Optimus wished he could say that Sentinel's bombshell regarding Ultra Magnus had shocked him to the core… but to his surprise, it didn't. Yes, some part of him DID reel at the news that the Autobot leader was the son of a notorious Decepticon general. But somehow it didn't shake him as badly as he assumed it would.

Perhaps it's only life-changing news the first time you hear it, he thought wryly. Or only if it applies to you.

"That slag-munching piston-sucker!" Ratchet exploded, bringing his fist down on the wing of the rusted airplane. "All this time he preaches about how anyone of 'Con heritage is an enemy, when all this time he's one himself!"

"I knew Deathsaurus had reproduced," Megatron noted. "I didn't realize his sparklings had become Autobots. It would seem more of our lost children ended up in Autobot care than I first realized."

"How did you find out, Sentinel?" asked Optimus. "Did the Council ask you to check?"

Sentinel shook his head, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly now that he'd delivered his news. "Not directly - they just put pressure on me to give them a big name. Someone high-ranking they could arrest, probably so it looked like they were actually accomplishing something with their campaign. I started putting names and spark scans through to check… and well, checking Ultra Magnus' information was just an impulse. Guess it worked out a little TOO well."

"And he didn't like that news, I take it," Optimus noted.

Sentinel snorted. "He ordered my arrest for threatening to go public with it."

"Of course he did," Ratchet grumbled. "Fraggin' hypocrite didn't like his hypocrisy being pointed out to him. And of course, HE wasn't about to go to prison to prove his own cause!"

At that, Sentinel frowned, his headpipes twitching thoughtfully. "Funny… he acted like it was a shock to him as well. He kept denying it. That could have just been an effort to save face on his part, but maybe he was just as surprised as the rest of us?"

Optimus frowned too. "Was he a foundling as well? It's not like I knew who my father was before all this went down."

"Oh, our dear Magnus is no foundling," Dominus put in, his fingers steepled thoughtfully in front of his lip plates. "The two of us were quite close to our father before his untimely death. Though naturally, we never talked much about him after we joined the Autobots."

Optimus' jaw dropped. "Wait… you're Ultra Magnus' brother?" How was it that this revelation hit him with more impact than the news that the Magnus was of Decepticon origin? Maybe he just couldn't imagine Dominus and Ultra Magnus being siblings… or perhaps seeing how ruthless the Magnus had become made his Decepticon origins not seem so far-fetched. Probably some of both.

Dominus nodded. "Guilty. Minimus Ambus - whom you know as Ultra Magnus - and I are spark-twins. And yes, we were the sons of General Deathsaurus, one of Megatron's most feared officers. After his lieutenant, Leozack, killed him, we feared we would be his next targets and fled to the Autobots."

"Lovely," Ratchet grunted. "What is it with Decepticons wanting to off their superior officers and take their places? You sure Starscream's not this mech's kid?"

"Starscream was cold-forged," Megatron replied. "But power-hungry mechs surface in every organization. Decepticons are just more… direct… in their means to climb the ranks. At least the knives they plant in your back are literal blades rather than gossip and manipulation."

"If that was meant to be comforting, it didn't work," Optimus noted.

"At any rate," Dominus went on, "the question is what you plan on doing with this information."

Ratchet shrugged. "Don't see how it helps us. Sure, it makes him a hypocrite, but he's still in charge of Cybertron and, well… we're stuck here. Knowing Deathsaurus sparked our Magnus is just useless trivia at this point."

"Do not discount this information as trivial so easily, Ratchet," Shockwave advised, folding his claws in his lap. "Data can be weaponized as surely as any gun or blade. And what Sentinel Prime has brought us could be forged into a powerful tool of blackmail… a tool that could be used to oust Minimus from the Magnus seat."

Sentinel flinched. "Are we really talking about overthrowing a Magnus? You realize this will make us all traitors." His gaze flicked to Shockwave, then darted away. "Well, more traitors than some of us already were."

Shockwave's optic blinked slowly, the vertical optic shutters lending his already eerie visage a more chilling cast. "I was a double agent, not a traitor. There is a distinct difference."

"Great, that makes it even better," Sentinel muttered. "Thanks for clearing that up."

"Shockwave, Sentinel, play nice," Optimus ordered. "And as for what we do… well, waving this news in Ultra Magnus' face might be satisfying, but at this point it'll just anger him into doing something really drastic. If we want to make use of it, we have to decide what we want from him in exchange for us not leaking the knowledge of his origins."

"Unless he decides he'd rather blast us to shrapnel instead of giving into our demands," Ratchet huffed.

"I doubt it will come to that," Dominus assured him. "For all his flaws, Ultra Magnus isn't so beholden to the letter of the law that he would start massacring innocents."

"You sure about that?" Ratchet grumbled.

"Enough," Megatron cut in. "This information may be useful, but we have more immediate concerns. We cannot keep relying on Starscream's… generosity… forever, nor will our refugees tolerate living in a junkyard for very long."

"You'd be surprised what mechs can learn to live with," Optimus pointed out. "But you're right - a junkyard's no place for them, especially those families with young sparklings. We need a better plan for the future."

"The question's what," Ratchet noted. "No colony world is going to take in a mixed group of Bots and Cons - every colony I know of is one or the other, or neutrals who want nothing to do with either faction. And a few hundred refugees have no chance of overthrowing a Magnus and an entire Council, even if we've got a number of actual Decepticons among us."

"You would be surprised what a few mechs without formal military training can accomplish," Shockwave noted.

Sentinel gave Optimus a look of horrified pleading. "There has to be some other alternative."

"What alternative?" Megatron regarded Sentinel with a frown. "We cannot stay here - it's only a matter of time before we are found and forced to flee again. And there is no reasoning with Ultra Magnus. He wants us dead or imprisoned, down to the last newspark. We either flee or fight - we don't have another option."

"But you're talking about declaring war against Cybertron!" Sentinel gripped the sides of his helm, optics bright with horror. "That's insane! We'll all be locked up as traitors!"

"They were planning to incarcerate us anyhow," Shockwave retorted. "Given that state of affairs, we've nothing to lose."

"There's got to be another way," Sentinel insisted. "Dominus can talk to him, right? He's the Magnus' brother, surely that means he can talk some reason into him!"

Dominus shook his head. "My brother and I have not been on speaking terms for vorns… and that's even before he became Magnus and the Council had their way with him."

"Had their way with him?" Those words made Optimus' spark curdle. "What do you mean?"

Dominus' optics flashed. "You may notice that, despite being spark-twins, Minimus and I look nothing alike. And we have the Council to thank for that - despite all Ultra Magnus' dedication to the Autobot cause and his talents as a warrior, they couldn't have a beastformer wielding the Magnus Hammer. So they decided some… alterations… were necessary."

"They put him in a new body?" Ratchet demanded. "I thought spark transplants were impossible. Every time one's been attempted, the spark has extinguished within a cycle or two."

"Not a transplant," Dominus replied. "The body he currently wears is an exosuit - a set of powered armor that he operates from the inside. He wore it reluctantly at first, at the behest of the Council… but by now he's worn it for so long that considers it his real body. I would be shocked if he's stepped outside of it since the war began."

Four sets of stunned optics met Dominus' words. Shockwave, for his part, only tapped a claw to his faceplate in thought.

"That explains much," he mused. "Such as how he has continually survived injuries that should have killed him. His armor has taken the brunt of the damage."

Sentinel shook off his shock to glare at Shockwave. "Damages like you trying to offline him?"

"Believe me, Ultra Magnus had his revenge," Shockwave shot back, reaching up to touch his broken antler. "You don't think I suffered my damages from falling down a flight of stairs, do you?"

"Could you two NOT fight like sparklings?" Ratchet demanded. "But how's a suit of armor keep you from talking to your own brother, Dominus? You're getting sidetracked here."

"I promise there's a point to this story," Dominus replied. "Exosuits like the one Minimus wears as Ultra Magnus were never meant to be used long-term. They're plugged directly into a mech's CPU, hardlined into their programming… and if used for too long at a stretch, they can cause data corruptions and memory gaps. After all this time as Ultra Magnus, I doubt Minimus even remembers his own brother… or his father."

Sentinel's optics flared with realization. "So he honestly doesn't remember his origins. No wonder he was so shocked when I threw the spark scans in his face."

Dominus nodded. "So as much as I wish I could talk some sense into him, I doubt he will remember me. More likely he'll see me as an untrustworthy beastformer with Decepticon connections and want me imprisoned."

"We won't ask you to risk yourself, Dominus," Optimus told him. "Not when you've done so much for us already." He steeled himself, knowing his next words were probably going to alienate a few mechs. "The way I see it… we have no choice but to fight."

"Fight?" Sentinel blurted, staring at him with a look of horror. Optimus knew he'd probably just pushed his old friend away forever - after he'd tried so hard to mend bridges with him, too - but he forced himself not to look the blue mech in the optic. Best to get this over with before he lost his resolve.

"You're serious about this, kid?" Ratchet demanded. "There's no going back if you commit to it."

"There was no going back the minute Ultra Magnus decided to treat me like a criminal for my parentage," Optimus replied. "And to be honest… we passed a point of no return long ago. The leadership of Cybertron isn't interested in making Cybertron a safe haven for every mech and femme who wants to live there. They're more interested in maintaining the status quo, and locking up or eliminating any mech who goes against that status quo. And it may mean things LOOK peaceful and safe on the surface, at least temporarily… but if you only worry about the surface, then you allow rust and corrosion to build up underneath, until the structure fails and it all comes crashing down."

Ratchet scowled, and Sentinel stared at him as if he'd just ripped his own core out with his bare hands. Megatron smiled, optics burning with pride, while Shockwave cocked his head to one side like a curious turbohound.

"If we're to have any hope of saving Cybertron, we have to fix the system that's been broken for so long. And if we're to have any hope of fixing the system… we need to change the leadership. We need Ultra Magnus and the Council out of power. And unfortunately, they're not going to give up power on their own - we'll have to remove them by force."

Ratchet raised an optic ridge. "You realize that there are mechs who'll assume you're following in your father's footsteps for doing this. That you're doing this not because it's best for Cybertron, but because you've gotten a sudden taste for power."

Optimus was silent for a moment. In truth, he'd considered Ratchet's point already… and some part of him did worry that Cybertron at large would consider him "the next Megatron" for what he was about to do. If he committed himself to this cause, the vast majority of the Autobots would hate him forever. And even if they succeeded in overthrowing Ultra Magnus and the Council, that wouldn't change many mechs' minds - he would still be seen as a villain.

But in the end, he simply nodded. "That's a chance I'll have to take. Freedom is the right of all sentient beings - not just Autobots, but Decepticons, Cybertronians of mixed heritage, and organics. And that freedom is worth more than my reputation."

Ratchet frowned, but nodded. "You're a good kid, Optimus. Just don't let your idealism get you killed."

"None of us will allow that," Shockwave replied. "The Decepticons will defend Orion with our sparks if need be."

"And if I know Team Detroit and Team Athena, they'll fight to the death for you too," Ratchet added with a slight smile. "They may be idiot hotshots, but they're loyal."

"The Dead Zone refugees will aid you as well," said Dominus. "We have precious few warriors among us - soldiers were conveniently overlooked when they weeded out Decepticon 'traitors' within the Autobots - but we will offer whatever support we can."

Optimus' spark glowed with warmth, and he smiled in turn at each of the mechs. "Thank you… your support means everything." His optics met Megatron's. "You have a lot more experience at this than me… will you help me? I could use an advisor."

Megatron nodded. "I would be honored, Orion."

Optimus nodded back… then he turned reluctantly to Sentinel, expecting to read loathing on the mech's face. To his surprise, he saw an expression he'd never thought he'd see on the blue mech's face - grudging admiration.

"I still don't like this," he said quietly. "It goes against everything we've ever been taught. But… you were always one to break the rules when you thought they needed breaking. I was never that bold."

Optimus smiled. "I don't know - I'd call refusing to arrest civilians and urging them to flee breaking the rules."

"Yeah, well, don't get too used to it." Sentinel held out his hand. "I'll follow you, Optimus. I have no idea what's going to happen from here on out, but… I trust you to lead the way."

His spark burned with relief, and he clasped his old friend's hand. "Thank you, Sentinel. I'll do my best not to abuse that trust."

"Then we are in accord," Shockwave noted. "What is our next course of action?"

Optimus had no idea - he hadn't thought that far ahead. "For now, we focus on getting our refugees settled. Most of them are non-combatants and won't want to be in the crossfire anyway. Once we're sure they're as comfortable as they're going to get here, we'll gather our teams and assess our firepower."

Ratchet snorted. "We ain't got the mechpower to stand up to the Autobot army, kid."

"Maybe not… but we can come up with some kind of plan," Optimus replied. "It takes more than firepower to win a war, after all."

"Well, you're going to need some kind of advantage over the Magnus," Ratchet countered. "Which is why… hold on…" He rummaged in the nearby junk pile for a moment, then withdrew a long staff-like object and offered it handle-first to Optimus. "It ain't much, but it's something at least."

Optimus had the Magnus Hammer in his hands before he realized what it was, and he tried to hand it back to the medic. "I can't take this!"

"I told Sentinel and Ultra Magnus that I'd give the hammer back to the proper Magnus," Ratchet insisted, pushing the weapon back at him. "Ultra or Minimus or whatever the frag he's called these days hasn't proven himself worthy of it… but you have."

"Take it," Dominus urged. "If nothing else, it will be a symbol to those who see you as a guardian and protector. If they see that someone wielding the Magnus Hammer is standing up to their oppressors, that will give them the hope they need to persevere."

Optimus hesitated, then pulled the hammer towards him. He didn't feel comfortable taking the weapon of the highest office on Cybertron, but Dominus had a point. Besides, he had a feeling he was going to need all the help he could get. Perhaps the hammer would only give him a small edge against Ultra Magnus and his armies… but perhaps that edge would be all he needed.

His gaze flicked back to Sentinel. The other Prime's optics glittered with just a hint of jealousy, but he only reached out to squeeze Optimus' shoulder.

"So… orders, Optimus Magnus?" he asked. "Or is it Orion Magnus? I have no idea."

"Please don't call me Magnus," Optimus replied. "As for Orion… well, call me whatever you're comfortable calling me. It's going to take some time to get used to being called Orion anyhow."

Sentinel nodded. "So what will you have me do?"

"For now, go check on our refugees and see how they're settling in. Ask if there's anything they need. Shockwave, you do the same. Megatron, gather Teams Athenia, Detroit, and Chaar, as well as any Decepticons who are in fighting shape. I'd like an assessment of our fighting forces and what they're capable of."

Sentinel saluted, and Shockwave gave a regal bow from the waist. Then both mechs headed off to carry out their orders. Megatron gave a nod and touched two fingers to his temple as he put out the call.

"Ratchet… I have a request for you. But I don't think you're going to like it."

"I've had to do a fraggin' lot of things I don't like in the past couple weeks," Ratchet pointed out. "What's one more? Shoot."

Optimus looked down at his arm, where the blue of his gauntlet met the red of the rest of his armor. "I'm going to need paint. Violet and black, to be specific."

"Kids, let go of the nice mech's legs please!"

"But Daddy Tracks, he's a hero! We've never hugged a hero before!"

"Yes, but he's a very busy hero. You need to let him go now."

The two sparklings whined in response, but they released their death grips on Sentinel's shins and hurried back to their father's side. Tracks patted their helms and shooed them off to play before turning back to Sentinel.

"I'm very sorry about them," he said. "They're just enthusiastic about saying thank you."

"They're fine," Sentinel replied, though he dusted off his shinguards anyhow. "And I didn't come here for thanks. I'm just here to ask if you need anything to get you settled."

Tracks shook his head. "Bulkhead and Strika are helping us build a shelter. It won't be nearly as glamorous as our old apartment in Iacon, but it will do for now." He looked down at his feet for a moment, then back up at Sentinel. "I know you didn't come here for thanks, but… thank you anyhow. For warning us and helping us escape. We're in your debt."

At one point Sentinel might have beamed with pride at the praise. But now he looked away, faceplates warm with embarrassment. "Don't mention it."

"Don't mention it?" Mirage laughed softly as he stepped up beside his conjux. "You saved our lives and the lives of countless others! Everyone has 'mentioned it,' as you put it - it's the talk of the entire refugee camp. You're a hero, Sentinel!"

His faceplates blazed so hotly he wondered if they were glowing. "Just… doing the right thing… nothing special…"

"Well, you doing the right thing saved our lives." Tracks shook his hand, beaming. "You're welcome to visit us anytime. The little ones would love to see you again."

Sentinel mumbled something approximating a thank-you before hurrying off. He was used to mechs treating him with disdain and suspicion… he wasn't used to such gratitude and adoration. As much as he craved that kind of adoration, he wasn't used to it, and having it given so freely and so often by the refugees left him feeling flustered and embarrassed.

He let his gaze wander the camp as he walked, carefully skirting around the more disgusting-looking garbage piles. Optimus and Rodimus' teams were pitching in to build shelters, with Decepticons lending a servo where they could. Swindle had a group of sparklings gathered in a semicircle before him as he regaled them with a story, while Wreck-Gar played a dramatic accompaniment on a musical instrument that seemed to be operated by squeezing it. Red Alert had set up a makeshift medical center and was inspecting a gash in Swoop's wing membrane, while Mixmaster poured the foundation for a more permanent medical building close by.

It still amazed him that Optimus could inspire loyalty in such a diverse group of mechs - Autobots, Decepticons, and mechs who had been born of the Allspark but had never set foot on Cybertron in their lives. None of them seemed to care that he was a lowly space bridge worker, or the son of Megatron, or the former Hero of Cybertron who had defeated their own champion in battle. Perhaps it was desperation, or perhaps it was simply that Optimus had proven himself in their optics, but they all looked up to him, or at least accepted him as their leader.

I should be jealous, he realized, but… I'm not. Maybe it's because he's not rubbing it in my face. Or maybe… maybe there are just more important things to worry about right now.

"Senny! Hello!"

"It is being Senny! Wait up!"

He whirled, mouth open to snap at the twins for the ridiculous nickname, but he caught himself. "Jetstorm! Jetfire!"

The two fliers bolted towards him, identical grins of delight on their faceplates. Before he could protest they had thrown their arms around him, babbling excitedly and clinging as tightly as Tracks and Mirage's sparklings had just minutes earlier.

"It is being you!" Jetstorm exclaimed. "We were hoping to find you!"

"So much has happened since we have been seeing you last!" Jetfire added.

"Leggo," Sentinel grumbled, wriggling out of their grasps. "You two have a lot of explaining to do. What the frag have you been up to, and why are you suddenly allied with STARSCREAM of all mechs?!"

Jetfire beamed. "You were missing us, weren't you?"

"No," Sentinel said shortly. "In fact, I was able to get much more done without you two underfoot."

"He was missing us, brother," Jetstorm laughed. "But yes, so much has been happening!"

"We followed the distress call to Detroit," Jetfire explained. "And guess who we were finding?"

Sentinel waited, then realized they actually expected him to guess. "Rodimus Prime."

"Starscream!" Jetfire corrected. "He was being just a head in the junkyard! But we were soon matching his head to his body, and Wreck-Gar was fixing him!"

"And you are not going to be believing this," Jetstorm chimed in, "but Starscream is being our father! We have a dad, Senny! And he is teaching us great aerial tricks and how to run a city, and we are helping him be a good leader!"

"He is not really liking the humans," Jetfire noted. "Or being nice. But he is working on it."

Sentinel had to sit down as he processed the sudden dump of information. He knew that Starscream's programming had been used to reformat the twins, but it had never occurred to him that said programming essentially meant the Decepticon Seeker was their parental figure. Nor that the two fliers in his charge would take it so literally that they would latch onto Starscream so hard, despite all their Autobot training and programming.

"Senny?" Jetstorm asked, tilting his head to one side. "What is being the matter? Are you being jealous?"

"What?" He stared at the blue flier. What the frag was he going on about?

"We are still liking you, Senny," Jetfire assured him, patting his arm. "Even if Starscream is being our real father. You can still be teaching us things!"

"And you are still being family," Jetstorm added. "Uncle Senny! If… if you are wanting to be."

Sentinel shook his head. "I'm your superior officer and your guardian… I'm not actually your family." But he couldn't deny that bit of warmth in his spark at being called "uncle" by these two. They really thought that highly of him, that they would accept him as family so readily?

"You can be our officer and guardian AND uncle!" Jetfire insisted. "It is not being against the rules, right?"

"No… I suppose not." He managed a smile. "Well… I'm glad you two punks have found your family. Even if you had to go AWOL to do it. Don't scare me like that again, though."

"We won't!" both twins shouted in unison.

"You probably will," Sentinel muttered. "So does Starscream have you here to spy on us for him?"

"Oh, Starscream is having the Dinobots doing that," Jetfire informed him, jerking a thumb towards Grimlock and Snarl as they watched Red Alert tend to their teammate's wing. "We were just wanting to find you and touch your base."

"Touch my what?" Sentinel repeated. "Oh wait, you mean touch bases."

"Yes, touch your base!" Jetfire insisted. "We should be going back now, but we will be visiting again soon-"

The howl of thrusters cut off anything else the twins had to say, and Sentinel looked up sharply to see a blue jet streaking across the sky. The plane swooped low over the refugee encampment, sending dust and bits of trash billowing up in clouds and mechs scattering for shelter, then pulled up and transformed in midair.

Sentinel grabbed his lance and shield. "Jetstorm, Jetfire, scramble! Defend the camp!"

"It is just being Thundercracker, Uncle Senny," Jetfire assured him. "He is being one of Starscream's soldiers."

Sentinel didn't have time to respond to Jetfire's words - Thundercracker cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted down at the terrified refugees.

"Autobot ships are en route to Detroit! Repeat, Autobot ships are en route! Get whoever's passing for a leader among you and have them report to Lord Mayor Starscream immediately!"