Whose Banner Waves?

Optimus Prime sat in his private quarters, going over recently collected data pertaining to the Decepticons. It was an activity he had enjoyed as long as he could recall, stretching back to his pre-leader days when he was known as Orion Pax. Others called him Optronix, a name he secretly never cared for. But those days were long forgotten. Now his days were filled reading reports on destroyed oil rigs... cities heavily damaged... the same old song and dance. "Some things never change," he sighed, ejecting the current data disk in favor of another one.

"Prime!" yelled a familiar voice. "I think I fixed it! The Neo-Electronic Sphere Generator is online!" Wheeljack stormed into Prime's quarters and stood before him. He tried not to draw any attention to the gem-laced statue he knocked to the ground upon entering. "Come and take a look for yourself!"

"Okay, Wheeljack," Prime smiled, happy to learn that the keepsake given to him from the British Prime Minister wasn't broken. "Calm down." He got to his feet and followed his mad scientist down the corridor to his workshop. In the back of his mind, he braced himself for another failure and searched for some soothing words of encouragement.

Back at Decepticon Headquarters...

The Stunticons are a feared merge-group of Decepticons known for their reckless ambition and fearless driving tactics. They are also known for having very little respect for their commander, the recently deactivated Motormaster. Wildrider, the crazed terrorist of the team, had enacted several ill-fated attempts to take command of the group for himself. If it hadn't been for the panic stricken actions of Breakdown, the maniacal Wildrider may have been successful. Breakdown, in full paranoia mode, began screaming that the nearby traffic lights were staring at him, mocking his intelligence and secretly plotting his downfall. Motormaster, who had been stationed a few yards away, overheard the commotion and went to investigate, bringing a premature end to Wildrider's hopes.

The remaining members of the team, the warriors known as Drag Strip and Dead End kept their disdain for their purple-faced commander a little more in check. Dragstrip was a mean-spirited and nasty being, even for a Decepticon. His ambition was not to take control of the Stunticons, but rather to make life hell for their leader. Often times, he would file false reports and relay bogus information in an attempt to get Megatron angered and combative. Seeing Motormaster on the receiving end of a beat down or verbal attack brought a sense of warmth and accomplishment to his pleasure sensors.

Dead End, on the other hand, may have been the closet thing to an ally and a willing subordinate Motormaster had. Despite not liking his commander or even harboring a shred of respect for him, Dead End still performed whatever duties were required. He was quite vain and fatalistic, and had long ago given up any desire to move upward through the Decepticon ranks. He knew they were all going to die eventually, so what did it matter who was in charge at the time they entered The Pit? Just so long as he looked good dying, he didn't care. So it came as no surprise at how little emotion the remaining Stunticons showed in regards to their fallen commander.

"Commander Starscream!" Dead End shouted, startling the newly self-appointed commander as he looked over recent data. "Megatron has escaped and Soundwave is missing!"

Dragstrip nudged Dead End out of his way and added, "And Motormaster is off-line!" Wildrider and Drag Strip anxiously waited for the order to depart and capture them. Not because they had slain Motormaster, but rather they simply wanted some action. The Stunticons were easily bored, and were always searching for reasons to 'engage' various opponents.

Starscream simply shrugged his shoulders. "That's too bad," he said. There was a calmness in his voice, one that had been missing for millions of years. "Megatron is no threat to me now... I say good riddance!" The remaining Stunticons were crushed when they weren't given the go-ahead to pursue the escapees, causing them to limp away unfulfilled. After watching them leave with all the drama of scolded children, Starscream then returned his attention to the super-weapon he had been working on. "The time has come to demonstrate the awesome power that this weapon is capable of."

Meanwhile, back at The Ark...

A small crowd of Autobots had gathered inside Wheeljack's lab. Word had spread quickly of his latest invention, and they were eager to see whether or not it would actually work. "This is a waste of time," Gears sighed. "Been there, done that... pushed the only button."

Prime stood just inside the doorway, as Wheeljack grabbed the control box and addressed his audience. "My fellow Autobots, if all goes as planned, when I push this button it will greatly increase the security of not only The Ark, but also that of the Autobot cause!"

Trailbreaker nudged Ironhide and whispered, "Do you think it'll work?" Ironhide didn't say anything, instead giving a quick smile in 'Breakers direction. A silent "I doubt it."

What happened next was the beginning of the end. Unknowingly, both Starscream and Wheeljack had been predestined to start the downfall of both factions... of their entire race. It had been written before time, and the two of them had played their cards perfectly.

At the exact same moment, both Wheeljack and Starscream pushed the proper button to activate their inventions. For a few seconds, everything seemed to be going along according to plan. Then, it happened.

The energy generated from Wheeljack's Neo-Electronic Sphere Generator burst out and beyond the Ark's immediate area. It expanded to the point that it began to intertwine with the Neptonium used in Starscream's super-weapon. A faint boom, like distant thunder, was heard across the planet and a blinding light escaped from the noise.

Both Transformers assumed that their respective inventions had simply malfunctioned, unaware that they had just witnessed the dawning of a new age. For you see, unknown at that moment, a hole had been ripped in space and time. Past, present, and future would soon meet face to face.

Once more, in the Ark...

"I'm sorry, Wheeljack," Prime said, again sensing the disappointment in his friend's circuits. "Maybe if we try and compensate the over-all..." His voice was cut-off by the annoying roar of the Ark's alert systems. "Autobots, to your posts!" he announced.

Prime made his way to Tele-traan 1 and looked at its view-screen. "What's going on?" he asked. Before the computer could respond, he received his answer from his sworn enemy- who had managed to bypass the Ark's defenses and was standing before him, along with his sole comrade.

"Things are about to get interesting, Prime."

"Megatron!" Optimus yelled, aiming his laser-rifle in his direction. "I don't know what you and Soundwave are up to, but you made a big mistake in coming here!"

Megatron raised his arms in a slow manner, indicating he hadn't come there to fight. "We come to offer our help, Prime. We are not here seeking a confrontation."

"You? Help?" Optimus mocked, his gun remaining fixated on his target. "I don't think so."

As Megatron and Soundwave stood there motionless, Perceptor's voice came over the intercom system. There was a sense of disbelief in his tone. "Optimus Prime, please respond!" Perceptor was thought to be the most intelligent Autobot functioning, proudly serving his role as faction scientist with a zest for knowledge. Anytime his words were riddled with urgency, it usual meant trouble was fast approaching.

Prime was careful not to let the Decepticons out of his sights, but knew he needed to answer Perceptor's call. He walked over to a wall panel and hit the send button. "Prime here, what's the problem?"

A few seconds passed. "I've been intercepting numerous radio signals the last few minutes, ever since the explosion in Wheeljack's lab. Some are being sent by beings claiming to be Autobots and Decepticons." Perceptor's voice was near a whisper. "Others are identifying themselves as Maximals and Predacons. Wait, there's a lot of static coming through; I'm also hearing the term Vehicons, but much like the term Maximals, that name doesn't match anything in our database!"

"It could be a trap," Prime responded. "Analyze and locate the source of the transmissions." He looked for a sign from Soundwave or Megatron, something that would betray their claim of innocence and give him proof that they were in fact responsible for what was happening. He didn't fine one.

"That's not all," Perceptor interrupted while following the command to investigate the source of the transmission. Something else had suddenly grabbed his attention, and for the first time in a very long time, he had trouble finding the right words to describe what he saw. "I've picked up an image on our deep-space sensors; I'm in the process of patching it through to Tele-traan 1. I believe you need to see this for yourself."

A few seconds later, Prime's optics turned towards the view-screen yet again. What he saw was not possible, and yet, they were there in full glory. His gun slowly lowered to his side as shock filled his circuits. Megatron and Soundwave looked on in silence, as other Autobots began to surround Tele-traan 1. "What in the name of Primus?"

Perceptor had left his station and joined Optimus Prime and the others. As he walked through the entrance, he could feel the confusion in the air. A hint of fear hovered above them all. He spoke what the others either could not, or chose not, to say. "Three... Cybertrons."

end chapter 6