They arrested him as soon as he stepped through the space bridge.
Optimus Prime had barely had time to adjust to his pedes being on solid ground again when hands grabbed his arms. Before he could gather his wits enough to fight back, the guards waiting on the other side of the bridge had slapped stasis cuffs on his wrists. Energy jolted painfully through his entire sensory network, locking every joint from his neck down.
"What-" he blurted, his CPU scrambling to figure out just what was going on.
"Optimus Prime," a green-armored guard barked, scowling at him as his comrades hauled the immobilized mech forward. "By the order of Ultra Magnus I hereby place you under arrest."
"Under… what's going on?" Optimus demanded, unable to comprehend what he'd just been told. "What charges-"
"You have the right to remain silent," the guard snapped, shoving a gun in his faceplate. "In fact, you're strongly urged to remain silent. We have been authorized to use lethal force if necessary."
"Lethal..." he repeated, far more shocked and baffled than actually frightened for his life. What was going on? What had he done - or what did they believe he had done - to warrant this treatment? Was this Sentinel's doing? He knew his fellow Prime could and did hold grudges for a long time, but to be THIS underhanded…
"What's going on?" he demanded. "What am I being charged with?"
The guard on his right rammed the butt of his rifle against his side, and he doubled over, agony coursing through him. His fans stuttered at the blow, and his air intakes coughed and choked as he struggled to get his cooling system back online.
"What part of 'remain silent' don't you understand?!"
"What in tarnation is goin' on here?!" Ratchet growled, stepping out of the space bridge and staring at the scene before him - his superior officer in cuffs and crumpled to the ground in pain, surrounded by guards with weapons drawn.
"This doesn't concern you, medic," the guard informed him. "Return to your post. Ultra Magnus specifically asked Optimus to come to Cybertron alone."
"If someone told YOU to come meet 'em and to come alone, would you listen?" Ratchet retorted, then bulled ahead before the mech could answer. "What the frag is going on here? Do you have any idea who you're arresting?"
"Of course we do," the green mech retorted. "A criminal in the making."
"Criminal? Has your processor been scrambled, you lemon? This is Optimus Prime! He took down Megatron almost single-handedly! How is THAT a criminal in the making?"
"Look, if you have an issue with it, take it up with Ultra Magnus," the green mech retorted. "We're just following orders, and our orders are to apprehend Optimus Prime at all costs and bring him before the Magnus and the Council. And to use whatever force necessary to do it."
Ratchet spluttered, then stormed forward, the prongs of his electromagnets sliding out of his arms. "I'll give you FORCE, you half-cocked turbo-revvin'-"
"Ratchet, stand down!" Optimus ordered… then grunted as another rifle butt drove into his side.
"You're in no position to give orders, scraplet," his captor growled. "But yes, stand down, medic. We're just doing our jobs."
"And I'm just doing MY job of looking after my commanding officer," Ratchet replied. "And until someone says otherwise, that's Optimus Prime! So I think I'll be accompanying you and havin' a few words with Ultra Magnus myself!"
"Fine by us," the guard replied with a shrug. "The Magnus probably wants witnesses to whatever his crimes are anyhow. Get him loaded up, troops."
Optimus wanted to protest, to say something to defend himself, but he could only stare in mute astonishment as the guards loaded him onto a hoversled and pushed him away like baggage. He felt locked out of his own chassis, as if looking down on himself from above. This was a nightmare, a horrible nightmare and nothing more… or perhaps some dark suppressed memory, and he'd snap out of it in a moment and be among his team again, enjoying a drink and listening to the others bicker and laugh…
He swallowed back the fear brewing in his tanks, and did his best to school his features into a neutral expression as his captors carried him into the heart of Iacon's Council Tower. Stay calm… that was all he could do at this point. Keep his cranial unit steady until he had a chance to hear the accusations against him and speak in his own defense. They could clear up this misunderstanding as soon as he saw the Magnus, and he'd be free to return to his team on Earth… right?
If Optimus had expected to find a sympathetic audial in Ultra Magnus, he was sorely mistaken. The expression of angry disdain on the Autobot commander's face made the bottom drop out of his fuel tanks as he was hauled upright and made to face the Council. The Council members glared just as coldly at him - even the normally-stoic Perceptor regarded him as if he were a rust mite under a microscope.
Optimus wasn't surprised to see Sentinel Prime standing at the Magnus' side - what surprised him was the look of absolute shock on Sentinel's face. Had he not played a role in this after all? Or was he just surprised that whatever stunt he'd managed to pull to land his rival in cuffs had actually worked?
"You're a clever one, Optimus," Ultra Magnus noted, his voice colder than liquid nitrogen. "Somehow you managed to keep this hidden from us for vorns. I can almost admire that level of cunning."
A shiver ran down the back of Optimus' neck, and would have continued down his spinal strut had the stasis cuffs not been immobilizing him almost completely. "With all due respect, Magnus sir, I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Don't play stupid with us," Cliffjumper barked, rising from his seat and pointing an accusing finger at the captive Prime. "You know exactly what we're talking about!"
"But I don't!" Optimus insisted. "Please, tell me what I'm being accused of!"
Magnus narrowed his unpatched optic. "You're good, Optimus. A good actor to convince us all that you really were a naive but noble young mech who just happened to capture the most notorious Decepticon commander of all time. You must have been planning this for a long time, to fool us all for so long."
"I haven't been fooling anyone!" Optimus shouted. Why wouldn't they just tell him what was going on? Just what had Sentinel told Magnus to turn him against him so suddenly?
"Ultra Magnus," Alpha Trion cut in. "I recommend that we not delay laying the charges against Optimus any longer. Some may appreciate the dramatic effect, but it's only wasting the Council's time at this point."
Magnus nodded. "Optimus Prime, you are hereby charged with withholding the truth regarding your parental programming from Autobot High Command."
Optimus blinked his optic shutters, dumbfounded. THIS was what all the fuss was about? Him supposedly withholding information that he didn't even have? Was this the best Sentinel could come up with to disgrace him? He might have laughed had the Magnus' expression not been so cold and hateful.
"I have no idea who my creators even are," he protested. "I was a foundling who grew up in an orphanage in Iacon. No one ever stepped forward to claim me."
"Small wonder, given who spawned your spark," Cliffjumper muttered.
His optic ridges bunched in a frown. "What do you mean?"
"Sentinel Prime uncovered the origin of the subject's spark energy," Perceptor replied, "and notified the Council. Additional scans will be necessary for a final confirmation, but the subject's creator has been identified. Certainty determined to be at 98.765 percent, with an error margin of 0.005 percent."
Optimus blinked. "You know, then? You know who my creator is? Who? And… and how?"
"Ah," Alpha Trion murmured, and some of the anger left his optics. "He doesn't know. This changes things."
"This changes nothing," Ultra Magnus replied. "Whether he willfully hid his heritage from us or he simply didn't know, it doesn't change the fact that our so-called Hero of Cybertron is the son of Megatron."
It was as if the Magnus had driven his hammer directly into Optimus' abdominal plates. His fans stalled entirely, and his CPU ground to a sudden halt. Had the stasis cuffs not immobilized him, he might have sank to the floor in shock. It couldn't be… this had to be a trick…
"Our archivists discovered evidence that Megatron had stolen a protoform and sparked offspring," Alpha Trion explained. "Sentinel Prime was able to obtain your spark readings and compare them to Megatron's. The readings are a match… meaning that you, Optimus, are the creation of Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons."
No… no, it can't be, he thought, staring at the Magnus and Council members in utter shock. This is a trick! This is something Sentinel has come up with to stir up controversy! They can't honestly believe this! His mouth hung open as he struggled to voice his thoughts, but he couldn't get the words out.
Ratchet, apparently, decided to voice them for him. "This is a load of hot slag and you all know it!" he roared, storming forward.
"I thought I ordered you to come alone, Optimus," said Magnus, narrowing his optics. "Under ordinary circumstances I'd have you disciplined for defying my orders, but these are hardly normal circumstances-"
"Are you seriously trusting this mech?!" Ratchet demanded, thrusting a finger in Sentinel's direction. "You know he's had it in for Optimus for centuries! He probably fabricated his evidence just to discredit Optimus and get him in trouble!"
A scowl overtook Sentinel's troubled expression. "I would NEVER give false information to the Council! Unlike some mechs I could mention!"
"Ratchet, we have already confirmed Sentinel Prime's findings for ourselves," Alpha Trion explained. "We retrieved scans from the original sources - Megatron's from the scan taken upon his incarceration, Optimus' from the foundling home where he was raised. Our findings confirmed what Sentinel Prime told us. Optimus is indeed the son of Megatron."
"Where's your proof?!" Ratchet demanded. "All I'm seeing is jaws flapping! Show me some solid proof or-"
Perceptor tapped a button on his console, and a holo materialized before Ratchet and Optimus - a holo displaying two spark readings, the wavelengths and intensity of their energy pulses clearly visible. They weren't an exact match - only spark-twins had identical spark readings - but the energy signatures were too similar to be mere coincidence. And each spark bore a clear label - one Optimus Prime's, one Megatron's.
Shock wiped the scowl from Ratchet's face. "It can't be…"
Optimus tried to shake his head in denial but found he couldn't. This couldn't be happening. This was all a nightmare… surely he would wake up soon… surely he'd come online and find it had all been a trick of his CPU…
"Optimus," Ultra Magnus declared, "it is the decision of this Council that you be stripped of your title as Prime, and released from your duties to your team. It is also the decision of this Council that you be detained until further notice, while we decide the best course of action from this point."
The words were another blow to his fuel tanks. "Ultra Magnus-"
"You haven't been given permission to speak, Decepti-spawn!" Cliffjumper snapped.
"Let him speak," Ultra Magnus countered. "But be careful trusting anything he says. Decepticons are notorious liars."
Optimus flinched at that comment. "I'm not a Decepticon… I'm an Autobot. Always have been, always will be. I had no idea Megatron was my father until you brought me here! Would I have fought and captured him had I known?"
"Probability of that event sequence: high," Perceptor replied. "Subterfuge and treachery are frequent occurrences among Decepticons. The most likely hypothesis is that the subject apprehended Megatron to reduce suspicion among the Autobots, though a secondary hypothesis - that Megatron's capture ensured his elimination as Decepticon Commander in order for the subject to more easily assume the role - exists."
"That's not true!" Optimus insisted. "I didn't know… and even if I did know, there's no way I'd allow Megatron to hurt innocents, Cybertronian OR human. Please… this doesn't change who I am. I'm still Optimus Prime, still loyal to Cybertron and to my team. This doesn't change anything!"
Magnus' icy expression didn't change. The rest of the Council appeared just as unmoved. Sentinel's expression was hard to read, but Optimus thought he looked a little conflicted… unless that was just wishful thinking on his part. Ratchet hadn't spoken since he'd viewed the spark scans, and the look of utter shock on his faceplate devastated Optimus. Had he just lost another friend thanks to this revelation?
"On the contrary, Optimus," Magnus said at last, his voice low and hard. "This changes everything. Guards, take him away."
Optimus wanted to fight back as the guards grabbed his arms and forced him back onto the hoversled, but he could barely do more than twitch his fingers as they hauled him away. ''Please! I'm still loyal to the Autobots! You're making a huge mista-"
A guard slapped a mouthplate over his face, muffling the last of his sentence. Optimus wanted to squirm and fight back as his captors bolted the gagging device into place, but he could only twitch his headfins furiously.
"We'll decide Optimus' fate at Megatron's trial," Magnus announced. "In the meantime…"
Optimus never heard what would be done in the meantime - Ultra Magnus' voice faded away as he was hauled out of the assembly chamber and towards his fate. He caught sight of Ratchet's face briefly… and somehow, the look of horror on the medic's faceplate was worse than Ultra Magnus' accusations.
I didn't want this to happen.
Sentinel thought he'd be delighted to see his old rival hauled off in cuffs, to be brought down a peg or two after basking in the glory of being Cybertron's hero. But as he watched the guards clamp the vocal restraint over his face, he found that he only felt horror at the sight. He'd wanted Optimus to face some kind of consequences, yes - to have his glory tarnished, the pride he most surely felt but masked behind a veneer of humility taken down a notch.
This wasn't how he'd wanted it to go, though. He thought the revelation he'd uncovered would simply mean Optimus Prime was kept under much closer scrutiny, or even demoted from Prime to Major or Minor or even Ensign. He hadn't imagined the mech would be treated like a criminal right away, simply for the crime of being sparked by the wrong mech.
It's for the best, he tried to tell himself. He's linked to Megatron in the worst way. There's no telling WHAT his programming will have him do. He could become violent at a moment's notice, he could be a sleeper agent, he could be plotting to kill Ultra Magnus and take his place as leader of the Autobots AND the Decepticons…
He had a very hard time convincing himself of any of that, however. Optimus had never hesitated to leap into combat if necessary to protect someone, but he wasn't a violent mech. And he had never shown anything but utmost loyalty towards the Autobots, even when disgraced and expelled from the Academy after the loss of Elita-1.
Ratchet seemed to recover from his shock faster than Sentinel, and rounded on the Magnus as soon as he'd gathered his wits again. "This is a joke, right? Let him go!"
"Return to your post, medic," Ultra Magnus ordered. "Tell your team to await your new leader-"
"Like frag I'm going back without Prime!" Ratchet snarled. "I don't care who he shares programming with! He's our leader, and he doesn't deserve this kind of treatment!"
"He's a Decepticon!" Cliffjumper shouted back, rising from his seat. "He has you all fooled! He has you right where he wants you - as his pawns in whatever sick game he's playing with both Earth and Cybertron!"
"The only pawns I see here are you idiots!" Ratchet retorted. "All of you letting yourself be manipulated by a power-grabbing fool! Optimus Prime may be Megatron's son, but he's still twice the hero THAT hunk of scrap will ever be!" He pointed at Sentinel. "And you're all so fragging scared of anything that stinks of Decepticon that you're letting him scare you into being his tools!"
Sentinel scowled, the sting of the medic's accusations dampening his shock for a moment. "This isn't about me, Ratchet! It's about protecting Cybertron from a dangerous mech!"
"The only thing Optimus is dangerous towards is your reputation, Sentinel!" Ratchet shot back. "He's a good mech, no matter where his spark energy came from! Let him GO! Or so help me I'll-"
Sentinel drew his lance, lowering it to aim at the medic. "Is that a threat towards the Magnus, medic?"
"Enough!" Ultra Magnus shouted. "That's enough out of both of you! Stand down, Sentinel Prime. And another word out of YOU, Ratchet, and I'll have you in a cell right next to Optimus!"
The two mechs glowered at one another for a long moment, Ratchet grinding his dental plates and Sentinel's fingers clenching tightly around the handle of his lance. Then Sentinel slowly lowered his weapon, and Ratchet returned his gaze to the Magnus, though it was clearly taking all his self-control to hold his vocalizer.
"Ratchet, you are to return to the Autobot Base on Earth at once," Ultra Magnus ordered. "You will inform your team of the developments here on Cybertron, and await your new team leader. Do not attempt to undermine their leadership, or there will be consequences."
Ratchet gave a short, sharp nod, optics blazing with anger. He didn't verbally acknowledge the Autobot leader at all - if anything, he seemed determined to comply with the order to be silent as maliciously as possible.
"Sentinel Prime, thank you for bringing this matter to our attention," Ultra Magnus told him, his voice thawing a few degrees. "Your diligence has been most appreciated, as has your loyalty to the Autobot cause."
Sentinel Prime nodded, not sure he trusted himself to speak without saying something foolish. Such praise from the Magnus himself was normally very welcome, but today it felt hollow.
"You're both dismissed," Ultra Magnus told him. "And Ratchet?"
The medic had turned to leave, but he halted in his tracks and turned to face the Magnus, still scowling.
"The next time you return to Cybertron, I expect my hammer returned to me."
Ratchet didn't speak, merely raised his hand in a gesture Sentinel didn't recognize before storming out of the assembly chamber. Sentinel could only assume that it was both human and a nonverbal suggestion that the Magnus put his hammer someplace unmentionable.
"Oh dear," Alpha Trion murmured. "Optimus definitely inspired loyalty in his team, it seems."
"Trait he shares with his creator, apparently," Cliffjumper muttered. "What are we going to do with him?"
"We will decide that at a later date," Magnus replied. "For now, this Council is adjourned. Sentinel Prime, you may go."
Sentinel saluted and left the chamber, trying to still the churning in his tanks. He'd done the right thing, hadn't he? He'd completed his mission, identified the son of Megatron and handed over his identity to the Magnus. A potentially dangerous mech was no longer a threat to Cybertron. So why did he feel like he'd just made a huge mistake?
CLANG
Megatron roused, lights and colors smeared across his vision in a blurred mess before he managed to refocus his optics. The doors to his prison block had opened again… that meant something significant. But his muddled processor couldn't figure it out. If he just had the energy to think…
Two guards passed in front of his cell, and one turned to give him a mocking glare. He just gazed back, too weak to muster up the strength to glower in return. Let them do what they would with him. He couldn't bring himself to care. At least it would be a quick death… and if they were foolish enough to undo his cuffs, it might even be a slightly honorable death…
But the guards weren't here for him. They turned to the cell across from him and unlocked the door. The hulking Autobot within glanced up, scowling.
"It ain't my time yet!" he protested. "They promised me 'nother orn at least before they terminated me!"
"Oh, shut your mouth, Impactor!" one of the guards retorted. "You know full well your sentenced was reduced to life in prison last decacycle."
"...oh, right." It hadn't taken long for Megatron to notice that this Impactor was a few battleships short of a fleet. "Uh… what's goin' on?"
"You're being moved to the medium-security level," the other guard replied. "You've been on good behavior-"
From Megatron's left came the insane cackle of Blitzwing's lunatic personality. "Zat's a good one, freund! Tell another!"
"Fraggit, who took off his gag?" grumbled the first guard. "Send someone down to replace it! But you're being bumped down a security level for good behavior, Impactor. That, and with the influx of Decepticon prisoners, we gotta make room for them in max security."
"Oh, good," Impactor muttered as the guards cuffed his wrists and led him away. "That'll be a relief. Seriously, why did you have to put Megatron in the cell across from me? It's creepy being stared at by that mug all day…"
Megatron watched with a sort of detached resentment as they escorted Impactor out Of course the Autobot would be moved to a bigger, less restrictive cell for "good behavior," despite frequently attacking the guards and throwing himself against the walls of his cell like a wild mechanimal. Never mind that most of the Decepticons had been perfectly well-behaved in comparison, if only because they remained cuffed and muzzled despite being locked up.
Stop dwelling on it, he told himself. The Autobots have always played favorites, even before the war. Let it go and focus on… on… He couldn't hold onto that train of thought, not without feeling it slip out of his grasp.
"Get him inside."
His optics snapped up as another set of guards entered the high-security block, pushing a new prisoner in on a hoversled. They laughed and joked between themselves as they hauled the mech to his feet and shoved him into the cell, not even bothering to remove his cuffs or mouthplate before shutting the transparent door behind him.
Megatron's optics met the prisoner's bewildered stare, shock driving away the terrible lethargy that had been gnawing at him for so long. This was no Decepticon prisoner - this was Optimus Prime! The very same upstart Autobot who had defeated and captured him in the first place! For a wild moment anger burned through his systems, and he longed to draw on it, to use the strength of that rage to shatter the door of his prison and have his revenge on the young mech who had cost him everything…
But that rage tangled with confusion before dying away, leaving only a puzzled shock in its place. What was Optimus doing here? Was this some kind of trick? Or had the mech managed to do something unspeakable to land himself in prison? Surely he wouldn't have been that stupid…
The green-armored guard stepped up to Megatron's cell and slapped the transparisteel door, giving a mocking laugh. "Enjoying the view, Slagmaker?"
Megatron raised an optic ridge, the closest he could come to asking just what in the Allspark's name was going on here.
"Never let it be said that we're entirely sparkless here," the guard went on with a gloating grin. "So get a good long look. It's the closest you'll ever come to getting a family visit in here."
What is he babbling about? Megatron thought… and met Optimus' gaze again.
Those optics… vibrant blue, as blue as the day they had flickered to life as a newspark settled into the protoform's chest… optics that had shone with avid curiosity and delight at everything around him… and utter terror as their bearer had been snatched cruelly away, never to be seen again…
It can't be. He's dead… he's long dead. This can't be…
"Isn't this sweet?" the other guard, a squat brown-and-cream mech, hooted. "A father-son reunion! Enjoy it, you two, 'cause who knows how much longer it'll last after your trial! Who knows, maybe they'll arrange a joint execution for you two. Wouldn't THAT be a nice bonding moment?"
And the guards walked out, cackling with a wicked glee as they pushed the empty hoversled out of sight.
Megatron held Optimus' gaze for a long moment, struggling to process what he'd just heard and witnessed. Optimus Prime… his son… the son he thought he had lost…
Optimus stared back, his optics wide and bright with horror. Then he slumped forward, helm pressed against the transparisteel door, and silently wept.