As I said, updates will be slow. Just a reminder, I also don't own any of the characters. This story has multiple ties to other stories of mine (including but not limited to Lost and Alone, Wailing in the Night, And Witness Devotee). It will be a slow build.

I am attempting some world building in this story. Some of my favorite stories in this fandom have great myths and legends about Cybertron (though we rarely have ghost stories...ah well).

As always, please let me know what you think (or if you have ideas/theories). Don't be afraid to point out inconsistencies (sometimes it will be on purpose, other times not so much). I'm trying out culture/world building and don't mind pointers.

Prowl held up his ID. The guard quickly checked then allowed Prowl to enter the hallway. It was brightly lit with high security cells lining each side of the hallway. It reminded Prowl of a zoo back on Earth, but instead of animals inside the cells there were mechs.

Please enjoy.

Prowl walked the length of the cell block. Occasionally he would glance at the mech occupying a cell. He spotted Vortex sitting on his berth, cackling madly at the wall. Chop Shop was a little further down, dismembered dolls hung from his ceiling. The guards had had to remove the mech who had been across from him.

Near the end of the hall, Prowl stopped. His cold blue optics took in the mech in this cell. The guard next to Prowl hesitated at opening the cell door. "Are you sure this is wise sir?" he asked.

"He won't cause any problems," said Prowl. The guard nodded and opened the cell.

"Stand up, servos out," barked the guard, Ranger. Prowl recalled that the he had been stationed at an Autobot POW camp near a neutral stronghold before the war had ended.

The mech in the cell stood up slowly from his chair. He held out his servos and a small smile formed on his faceplate. Ranger put stasis cuff around his wrists, set to the highest setting.

"Prowl, how nice to see you again. Has it been a metacycle already?"

"It is good to see you as well, Barricade," said Prowl.

Ranger gave Barricade a gentle push. "You're to walk ahead of us."

"Oh, I get to go outside today?" asked Barricade. "My Prowl, you're spoiling me."

The walk to the prison's quart yard was silent. The Ranger led Barricade to a seating area. Barricade sat down, uninterested in the fact that he was magnetized to the seat. Prowl took the spot opposite to him. Ranger stood guard close by.

"This is nice," said Barricade. His smirk grew as Prowl's frown deepened.

"The guards tell me you've been behaving," said Prowl in his usual monotone.

"They know best," said Barricade.

"They also said you've been talking in your recharge cycles again."

Barricade snarled. "Oh, hoping to gain more insight to the criminally insane? They'd have more luck analyzing Chop Shop's little room of horrors. Frag, I bet that yellow psychopath you like to keep around provides more insight than I do."

Prowl tilted his head. "Sunstreaker has sociopathic tendencies. Last time I checked, that didn't make him a psychopath."

"I saw him rip a mech's helm from his frame once," said Barricade. "Why isn't he locked up with the rest of us? His Autobot status grants him immunity?"

"Both of the twins are receiving therapy elsewhere," said Prowl. He was not about to give Barricade any further details. They were all damaged, some more than others. Optimus Prime was confident that with time all Cybertronians would be able to rejoin their rebuilt society. Prowl was less confident. He would personally see to the end of any mech who allowed Barricade to walk free.

"Still keeping us separated? I thought you Autobots were all about the love and that slag," Barricade laughed at his own joke. Prowl continued to stare at him. "Where the frag is my second chance?"

"There aren't many who would kill mechs and then drain them of all their fluids to consume," said Prowl.

"Oh, is that why I'm here?" asked Barricade. He tried to fake wide optic innocence. It never worked with Prowl. "I swear officer. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time." Barricade started laughing.

"You know perfectly well that you wouldn't have had to come here if you hadn't killed those neutrals after the treaties were signed," said Prowl.

Barricade rolled his neck, loosening the joints. "I didn't know the treaties had been signed."

"You will never be allowed anywhere near Praxus, ever again," said Prowl.

Barricade sobered. "You can't stop it Prowl," he finally spat. "Megatron might be dead, but there are other ways to summon the Unmaker." Barricade flashed a smile filled with razor sharp teeth. "You've been having the dreams too."

Prowl barely managed to stop his doorwings from twitching. Barricade saw the slight hesitation. He threw his helm back and laughed.

"Ahahahaha! Being around so many Primes might have been able to help heal you emotionally," said Barricade. "But he'll never be able to take away all the effects. You're still as expressive as a rock. Do you still glitch when it becomes too much to feel? Gahahahahaha!"

Prowl stood up. "Ranger," he barked. "We are finished here. I will help you escort the prisoner back to his cell."

Ranger approached the laughing mech. As he reached out to release Barricade from the magnets, Barricade whipped his head around. He met Prowl's optics and said "They are calling Prowl. Praxus is calling. And they will wail in spilt energon over and over and over again. Ha ha ha!"

Barricade continued to laugh even as the energon bars flickered back to life on his cell. "Oh, my dear Prowl, that's why I'm here isn't it. It's not because I'm crazy, it's because you hate the truth. Unicron is coming. The red crystals are calling for us, Prowl. Praxus wants us and Praxus will have us."

The shouting followed Prowl out of the high security block. Prowl turned to Ranger. "Add more guards to this cell block. If Barricade tries anything, inform me immediately. If you can, move him to an isolated area."

"Sir, are the other prisoners in danger?" asked Ranger. "Barricade hardly shows any of the same levels of aggression the others do."

"It's not aggression I'm concerned about," said Prowl. "He's planning something. Don't think for a moment he's not dangerous."

Prowl dropped down into his alt mode as soon as he was clear of the facility. He kicked up some debris in his hast to get away from the mad mech that still haunted his recharge cycle. If only he had been faster, if only he had believed in those old sparkling tales. It didn't matter now.

It was a long groon and a half drive back to his office in Iacon. Prowl pushed his engines to the limit to shorten the drive as much as possible. As he approached the newly constructed city limits, his comm went off.

::Prowl::

::Hey Prowler, ya look like the Unmaker is after yer tailpipe:: came Jazz's cheerful voice through the link. Prowl shuddered. Jazz had no idea how close to the truth he was. ::Are ya alright mech?::

::I am acceptable:: replied Prowl. ::What do you need?::

::Just wanted tah let ya know, OP wants tah meet ya in a groon. Said he needed tah talk tah ya and Smokie::

Prowl wasn't fooled for a minute. Jazz wouldn't have commed him about something so trivial. ::What do you want?::

Prowl pulled up in front of the new government headquarters. Jazz was waiting for him on the steps outside. Prowl transformed and studied his long time friend.

"Shall we head to yer office," suggested Jazz. He must have caught wind of something juicy if he didn't want to risk Prowl locking him out of his office. Then again that had never stopped Jazz before. Mirage and Bumblebee had been just as bad before the end of the war.

Prowl's office was neat and clean. Jazz flicked some imaginary dust off of the desk before perching himself on the edge. "Went tah see Barricade again?"

"Yes," said Prowl.

"Why do ya keep doin' this to yerself?" asked Jazz. "Ya've been visitin' him every megacycle. It ain't like he's goin' tah be leavin' that place anytime soon."

Prowl straightened a stack of reports on his desk. "It's something I have to do."

"This ain't about those weird dreams ya've been havin'?"

"Jazz," warned Prowl.

"Nah, I'm serious mech. Those dreams have been keepin' ya up at all hours. Ya haven't slept in nearly a stellar cycle."

"Not now," said Prowl. His office door chimed. "Enter," called Prowl.

Smokescreen stepped into the office. "I was told to come get you," said Smokescreen addressing Prowl. "Prime's ready to see us. Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," said Prowl. "Jazz was just leaving."

"This ain't done, Prowler," said Jazz. "I'll be seein' ya tonight even if I have to drag ya out of this office."

Prowl flicked his doorwings as he passed by Jazz. The door closed behind him. "Did Optimus say what this meeting was about?" asked Prowl.

"He said he had a few questions about Praxus," said Smokescreen. "I think he wants to collect stories from all the major city states. He has talked Dirge into compiling sparkling tales from Vos and Mirage is digging up stories the towers used to pass down."

Prowl hummed. "I'm not sure how much help I will be with that," he admitted. "I barely remember things like that."

"Surely you told Bluestreak stories when he was a youngling," said Smokescreen.

"Jazz provided much of Bluestreak's entertainment," said Prowl.

"Really, you don't remember any sparkling tales?" asked Smokescreen. "Not even the scary ones? I remember going to Deadmech's Bend with friends to see if the ghost of the mad transport mech would run us off the road. What about the story of the fallen priest and red crystals of the northern temple?"

"No," said Prowl, though his doorwings quivered. "I don't seem to recall any of those stories."

Smokescreen snorted. "No wonder you're so serious. You were denied the most basic part of younglinghood. Even most preprogrammed mechs I knew visited Deadmech's Bend. Slag, I remember when that youngling and enforcer were pulled out of the catacombs of the northern temple. Mech's claimed they had been spirited away by the evil priest."

Prowl hummed again as they approached the door to the Prime's office. Prowl could remember the northern temple. They were memories he wished he could forget.

Optimus greeted the pair of mechs warmly. Elita-one, Ultra Magnus, Starscream, Soundwave and Shockwave were sitting in plush chairs around the large desk. "I have a special request from the two of you. I was hoping you could help us to identify areas of Praxus that we will need to preserve or at least try to. I don't want us to accidently destroy a cultural landmark in our haste to prepare the city for rebuilding."

Prowl stiffened. "I thought we were not going to start on Praxus until after Polyhex and Uraya were fully restored?"

"Vos is almost completely rebuilt," said Starscream. "I would like to see her sister city returned to its former glory as well."

"Really," said Smokescreen quirking an optic ridge. "And here I thought it was your seekers who started the bombings."

Starscreem snarled at the Praxian, but it was Shockwave who answered. "In a show of control, Megatron order the destruction of Praxus. It had been part of the deal with Vos to leave Praxus alone. It was a false promise, like so many others…" His voice trailed off. Long vorns of isolation had left him disillusioned and skittish around other mechs.

Prime put a reassuring hand on Shockwave's shoulder. "All is forgiven, it is time to heal and rebuild."

"Did he ever say why he wanted Praxus destroyed?" asked Prowl. Five blank pairs optics turned to stare at him, while Shokewave continued to study the ground. "It held no strategic importance and it took more resources than were gained."

"Other than to ensnare the seekers into their own personal pit," said Starscream "I can't think of any."

"He had been looking for something," said Shockwave. He shrunk back as the other occupants focused on him. "He had asked me to experiment on some of the crystals from Praxus. They were red, an awful red."

Prowl froze. How had Megatron gotten a hold of red crystals?

"Red crystals?" asked Optimus Prime.

"I remember seeing some red crystals in Praxus," said Starscream. "I don't remember them being different from any of the other crystals."

"Well, there were red crystals in the gardens," said Smokescreen. "But usually they were polluted with another mineral that altered the color slightly."

"What kind of red?" interrupted Prowl. Shockwave studied his servos. "We're they dark, almost crimson? Did they feel…wrong?"

"I don't like thinking about them," said Shockwave. "I think they were a dark red. They were terrible to have around."

"Do you know from where Megatron obtained them?" asked Prowl.

"Prowl, this isn't an interrogation," protested Ultra Magnus.

Optimus raised his servo to silence Prowl. "Do you know something about them, Prowl?"

Prowl glanced at Smokescreen. "Starscream are you familiar with the Praxian story of the Fallen Priest of the Northern Temple of Primus?"

Starscream reset his optics. "What does an old folk tale have to do with these mysterious crystals?"

"More than you know," said Prowl. "Smokescreen, you are likely more familiar with the legends than I. Could you retell one of them?"

Smokescreen shifted slightly on his peds, his doorwings sung up in agitation. "Prime?" he asked his leader for permission.

"Please, continue Smokescreen," said Optimus. "Perhaps I can add them to my collection while we're at it."

"Well," began Smokescreen. "The way I heard it was like this, after the first Cybertronian Revolution, the one where we tossed those Quints off our planet."

"We are all familiar with general Cybertronian history," interrupted Starscream. "Get to the point."

"Starscream: desist interrupting. Smokescreen: continue story," said Soundwave speaking up for the first time.

"Right, well," said Smokescreen. "The city states were all starting to form and build their temples to Primus. Praxus has five points. So our city built their temples at each of these points, the east, the west, the southwest, the southeast and the north. Each temple had their own set of practices and rituals they would use. If one wanted good health, they'd go to the southeastern temple. If a mech wanted to find a good mate, they'd go to the western temple.

"The northern temple was the primary location for gaining wisdom. At least that's what I've heard. It was pretty run down when I was a youngling. It was said that there were a couple of methods to gain this wisdom. You could do a ritual meditation and hope you'd get a vision or you could ask a priest for a reading of some sort."

"What like one of those psychic readings from a late night human TV show?" asked Starscream.

"Starscream," warned Elita-One.

"No, it's alright," said Smokescreen. "Actually, most Praxians, well I mean, by the time I was around, didn't go to the northern temple. There were still priests there, but for the most part only the really brave or really stupid went to that temple. You see, around the early years of the first Golden Age, a priest went mad during one of their 'readings'.

"From what I heard, as a youngling that is, a young Praxian noble had gone to the temple with a question of sorts. Some say he wanted to know if he'd be a Prime some day. Others would swear that he was trying to get in contact with one of the 13. But my carrier used to tell us that what he really wanted to know was when the end times would happen."

"The end times?" asked Ultra Magnus. "What like the end of Cybertron?"

Smokescreen nodded.

"Would you get to the point already?" demanded Starscream.

Smokescreen huffed air through his vents. "Fine, anyway, everything was prepared for the 'reading'. The young noble asked his question and the priest went into his trance. Everything seemed normal until the priest started convulsing, then his optics started glowing and he spoke in a deep voice. 'Pathetic mortals, I am he who will unmake you.'"

"Is the voice necessary?" asked Starscream.

"You can leave if the story is scaring you," said Elita One pointing at the door.

"I'm not scared," snarled Starscream. "This mech can't seem to get to the point."

"You know what," said Smokescreen. "Some people just don't understand atmosphere. I was trying to give the Prime a decent recount of a famous ghost story, but I can see I am under appreciated."

"Smokescreen," said Prowl quietly. "As much as it ruins the atmosphere, we are in a meeting and other things do need to be discussed."

"You can add in more details later," added Optimus. He smiled kindly at Smokescreen.

"Alright," said Smokescreen. He crossed his arms over his bumper and lowered his doorwings slightly. "Anyway, the priest went on a murderous rampage. They say he killed the young noble and several of the priests before he ran down into the catacombs under the temple. Enforcers were called to find him and when they did he had built an altar and was offering the mech fluid he had drained from his victims to Unicron. He then turned his knife on the Enforcers. According to the legend it was like he had suddenly gained impenetrable armor and it took a direct blow to his spark to finally kill him.

"When he was finally dead, all of his mech fluid rushed out of his frame. It wasn't normal mech fluid though. It was supposedly bright red and it was thick, so thick that crystals started to grow from the puddles. They say the crystals were an unnatural red color and hummed at a frequency that caused horrible hallucinations."

"So, you think the crystals from that legend are the ones Megatron was having Shockwave examine?" Prime asked Prowl.

"There are other stories," said Prowl. He glanced at those gathered in the large office. "When I was an Enforcer, the younglings like to challenge each other to find the catacombs of the northern temple and steal a shard of the red crystals from the mad priest's ghost. As a rookie I often had this patrol."

"It also wasn't the best part of Praxus then, right?" asked Smokescreen.

"No," agreed Prowl. "It had a high crime rate and many homeless. The priests would try to shelter the mechs that they could, but it was difficult. I often had to take an orphaned or runaway youngling to a Youth Center."

"Oh, were you on the force when that youngling and Enforcer went missing?" asked Smokescreen.

"What does this have to do with your little story?" asked Starscream. Ultra Magnus had to restrain Elita One from hitting the obnoxious seeker.

"More than you would think," said Prowl. "I've seen those red crystals before." Prowl looked directly at Shockwave. "And I know what they can do."

"Wait a klik," said Smokescreen waving his servos and doorwings wildly. "You were the Enforcer?"

"Yes," admitted Prowl. "I don't really remember how I got down into the catacombs, but I do remember the crystals and the mech who commanded them."

Prowl briefly paused and met the Prime's optics. "It has been a long time since then, but I still remember what it felt like to lose the ability to feel anything. It wasn't until…." Prowl's voice trailed off.

"It wasn't until Praxus was destroyed that you were able to feel emotions again," finished Optimus.

Prowl nodded. "Being around the Matrix of Leadership and All Spark helped as well, but it wasn't until the fall of my home that I was able to feel any emotions stronger than contentment or discomfort."

The room fell into a heavy silence. Not even Starscream dared break it with a snide remark.

Ultra Magnus was the one who finally broke the spell. "Prowl, if you were the enforcer, who was the youngling?"

"It was Barricade."

It was not Prowl who had spoken, but Shockwave. "It was Barricade, wasn't it Prowl?"

"Yes," said Prowl.

"How did you guess that?" Starscream demanded.

"He was the mech who gave Megatron the red crystals," said Shockwave.