Chapter 8: The Maximal Uprising
The Predamark
"What am I looking at, exactly?"
It was a cargo ship, what was left of one anyway. It lay sadly kneeling to one side, a smoking hole in its side. Magmatron was looking down at it from a hilltop when Dezaras had answered the Emperor's call.
"Bandits, Dezaras. I wanted to introduce you to some of the other Eukarians. It's not as simple as Predacons vs Abomi."
"I was afraid of that," the Decepticon muttered.
"Hn. I have a simple goal Dezaras. Ambitious in scope, yes, but a simple one. To conquer, until there is nothing left to conquer. To unite all of this world under my banner."
"Not dissimilar to Megatron's goal. In truth, our sources already believed you had succeeded in this regard."
"Understandable. Mine is the only legitimate claim to the planet. No one else has the resources, the organization, the drive."
"This is all very interesting, your highness, but what does this have to do with the wreck down there?"
"Patience offworlder. I can be long-winded when I want to be." He chuckled to himself. "There is a legend in this land, that whoever can rule all of Eukaryis as one is to be hailed as the second coming of Onyx Prime, the so-called Onyx King. This Lord of Lords would don the Triptych Mask - the whole mask, not the fragment in my palace - and lead the Jungle Planet into a new Golden Age. Centuries of generalissimos and would-be warlords have tromped across this valley in an effort to fulfill the prophecy of the Onyx King. None have succeeded. The Mask remains separated, the planet divided. I will change that. I will become the Onyx King. I have one third of the Mask, an army at my back, and I will not yield."
He glided down to land on the roof of the derelict transport.
"But there are those who would defy my dream, who would deny me my crown!" His voice was reaching a crescendo, and he waved his arm wildly to the West.
"At the other side of the Seething Pass is a tribe of nomads who rebelled against the Predarchy. They regularly ambush caravans that get to close to the plains beyond and retreat to their huts. They are small, they are weak... but they have powerful allies." He clutched his shoulder at the word and looked down. "Their message, their uprising, has spread across Eukaryis. An alliance that bedevils my generals at every corner of the globe."
He leapt up and looked hard into Dezaras' spark.
"They call themselves the Maximals," he spat.
"The similarities to Cybertron are uncanny," Dezaras mused. "It seems like the Autobots and Maximals exist only to deny us our respective dreams."
"I agree. That's part of why I summoned you here. I despise traitors. The Maximals revolted just after Scourge left. That hurt the most. The Abomi Nation problem hit literally and figuratively close to home. I underestimated Scourge's passion for the Swamp folk, and his skill as a commander. Don't tell anyone I said that to you, by the by."
You certainly scare me enough to keep my mouth shut, Dezaras thought.
"Yes, I underestimated his power, which is why I hope I'm not projecting when I think that my Sovereigns underestimate yours. They think you are unworthy. That you will not be able to handle the ceremony. I think you can prove the world wrong."
"A... ceremony?" Could this be it?
"Yes. That story was merely prologue to the second reason I wanted to meet. Gather those who would volunteer, for in three days you shall undergo the Rite of Beasthood. Only then can you get what you seek: schooling in Eukarian combat."
"This is... a tremendous gift, emperor."
"More than you know. There are many bonds within my empire that will be tested by this decision. I risk much good will with more traditional Predacons, even my most loyal ones. My gift is also not without cost to you."
"I beg pardon?"
"Predacons do not beg, Decepticon. I will give you this power, and I will show you how to use it. But you must give me something in return. Expedite the realization of my dream. Help me topple the thieving Maximals, and you may leave with my blessing."
Dezaras was flabbergasted. He wouldn't spare any of his troops for the Bot/Con war but he was asking for Dezaras to send troops into his? Had this barbarian just out-deceived a Decepticon? No, he was smarter than that. The Beasthood was very important to this planet. Not something to be given away. He looked to the emperor's eyes for any smugness and found none. This was not an idle threat. The implication was there that once they were beasts they would leave a planet free of Maximals or not leave at all.
He was suddenly back on the bridge with Shockwave. The Decepticon leader was barring him from Cybertron. The Predacon ruler was trapping him on Eukaryis. But there was one difference. Magmatron seemed to believe in him. Shockwave's reaction to Dezaras' plan wasn't confident, or even sincere. He doubted his own brothers believed he would be successful here.
But I can be successful here.
"You have a deal," he said without hesitation. He had nothing to lose. It would be Beasts or nothing to restore his reputation. Though he was always one to push the envelope. "But we cannot fight your entire Civil War. We will drive those nomadic brigands from your continent, even topple an Abomi outpost or two. But then we must get back to space. Our duty is to our planet."
"A daring request to make of one who has already been so generous," the Emperor growled looming over him, "but an honorable one. Once the serpent's head is removed the body will wither. Yes, that will do. Then that settles it. In accordance with the laws of my planet our pact is struck. I will make the preparations at the Savage Palace."
They shook hands, and for the first time in living memory on Eukaryis a Cybertronian was bound by the Law of the Jungle.