?" Stardrive asked as she sat across from him in the interrogation room.
"No, that would be thanks to my mentor's noble sacrifice," D-16, or rather "Megatron" replied, "Not that Sentinel Prime would understand that concept."
"Sentinel Prime's been dead for Megacycles," Stardrive answered, "Our current leader is Nominus Prime. But that's besides the point." Stardrive rose from her seat. "What is your mentor's name."
"He named me after himself," Megatron answered, "He also asked to be buried on Caminus, for reasons I don't know."
"Good luck with that, Nominus Prime blacklisted all of the Colony Worlds when he got the Matrix of Leadership," Stardrive answered, "Additionally, there are going to be penalties for smuggling his remains onto the evacuation ship. Ultra Magnus pulled some strings so you'll only be hit with some jailtime and a short parole period."
"Only?"
"The alternative was hard labor in an energon refinery," Stardrive answered, "Your mentor's remains will be preserved until you've served your sentence, then you can decide what to do with them."
"Okay so, any questions before I continue?"
"Hang on, what's a protoform?" Taiyang asked, "You've been using that word a lot but I haven't really been getting a definition."
"You have two protoforms in this very room," Bumblebee replied as he motioned to Yang and Ruby. The three looked confused at first, before realization dawned on Ruby's face.
"Protoforms are baby Transformers!"
"I guess that's one way to look at it," Bumblebee replied, "But we usually come out about as big as we'll ever get, and mature a lot quicker than most organic life forms. Any other questions?"
"What's the Matrix of Leadership?" Yang asked.
"An ancient, possibly magical relic granted to Prima by his creator, Primon," Bumblebee answered, "It's passed down from Prime to Prime on Cybertron, and is a symbol of power, a database, and might even be alive if what I've heard Optimus say is true."
"Huh…" Yang remarked, "Nifty."
"Any other questions?" Bumblebee asked.
"How does this relate to you and why you're here?" Taiyang asked.
"Oh, Megatron never really told me that much about his sentence, but I was kind of his biggest fan after he became a public figure," Bumblebee replied, "And all I can say, is that it was the worst decision of my life."
"Okay so, imagine this: You're B-127, one of a million mass-produced protoforms manufactured in anticipation of Nominus Prime's idiotic colony plans. Except then the very colony you were created for ends up failing, and there's nowhere for you to go on Cybertron. So, you hit the streets, doing odd jobs here and there, except you're incredibly small, live in a city built for giants, and your alt-mode isn't exactly suited for heavy lifting. Except you need energon to keep your Spark burning, but nobody wants to hire you. Suddenly, your smaller, more energon efficient body is a curse rather than a blessing. To top it all off, the government is LITERALLY waiting for you to drop dead so that they can recycle your corpse into something useful. I… Did what I had to to stay online, and I don't have any happy memories about that time."
"Stop that thief!" Barricade shouted as he transformed into vehicle mode to chase after a yellow and black motorcycle, which just so happened to have a basket full of stolen energon cubes.
"Yeah… I was kind of a delinquent. Not really proud of it, but what can you do when you're a homeless motorbike in Kaon? But who's the bigger criminal, the homeless little protoform trying to survive, or the crime lord sitting on a throne of energon cubes and destroying several in front of his starving underlings? And besides, it's only illegal if you get caught!"
"B-127! You are under arrest for grand theft energon and evasion of arrest!"
"Needless to say, I got caught. And as a repeat offender of stealing energon from the guys who owned the Kaon Guard, I was lucky to only be sentenced to hard labor. They figured the best irony would be to make me serve energon cubes to one of my more frequent targets as they visited the Kaon Colosseum to watch Gladiator Battles. Just two or more bots slugging it out until their Projected Spark Fields fail. Or whatever the local term for that is anyway. Regardless, that's when I first saw him."
"Server, bring me energon!" Trannis shouted.
"Yes sir," B-127 remarked unenthusiastically as he filled an energon cube at the pump.
"Make it snappy! I don't want to have to turn my attention away from watching Megatron get what's coming to him!" B-127 carefully made his way to the Kaonite crime boss in the private booth as the audience outside cheered as a dome-like cage closed over the arena. Five trapdoors opened in the arena, four on the left, one on the right, and platforms soon carried up the combatants.
.
Megatron blocked out the sounds of the screaming audience and overly enthusiastic announcer as he closed his optics.
Remember, my student, the Fallen's words echoed in his head, Never settle for second best. Always strive for greatness.
"I remember, my master," Megatron muttered, his right hand clutching the Fusion Cannon, fashioned from his mentor's remains, that had been grafted to his right ar-
"Wait, he turned his mentor's corpse into a gun?" Taiyang interrupted.
"Typically, we Transformers melt down our dead so that their metals can be used to make new protoforms, but what Megatron did isn't really that unusual," Bumblebee replied, "In some circles its viewed as a means of keeping a part of them alive via using their remains to upgrade and repair loved ones."
"That still feels kinda messed up," Yang remarked.
"Yeah, like if I made Crescent Rose out of mom's bones…" Ruby shuddered.
"Okay, I know this isn't a thing on all worlds, but do you have organ donations here?" Bumblebee asked, "You know, where if you die and your organs are intact, they can be used to replace someone else's when they're damaged?"
"Yeah," the three humans answered.
"It's a bit like that, but in this case, the organ was a surgical addition to Megatron's arm that allows him to keep his mentor with him at all times due to being unable to give him a proper burial," Bumblebee replied, "Remember, we're living technology, but we're still technology. A lot of our practices are going to be different from an organic being's practices by default. Any other questions?"
"Wasn't the Fallen a lot bigger than Megatron?" Ruby asked.
"Here's the thing, the Fallen was killed by a swarm of scraplets, and scraplets have this thing where they eat their prey alive," Bumblebee answered, "There wasn't a lot left of him by the time Megatron killed the scraplets."
"Anyway, there Megatron was, staring down his four opponents. First was Deadlock, had a bit of a criminal record, dual-wielded 'Super Swords' and his Distinction meant that he'd get faster the more hits he took. Then there was Bludgeon, a real quiet type with one sword and two guns mounted on his back. Real creepy guy, I don't like talking about him. Third was Star Saber, who's very nice once you get to know him, but thinks he's way cooler than he actually is. Periodic deflating of his ego is kinda important. The last guy was Straxus, a real monster. He was infamous for 'accidentally' maiming his opponents, and typically only fought when Trannis wanted to make an example of someone. And his Distinction that boosted his opponents' sense of touch meant that every hit hurt about ten times as much as you'd expect. And given that he fought with a pickaxe, those hits already hurt. So, the odds were already stacked against him."
"Ready? BATTLE!" the announcer shouted as the audience screamed. Bludgeon drew his katana and ran straight for Megatron as Deadlock shifted into streetracer mode and drove right towards him.
"Four on one doesn't seem to be a fair battle, BUT HAVE AT THEE!" Star Saber shouted as he shifted into jetplane mode and soared around the aren-
"What's a jetplane?" Ruby asked.
"... You know, like an airplane?" Bumblebee replied.
"A what?"
"... A flying, aerodynamic vehicle?" Bumblebee answered.
"Oh! You mean an airship!" Ruby replied. Bumblebee stared at the Rose/Xiao Longs.
"This planet is weird," he remarked. "Anyway…"
Straxus switched his pickaxe into crossbow mode and fired multiple Energon blasts at Megatron as Bludgeon and Deadlock closed the distance. Megatron held out his right hand, and each of the blasts splashed uselessly against his palm. As soon as Deadlock was within striking distance, Megatron transformed his right hand into an Energon mace, and struck the streetrace into a wall. Bludgeon swung his sword, and the chain of the mace-
"Flail," Ruby interrupted.
Bumblebee tried not to glare at Ruby, because as impressive a fighter she was, she was still an injured organic being, far squishier than the living war machine she had just interrupted.
"Really?"
"Yes, really," Ruby said, missing the dry sarcasm in Bumblebee's tone, "When the ball is connected to the handle by a chain or rope, it's a flail. Otherwise, it's a mace."
"Megatron always called it his 'Energon Mace,'" Bumblebee replied.
"Then Megatron is wrong and should learn proper terminology," Ruby replied, "Honestly, what kind of self respecting fighter can't even get the name of their weapon right? That would be like if I called Crescent Rose a sickle instead of a scythe!"
Bumblebee thought about it for a second, and then burst out laughing.
Ruby and Yang exchanged a glance.
"Okay, sorry, it's just the thought of Megatron screwing up so badly that even a lifeform who's not even a fraction of his age could see the problem is kinda hilarious," he explained, "Honestly, I'll have to remember that and let the other Autobots know, Ironhide'll probably get a kick out of it." His chuckles died down, "Anyway…"
-And the chain of the flail wrapped around Bludgeon's blade. Megatron reactivated his Distinction, boosted the potency of the Energon in his melee weapon, and pulled. Bludgeon's sword was soon crushed by the chain, and Bludgeon himself was thrown over Megatron's head.
Deadlock took advantage of the distraction to shift back into robot mode and charge Megatron, blurring past him and slicing him with one of his swords. Bludgeon, meanwhile, discarded his now-useless weapon and swapped to tank mode, opening fire on Megatron. Megatron turned his Fusion cannon towards the anti-aircraft tank, only to get blindsided by Deadlock a second time.
"Oh, I see what's happening here," Straxus remarked as he shifted into tank mode, his crossbow-pickaxe becoming the gun, "Fire in the hole!"
Megatron used his Distinction to nullify the Energon in Straxus' shot, only to get blindsided by Deadlock a third time and get struck by missiles from Star Saber.
"Dreadfully sorry, Megatron!" Star Saber shouted, "But I'm afraid I must bring this skirmish to a close!" He fired two more missiles, which Megatron caught and disabled with his Distinction.
"I was getting bored anyway," Megatron retorted as he tossed the now-useless missiles aside and threw out his left arm to catch Deadlock's face in his palm. He then threw Deadlock into Bludgeon, and caught another one of Straxus' blasts.
"Why you…" Deadlock growled, before kicking off the ground, "I'll show you who's bor-" he ran straight into a blast from Megatron's Fusion Cannon, knocking him back into Bludgeon, and breaking his Projected Spark Field.
"It's still you," Megatron deadpanned, before folding into a tank, his fusion cannon forming the gun.
"Now this is starting to get interesting!" Star Saber shouted as he opened fire on Megatron. The tank waited for the jet to fly overhead, then continued to track Star Saber's movements, following after him with his gun. As soon as he locked on to the thrusters, BANG!
"Gyah! What?" Star Saber shifted back into robot mode, rolling across the arena's floor and over Bludgeon (breaking the gladiator's Projected Spark Field), before finally coming to a stop. "You shot out my engine! That's… Actually very impressive," Star Saber admitted as he drew his sword, "Very well then, this battle shall be one for the history books!" He jumped, gaining some extra lift and propulsion with his remaining thruster, and prepared to bring down his blade. Megatron simply sidestepped, allowing for Star Saber to take one of Straxus' shots to the face.
"And then there was one," Megatron remarked as Star Saber's Projected Spark Field broke, before turning to face Straxus, "Care to fight me like a real warrior? Or would you like to surrender like the coward you are?"
Straxus roared as he shifted back into robot mode, and ran directly at Megatron, firing off blast after blast.
Megatron rolled his optics and spun his energon flail in front of himself, deflecting each and every shot.
Straxus finished closing the distance and swung his pickaxe at Megatron.
Megatron's energon flail wrapped around the pickaxe.
"Let go of my weapon!" Straxus shouted as he pulled on the pickaxe, "I will not be disarmed so easily!"
"If this is your only weapon, then I'm afraid you've already lost," Megatron replied as he began to warm up his fusion cannon.
"Wha-" Straxus' question was interrupted by a punch to the chest, followed by a blast from Megatron's Fusion Cannon that broke right through his Projected Spark Field.
.
Megatron smirked as he stood over his defeated opponents, drinking in the cheers of the audience.
"Would you look at that? An 'obsolete', mass produced relic from the days of Sentinel Prime just defeated four custom made warriors of the modern era!" he boasted, "If I can pull this off in the ring, what do you think we all could accomplish out in the streets of Kaon? What power would the Syndicates and their underlings in the City Guard hold over all of us if we stood united as one?"
The spectators fell silent, a nervous murmuring filled the stands.
"Well, Trannis, if you have a problem with me, come and face me yourself!" Megatron shouted, "All of your other attempts to take me offline have been good exercise! But they're starting to bore me!" He swept his arms out, deliberately turning away from Trannis' private booth. "Soon there will be a day when the High Council and Nominus Prime will no longer be able to ignore us! We will not be downtrodden forever! The day shall come when our voices are loud enough that they will have no choice but to listen!" Megatron declared, "But of course, that will only happen when we're brave enough to raise our voices! And I don't intend to fall silent anytime soon!"
"Megatron! Megatron! Megatron!"
"Needless to say, Trannis was not all that happy with the outcome of the match, and Megatron was pretty dang popular in Kaon. It wasn't long until he had amassed followers, and as soon as my sentence had been fulfilled, I left to seek him out. Which is easier said than done when you've ticked off a crimelord."
"Hold it right there, thief!" B-127 froze as multiple vehicles circled him, and transformed into rather bulky robots.
"Woah there, I'm not sure if you've heard, but my sentence ended yesterday, I've done my time," B-127 replied.
"Legally, it has," the lead thug replied, "Off the books, however, the boss still needs to make an example to would-be annoyances."
"In other words, you owe him your Spark," another one of the enforces replied as he shifted his forearm into a gun, "And we're here to collect." B-127 froze, then shifted into vehicle mode to try and speed out. He was rewarded by a kick from one of the larger robots, and he shifted back into robot mode as soon as he hit the ground.
"Ready…" one of the enforcers started as the others all started charging their weapons. B-127 crossed his arms in front of his face in a vain attempt to protect his processor, only to flinch when he heard a blaster go off. He then opened his optics when he realized that he wasn't dead, even as more energon shots were going off and the enforcers were getting knocked around by a familiar energon flail, smoke rising from a familiar fusion cannon.
"I always knew Trannis was a coward," Megatron started, "But this is a new low for him." He locked optics with the lead thug. "Tell your coward of a master that if he has any further quarrels with this one, that he should meet with me so that we can discuss it, personally." Megatron retracted his energon flail and tapped his fusion cannon for emphasis. "I look forward to that discussion." The thugs transformed back into vehicle mode and fled. Megatron simply chuckled and turned to walk away.
"Thanks for the save!" B-127 called out.
"Ruining Trannis' Solar Cycle is it's own reward," Megatron replied dismissively.
"Still, I was kinda hoping I'd get the chance to meet you," B-127 explained, "Ever since that speech you gave after wiping the floor with four other gladiators, you're basically the hero of Kaon!"
"If you just wanted to tell me what I already know, I have places to go," the gladiator replied.
"I've heard that you've been taking on students and followers," B-127 continued, "I don't know the full story of what you're doing, but I know enough to know that I want in." Megatron actually paused in his step.
"What is your name?" he asked.
"My designation is B-127," B-127 answered.
"Well, B-127," megatron said as he turned with a grin, "Why don't you and I walk and talk? I'm sure that we'll find a place for you."
"Megatron and I talked all the way to his home on the outskirts of Kaon. At the time, I had never been happier. Looking back, I can't help but wonder how I could have ever been so stupid. Still, I did meet some good people that day."
"Megatron, where have you been?" a red, white, and blue Transformer asked.
"I was delayed on my way back from the coliseum," Megatron answered, "I may have found another recruit for the Ascenticons."
"Oh?" the other Transformer asked as he noticed B-127, "Oh." He knelt down. "Greetings, my name is Orion Pax, who are you?"
"I'm B-127," B-127 answered.
"He's one of the protoforms from Nominus Prime's failed colony plan," Megatron explained, "The poor thing was forced to steal energon to survive. But he won't have to anymore."
"Indeed," Orion Pax replied, "Megatron, Ratchet and Deadlock wanted to ask you about something. Would you mind if I introduced B-127 to the others?"
"I'll see what they want," Megatron replied as he brushed past Orion Pax, "Just be careful not to lose this one."
"We found Hauler before the Cycle was over," Orion Pax replied, a little too quickly for B-127's liking. Megatron didn't acknowledge Orion as he walked off.
"So…" B-127 started.
"Not to worry, the layout of our new headquarters are far more easy to navigate than the cave we used to meet in," Orion explained as he walked off for the elevator, "The fact that most of the rooms have windows will make escaping in an emergency even easier."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" B-127 asked as he transformed into motorcycle mode to catch up, "Because it's not making me feel better!"
.
"This is the landing pad," Orion Pax explained as the elevator took them to a large platform, "Those of us with flight-related alt modes, such as Whirl and Thundercracker, can use this for a more convenient entrance to our headquarters."
"Okay, but I don't see anyone else here," B-127 replied, "Aren't you supposed to be introducing me to the others?"
Orion Pax simply smiled as a cargo shuttle flew overhead, hovered over the landing pad, then unfolded into a truly massive Ascenticon. B-127 looked up, and up, and up at the red, white, and gold Transformer, the pink, encircled arrow of the Ascenticons adorning his chest and pointing upwards, towards his face.
"Orion, I wasn't expecting company," he remarked as his red eyes noticed the smaller Transformer standing next to Orion Pax, "Who's your friend?"
"This is B-127," Orion Pax explained, B-127 noticing that Orion was wearing a similar insignia on his shoulder, "He wants to join us in the fight for equality."
"It's great to meet you, B-127," the larger Transformer replied as he got on one knee, "My name is Jetfire."
"Uh…" B-127 gaped at Jetfire, "What brings you here?"
"I was one of the first to join when Orion and Megatron founded the Ascenticons," Jetfire replied, amusement clear in his voice, "Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"
"No, I mean, you're even bigger than Megatron!" B-127 clarified, "Why would you need to join the Ascenticons? Shouldn't you already be treated with respect?"
"You'd think so," Jetfire answered, sadness entering his voice, "But my body doesn't allow me to take a research vehicle as an alt-mode. As such, 'unskilled labor' is the only career the current system will let me pursue, leaving me unable to explore the stars and uncover the answers to the questions that have plagued my mind since I first came online."
"... What?"
"He wants to be a scientist, but isn't allowed to," Orion Pax clarified.
"That's what I said," Jetfire replied.
"Your cryptic language confused your message," Orion Pax replied, "There's a reason I'm Megatron's speechwriter."
"Wait, you write Megatron's speeches?!" B-127 shouted.
"Not all of them," Orion Pax explained, "He improvises his victory speeches in the arena, I just write the ones he gives at the rallies and protests."
"Word of advice, if the speech contains the phrases 'Till all are one!' or 'Freedom is the right of all sentient beings!' it's an Orion speech," Jetfire explained.
"Those are just phrases I picked up from Alpha Trion while working in the archives," Orion explained, "I can't take all the credit."
"Regardless, I should probably get back to what I was doing before," Jetfire replied, "Now where's Starscream?"
"I had been hoping to meet with him myself," Orion Pax remarked, "The reason I brought B-127 up here is because I thought he'd be coming here with you."
"Orion!" a voice called from the elevator. B-127 whirled around to see a yellow, red, and orange Transformer with flame decals running from the elevator, "There you are! Starscream called to let you know he wouldn't be able to make today's meeting. Something about experimenting with Sideways' Phase Shift Distinction and who is this?"
"Hot Rod, this is B-127," Orion Pax explained as he gestured to the smaller Transformer, "B-127, this is Hot Rod."
"Oh, are you new?" Hot Rod asked.
"Yeah… Megatron just brought me here a few Microcycles ago," B-127 answered.
"Well it's always nice to have a new face on board," Hot Rod replied with a warm grin, his fiery optics analyzing the smaller Transformer, "Hang on, is your Projected Spark Field still locked?"
"Uh…"
"Hot Rod, B-127 hasn't even finished receiving the grand tour, and I'm certain Megatron would like to be present for his initiation," Orion Pax cut in, "Regardless, we should probably continue."
"The Ascenticons were, essentially, a group of political activists looking to abolish the restrictive caste system in hopes of improving life for everyone on Cybertron. There were a lot of good bots who wanted to make the world a better place. That didn't change that a large number of them had more selfish reasons for joining up. Still, we didn't really care about intent so long as we achieved a good result. Probably our first mistake, looking back. Still, I was there at every rally and protest, in the front row of every speech. Megatron himself unlocked my Projected Spark Field. Trained me in how to deploy it, how to conserve it, and how to use it to power my Distinction."
"Can I see it?" a starry-eyed Ruby asked. Unlike the other times he had been interrupted, Bumblebee chuckled.
"I'd love to, but it only really works if your Projected Spark Field is deployed," he explained. Upon seeing their confused faces, he continued. "My Stinger lets me solidify my opponent;s Projected Spark Field, hold them in place for a few seconds."
"Oh…" Ruby replied.
"I would offer to demonstrate, but I don't want one of you to suffocate because I accidentally put too much force into it," Bumblebee explained, "Especially seeing how you're still healing."
"Back on topic, everything was going well. I finally had a group of friends, a place to go to. I was at the front of every protest, cheered loudest at all the rallies, and spread Megatron's teachings to whoever would listen. We gradually picked up more and more members, and then everything went wrong."
Orion Pax ducked behind a piece of rubble with B-127 and Hot Rod as Trannis laughed maniacally.
"You thought you could just take a shortcut through my turf and get away with it?" he taunted as his underlings opened fire, "You Decepticons have been weakening my grasp on this city, cut all of my connections, and generally refused to lay down and die like a good waste of metal!"
"It's Ascenticons!" Starscream shouted, only to fly away screaming in his jet mode the second Trannis turned to acknowledge him.
"Coward!" Megatron shouted.
"Why do we keep him around again?" B-127 asked.
"He has connections," Soundwave answered.
"Trannis, we have no quarrel with y-" an energon blast to the shoulder knocked Orion Pax on his back.
"Orion!" Hot Rod shouted.
"No Projected Spark Field? What kind of idiot are you?" Trannis asked, "Extinguish his spark!" Three of Trannis' thirteen thugs charged towards the upturned rubble in hopes of gunning down Orion Pax. Unfortunately, they failed to notice B-127 activate his Distinction, until he had jumped out of his cover and jammed his Stinger into the foot of the lead thug, solidifying his Projected Spark Field, and causing the remaining two to tumble into him. Megatron deployed his energon flail and batted away all three of them.
"Hot Rod, Soundwave, tend to Orion's injury," Megatron ordered, "B-127, remember your training." He then spun his flail in front of himself to form a makeshift shield as the remaining ten thugs opened fire on him. None of them noticed the black and yellow motorcycle speed right past Megatron and right towards them. As soon as B-127 got behind a thug, he activated his Distinction and jabbed his Stinger into the bot's Projected Spark Field. The thug's PSF solidified just as he was about to fire his energon pistol, causing the shot to be deflected right back down the barrel. All optics were off Megatron as the Sting wore off and the thug dropped to his knees and clutched his broken arm to cry out in agony, smoke rising from the busted limb.
"Why you litAUGH!" One blast from Megatron's fusion cannon was enough to take that thug out of the fight. Four of the thugs concentrated fire on Megatron as four opened fire on B-127. B-127 shifted into motorcycle mode and drove towards the closest, shifting back into robot mode to slice at the backs of his knees. While his Projected Spark Field kept B-127 from severing them, they did not stop his knees from buckling, allowing Megatron to score another easy hit. B-127 traded out his energon blades for his energon blasters and shot another thug in the optics. While his Projected spark Field once again prevented any serious damage, the reflexive recoil from the stinging pain caused him to to knock his partner off his feet, allowing B-127 to deliver a solid punch to the midsection that knocked him over and on top of said partner.
.
Trannis scowled as he watched his thugs drop one by one.
"Clearly, I'm paying you all too much if you can barely handle that half-pint," he growled, "Forget about shooting Megatron! Restrain him!" The four thugs whom had been focusing fire on Megatron shifted into vehicle mode as the three thugs from earlier untangled themselves and threw themselves onto Megatron's back.
"Why you-" Megatron grumbled as the other four circled around him. Two of them rolled into robot mode to restrain his arms, one grabbed his legs, and the last threw himself on top of the pile on his back as Trannis laughed.
"So you are good for something after all!" he mocked as his body shifted into helicopter mode, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an example to make." The propeller atop his body picked up speed, lifting his body off the ground as the propeller on his stabilizing tail allowed him to steer his movement. The missile launchers and machine guns built into the vehicle all took aim at the rubble as the disgraced crime boss ascended higher and higher. "I should probably move towards a more advantageous position." Trannis tilted forwards, and slowly flew to where Soundwave and Hot Rod were tending to Orion's injured shoulder.
"B-127! Onto my mace!" Megatron ordered as three of the goons B-127 had taken out helped the one with the broken arm. B-127 shifted into motorcycle mode, drove over to the spiked ball of Megatron's energon flail, and shifted back into robot mode to balance on top of it.
"I don't see what you're tryin to do," one of the thugs announced, "There's no way you can throw us all off with your weapon pointed at the ground like tha-" Megatron fired his fusion cannon at the ground, the recoil knocking him into the air and the goons off his back.
"Now!" Megatron barked as he swung his flail through the air. B-127 let go, fired his energon blasters for extra momentum, and turned to face Trannis as he activated his Distinction.
.
Trannis chuckled to himself as he took aim at Orion Pax's prone form.
"So sorry little Decepticon, but your story ends here!" he boasted. Right as he fired his weapons, his propeller blades came to a sudden stop as they collided with his now solid Projected Spark Field. Even when it returned to normal, the damage had been done, his propellers damaged beyond anything resembling functionability by the sudden stop, his weapons destroyed by the recoil from shooting an impenetrable barrier that had covered the barrels, and his body was descending far quicker than it had ascended. By the time his processor caught up with the world around him,
BANG!
.
B-127's groaned as he pushed himself off of the ground, Trannis' heavily dented body covered with a flickering light as his Projected Spark Field gave out.
"Let's get out of here!" one of the thugs shouted, before they all shifted into vehicle mode and sped off (one of them continually crying out in pain as his arm was still broken from the ordeal and not ready for such a hasty transformation).
"NO!" Trannis cried out as his body began to shift, bits and plates of metal dropping off of his misshapen body as he forced himself to transform, "Please! Don't leave me!" He finally reached robot mode, wires sticking out of various openings on his body as he coughed up smoke. "I still function!" He dropped to his knees as something important fell out of him, sparks flying from his damaged circuits. A shadow was suddenly cast over him, and Trannis looked up at Orion Pax's now standing form with fear in his optics. Even Orion's injured shoulder did little to make the file clerk look less intimidating to the broken and bleeding Trannis.
"Trannis," Orion started, "It's over."
"So now you're going to gloat?" Trannis asked.
"No," Orion answered, "I want to know why."
"Why what?" Trannis asked.
"Why you would have all of those resources, all of that power, and not use any of it to benefit those worse off than yourself?" Orion asked, "I don't understand, and I need to understand if the Ascenticons are going to change anything." Trannis laughed dryly.
"You don't get how the world works, do you?" Trannis answered, "The strong rule over the weak, and compassion is weakness. You gotta stay tough to stay on top!"
"Then why are you the one in pieces?" Orion asked.
Trannis didn't have an answer.
"That's the problem with ruling through fear," Orion continued, "the second you stop being the scariest one in the room, your followers abandon you."
"Are you seriously lecturing me right now?" Trannis asked.
"I'm trying to help you," Orion answered, "Your followers have all abandoned you, so hoarding power to yourself to rule through fear clearly isn't the way to go."
"I thought you said you weren't going to gloat."
"But what if you used that wealth to repair Kaon?" Orion asked, "What if you gave your energon to those who live off the droplets? You wouldn't need to rule through fear, you would be a hero to the people of Kaon. There would be many who would stand with and aid you out of sheer gratitude, even when you were at your lowest." Trannis laughed bitterly.
"Do you really think it would be that easy?"
"The right thing to do is rarely the easiest," Orion Pax replied, "But I believe that there's a little good in every Spark. And I intend to do my best to ensure that everyone I meet is at least a little better off than when I left them. Aside from that, we're Transformers. Transformation is a part of our very lives. Why not transform into something better than what you were before?"
"You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?" Trannis asked.
"Freedom is the right of all sentient beings," Orion answered, "If you use that freedom to decide to continue down this self destructive path, then there is little I can do to stop you other than call for the city guards you no longer control and let them put you where you can't hurt anyone else." Trannis flinched. "But that means you also have the freedom to improve yourself and restore Kaon to its former glory. I would prefer that you choose the latter, but that's a choice only you can make. Regardless of what you chose, I will have Ratchet patch you up before you fall apart." Trannis looked at Orion incredulously.
"Did you seriously just say that you would rearm the bot who tried to kill you five clicks ago?" he asked.
"I didn't say that," Orion replied, an unusual edge in his voice, "I'm an optimist, not a fool. You will have to prove yourself trustworthy if you do change for the better. I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to consider your options while Ratchet is repairing you." Trannis laughed, but there was no joy in his voice.
"And here I was, thinking you were some kind of idiot," he remarked, "Orion, you're really something el-" Trannis' body erupted into fire and shrapnel, reduced to burning scrap metal.
.
Orion Pax was knocked off his feet by the shockwave from the blast, and Hot Rod ran over to support his injured side.
"What the Pit, Megatron!" he shouted.
"He was reaching for a weapon," Megatron replied as he lowered his still-smoking fusion cannon.
"What weapon?" Hot Rod asked.
"Megatron, if we're to build a better society we need to be willing to show mercy," Orion Pax replied, "There will be penalties, but we need to prioritize fixing the problems with Cybertron's system over vengeance. Executing a defeated opponent sets a poor pre-"
"He would've never changed, and never learned!" Megatron interrupted, "In a battle you must be decisive."
"The battle was over Megatron!" Orion Pax argued, "He was in no position to hurt anyone!"
"Maybe he deserved it!" B-127 injected, "Bots like him have been walking all over bots like us for as long as I remember! Why should we give him another chance he doesn't deserve?" Orion almost looked sad as he turned towards B-127.
"What do you expect me to do, go up to Iacon and dismantle everyone there?" he asked.
"If that's what it takes," Megatron replied darkly.
"You're outvoted three to two," Soundwave cut in, "Words mean nothing unless they're backed by actions." Orion Pax turned to face the burning pile of scrap that used to be Trannis.
"Nobody had to die today."
"He disagreed," Megatron replied as he, B-127, and Soundwave walked away.
Bumblebee fell silent.
"So uh… Any questions?" he asked, "I'm not done yet, but I can just summarize the events leading to the Great War pretty quickly, and I figured that would be a good time to break before Megatron really went off the deep end."
"Was Trannis really armed?" Ruby asked.
"I don't know," Bumblebee answered, "It was so long ago that I can barely even remember what he sounded like."
"And what's this about a 'Great War'?" Taiyang asked, "I can guess you're not talking about the one from 80 years ago…"
"Oh of course you guys had one too," Bumblebee remarked, "You don't have a military if there's no concept of war. And, well, that actually ties into how I got here." That startled all three of the humans in the room. "You see, Orion Pax wasn't a warrior yet, he just wanted to make Cybertron a better place. I mean, sure, he'd be willing to throw a few punches when the chips were down, but he believed that violence should be an absolute last resort, and wasn't one for executing a defeated opponent," he explained, "So, naturally, when Megatron decided to trade protests and rallies for riots and acts of vandalism, he split off and formed his own faction." He opened his right hand, and the holographic projection of a red, almost humanoid face appeared, it's eyes and mouth serene. It almost resembled a shield. "The Autobots used the same tactics that the Ascenticons used to, protests, rallies, civil disobedience, and the occasional malicious compliance." He chuckled as the hologram dissolved, "The smart bots jumped ship to join the Autobots. I… Wasn't one of the smart ones. But eventually, everything almost worked out."
"One day, some incriminating evidence was released, and Nominus Prime was arrested for breaking one of his own laws, freeing up the Matrix of Leadership for a new leader. Megatron was so sure that he'd be the one to receive it, given the sheer number of Ascenticons in every city. To his surprise, the High Council instead elected to make Orion Pax the new Prime. Orion was shocked, and Megatron was furious. He left Iacon for the nearby city of Polyhex, to the top of the Ascenticons' HQ of Darkmount, to brood. That was when I saw his true colors for the first time."
Megatron reclined in his throne with a scowl. His throne was opposite a window that gave him a view of the entire Polyhex skyline. The new Ascenticon logo adorned the wall behind his throne. The arrow had been inverted and expanded into a horned face with two glaring eyes, and the circle had been removed from the design. Soundwave and Shockwave stood at his right and left respectively.
"Megatron, you have a visitor," B-127 as he entered through a side door.
"Oh?" Megatron remarked.
"Megatron, we need to talk," Orion Pax announced as he followed B-127 into the room.
"Are you here to gloat? Oh mighty Prime!" Megatron growled.
"No, I am here to make an offer, old friend," Orion Pax replied. That seemed to shock Megatron, Soundwave, and Shockwave.
"You have my attention," Megatron replied as he reclined back into his throne.
"Even if we've disagreed on methods, the goal we've both been working towards is finally within reach," Orion started, "However, the simple fact is that you have far more experience with leadership than I do." Megatron grinned. "As such, I was hoping that you could be my chief advisor." The grin vanished.
"What?"
"Given your own experience with the worst Cybertron has to offer, I cannot imagine how I can fix this world without your experience," Orion Pax explained as Megatron rose to his feet.
"Is that all you have to offer?" Megatron asked.
"That is the most I can," Optimus replied, "It would set a poor precedent if my first action as Prime were to go against the wishes of the Council meant to limit the power of the Primes."
"If I were Prime, things would be different," Megatron remarked.
"We'll see," Orion replied, "After all, if anything happened to me, my advisor would probably be the first the High Council would consider."
"Why wait that long?" Megatron asked. B-127 did a double take as soon as the words registered.
"Wha-"
"I don't understand," Orion Pax replied, shaken, "At least, I hope I don't."
"Then let me clarify, this charade is over," Megatron replied as he walked towards Orion, the Autobot leader backing away to keep his distance, "You really shouldn't be surprised, you see, the Fallen's name was Megatronus, something you would have known if my mentor's name hadn't been struck from the record! He told me the truth about the Primes, and how the Matrix of Leadership controls the mechanisms of Cybertron. He knew that he didn't have much time left, and so trained me to carry on his legacy! I promised him that I would never settle for anything less than the Matrix of Leadership itself! But I was smart enough to realize that I would need followers to claim it."
"But, you said the freedom is the right of all sentient beings!" Orion protested, "Was all of that a lie?"
"Those were your words Orion! Not mine!" Megatron interrupted, "As much of an annoyance Trannis was, he was right about the nature of the world! Your compassion made you oh so easy to manipulate, but your charisma made you the obvious choice for my speechwriter! But words without action mean nothing." Orion's back hit the glass window as Megatron stood over him. "So Orion, I will only say this once," the Ascenticon leader continued as he pointed his fusion cannon at Orion Pax's chest, "Give me the Matrix of Leadership, and I might spare your life."
"I haven't yet received it," Orion replied. Megatron growled as he charged his fusion cannon.
"Wrong answer."
BANG!
The window shattered as Orion Pax was blasted through it, the light of his optics flickering out alongside his Projected Spark Field as he plummeted to the city streets below.
.
"Now that that nuisance has been dealt with," Megatron began, "B-127, send out a message to all of the Ascenticons, it's high time to bring down the High Council, claim the Matrix of Leadership, and remake Cybertron in the image of their glorious leader." B-127 wordlessly activated his comm, and began a group call with Jetfire and Ultra Magnus.
"You want me to spread the word?"
"Yes," Megatron replied, "We will march on Iacon immediately."
"B? Does Megatron need something?"/"B-127? How did you get this num-"
"Megatron's murdered Orion Pax! He's going to attack Iacon to claim the Matrix of Leadership, you have to get ready for-" he was cut off when Megatron's energon flail smashed him into a wall.
"Megatron what?!"/"The Prime is dead? B-127 what is Megatron going to attack with?"
"Kill him," Megatron ordered Shockwave and Soundwave, "I'll give the order myself." He activated his comm, and began broadcasting to all Ascenticons.
.
"Greetings my loyal followers! As you have no doubt learned, the High Council made the dreadful mistake of putting that traitorous weakling Orion Pax in charge of Cybertron. I have personally rectified that mistake, by extinguishing his Spark. However, he did not have the Matrix of Leadership with him, so now it falls onto us to claim the Matrix, and turn the tables on who is oppressed. The time for talk is over, Decepticons, TRANSFORM AND RISE UP!"
"I wasn't able to defeat Shockwave and Soundwave, but I was able to escape," Bumblebee explained as Taiyang, Yang, and Ruby listened with varying levels of shock on their faces, "What followed was the most chaotic day in Cybertron's history as every city became a warzone."
"He killed his friend… That easily?" Ruby asked
"Megatron tried," Bumblebee replied, "But by some miracle, Orion was reactivated by the end of the battle. But a lot of good bots died that day, including Orion's creator, Alpha Trion."
Ruby tried to imagine what it would be like to lose her father in a battle her sister had started, but found that she couldn't imagine Yang doing anything that cruel.
"That said, the experience changed him," Bumblebee continued, "His body had been upgraded into a bulkier form, he unlocked his Distinction, and changed his name to Optimus Prime. While he never lost sight of his core values, his optimism never recovered."
Yang tried to imagine Ruby without her endless optimism and hopeful attitude, but stopped when the mental image became too depressing to dwell on.
"I'm sorry you had to endure that, but how did you end up here?" Taiyang asked.
"There were a lot of battles, the war spread to Cybertron's colony worlds, my voice box was ripped out and replaced," Bumblebee explained, "But eventually, Megatron poisoned Cybertron itself in a great act of spite, and we were forced to evacuate. Optimus gathered together the Autobots he trusted the most, and we boarded the Ark in order to try and track down an uninhabited world we could Cyberform into a new Cybertron. Unfortunately, we began to run low on energon."
"Ratchet, what's your prognosis?" Optimus asked.
"The Ark can most definitely reach that power source we detected," Ratchet replied, "The only issue is that it can't reach that power source and keep all of us alive at the same time."
"Seriously?" Sideways remarked, "We're already rationing energon, what else can we do?"
"There is the stasis ward," Optimus answered. The gathered Autobots looked at Optimus with a look of shock on their faces.
"You can't be serious!" Sideways replied, "We can't fly the ship if we're all in stasis!"
"I'll see about having Ratchet and Wheeljack hooking up some stasis pods to Teletraan-1," Optimus continued, "I will go into stasis here, and let the Matrix of Leadership handle the piloting."
"Optimus this has never been done before!" Ratchet protested.
"The Matrix is homing in on this power source," Optimus replied, "It will keep us on track."
"I trust Optimus," B-127 cut in. All optics were on him. "He hasn't steered us wrong before," he defended with a shrug.
"Oh sure, let's trust the guy who just sat there and let Megatron shoot Optimus without even thinking to Sting old buckethead, that can't possibly backfire!" Sideways replied, "If we're attacked while we're all in stasis, we might die before we reach our battle stations!"
"If we don't reach that power source, we will die without a battle," Optimus stated. Everyone fell silent. "I don't like this anymore than the rest of you do, but this is our only hope for survival."
"After that, I woke up in the bottom of a hole, my homing beacon had been stolen from my stasis pod, and when I climbed out…"
"Intruder! Identify yourself!"
"After I took out the Sparkless drones, I got attacked by a member of your species who was able to spawn monsters with her Distinction. Then I fought a lot of guys in white uniforms, reclaimed and hid my homing beacon, scanned a red motorcycle to change my alt-mode after a blue fireball took out my Projected Spark Field, and found myself getting purchased by three organic life forms and trying to find some way to sneak out so I could get my homing beacon and find the Ark's crashsite," Bumblebee finished, "Any questions?"
"Wait, you're the Mantlite bomb?!" Ruby shouted.
"… I'm the what now?" Bumblebee replied.
"Scratch that, you got into a fight with the Atlesian Military!" Taiyang shouted.
"… If they're led by a scary woman who fights with runes and frosty monsters she spawns from them, then yeah," Bumblebee answered, "Why, is that a bad thing?"
"Atlas has the strongest military on the planet," Ruby replied, "Most places just settle for a militia that defends the city borders while the Huntsmen and Huntresses go out to deal with the Grimm in the wilds. The fact that most of the Atlesian Military's leadership positions are filled by licensed Huntsmen and Huntresses is both highly controversial and part of what makes them so dangerous to enemies of Atlas like the Creatures of Grimm and White Fang."
All eyes were on Ruby.
"What? I did some digging in case Yang didn't go to Beacon," she replied.
"Anyway, I've been trying to sneak away to get that homing beacon so that I could use the energon synthesizer to refuel," Bumblebee continued, "It might not have been enough to sustain the whole crew in the long term, but with my stasis pod nonfunctional, it's pretty much the only way to top off my fuel reserves and stay online."
"Where did you hide the homing beacon?" Yang asked, "We could go there and fetch it after dark."
"Yang, you cannot be serious," Taiyang replied, "If you get caught with an enemy of the Atlesian Military-"
"Dad, he blew his cover to save me and Ruby," Yang interrupted, "The least we can do is return the favor."
"Oh no, I don't want you getting in trouble," Bumblebee replied, "Besides, all Transformers are self-driving in vehicle mode."
"And I'm pretty sure a self-driving motorcycle would be pretty conspicuous if you don't have a passenger," Yang replied, "Sorry Bee, but unless you want to get strapped to a lab table in Atlas, you're not going to be able to do this alone."
"Yang…" Taiyang started, before sighing. "Look, I can get in touch with someone I used to work for and see if he can't help with the whole Atlesian Military thing, in the meantime, you and Ruby need to rest up if you want to heal from that Grimm attack." He looked up at Bumblebee. "Will you be okay until… This time tomorrow night?"
"As long as I don't suffer any grievous injuries," Bumblebee replied, "I suppose I could use the rest anyway."
"Right… I guess this is my life now," Taiyang remarked, "Speaking of… Girls, you need to get ready for bed."
"Huh… It has been a long day…" Ruby replied, "But i don't think it's tha-" She yawned. "Okay, it is that late. Goodnight Bumble… B-12-"
"Like I told Yang earlier, Bumblebee's as good a name as any, and 'B-127' was more of a serial number than a name," Bumblebee interrupted, before turning to face Taiyang, "That reminds me, is 'Dad' your actual name, or…"
"My name is Taiyang Xiao Long," Taiyang interrupted, "Pleasure to officially meet you… I guess…"
"Oh, I don't think you've met Zwei yet!" Ruby shouted before dashing out of the garage to fetch the family's corgi. Bumblebee glanced at Yang.
"Is she always like this?" he asked as Ruby's calls for Zwei echoed through the house.
"Ruby, you can introduce him in the morning!" Taiyang answered, "Please just get ready for bed!"
"Okay!" Ruby called back as Yang laughed.
"Never change Rubes, never change," she remarked, "Well, goodnight Bee, see you in the morning!" She walked out of the garage, leaving Bumblebee alone with the man of the house.
"… So about any disturbances my attempts to sneak away might have caused…" he started.
"Please don't make me regret letting you stay here," Taiyang interrupted, "I'm going to get in touch with that contact I mentioned, and see if there's anything he can do to help, in the meantime…" He smiled. "Thank you for saving my daughters. I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if anything happened to them."
"I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if they died when there was something I could've done to prevent it," Bumblebee replied, "Besides, I need to be on good terms with somebody if we're stuck on this planet for the long haul."
"Makes sense," Taiyang replied, "That said, if you hurt either of my girls-"
"You'll kill me?"
"If I'm feeling merciful," Taiyang answered.
"I'd ask what would possibly be worse than death, but I'm scared you might have an answer," Bumblebee replied. Taiyang laughed.
"Either way, goodnight, and thanks again," he replied as he walked out of the garage, turning off the lights behind him. Bumblebee's glowing eyes were the only source of light in the dark room.
"… Welp, looks like I'm bunking here for the time being," he remarked as he folded back into vehicle mode, "I guess there's nothing left to do but see what tomorrow holds."
a/n: Not sure how satisfied I am with the conclusion, but I needed to wrap this up. I was honestly debating what all to include (I even cut a few scenes which I'm planning on including later), but I needed to set up a lot of the major players. Trannis is in fact a character from G1. Just search his name on TFWiki. I was originally going to have Ruby make a Gobots reference (hence why Megatron didn't kill Cy-Kill in the arena, as has become tradition). Most of the backstory details are taken from both of the IDW continuities and the Aligned continuity. I'm thinking about writing a short prequel story in the future. There was originally going to be a Go-Bots reference this chapter, but I couldn't find a way to fit it in naturally. Also, can you spot all of the Mythology Gags in this chapter? I have references to both RWBY and Transformers sprinkled throughout. On to reviewer questions:
First of all, I'd like to thank Delta Prime for pointing out how out of nowhere Winter's decision to attack Bumblebee was in the original prologue. I expanded Winter's and Bumblebee's conversation so that it leads into Winter's attack a bit more naturally. As for Ironwood, I'll explain my reasoning for writing him the way I do the next time he appears.
Again, I'd like to iterate that I am aware that Adam's a bull Faunus, I was just referencing the "Adam's secretly a goat" meme.
The in-universe explanation for how the Ursa Major was able to defeat Taiyang is that it surprised him, and he wasn't able to get his weapons out until his Aura was already in the red. Out of universe, the explanation is that we haven't seen Taiyang's weapon or Semblance and knowing my luck we'll probably see both in Volume 8 so I decided to have him defeated offpage rather than try and come up with something that would be immediately contradicted.
As for getting a fanart commission of what Bumblebee looks like... I'll see what I can do, but I make no promises. If this story ever does get cover art, it will feature this universe's Bumblebee in robot mode alongside Yang and Ruby.
As for what next chapter might hold... That honestly depends on the cut-off point. All I know for certain is that our duo of girl and motorbike will be encountering a few of this story's antagonists in the VERY near future. See you then!
Update 7/20/2020: Corrected the spelling of Tsiehshi, the type of Energon that is found there, and the arm Megatron's Fusion Cannon is attached to.
