Chapter 9
The year 2005, on the planet of junk
The planet of junk was generally a giant scrapyard in space.
These entire world consisted only of various sorts of trash that was left by many space traveling civilizations of this part of the galaxy.
Right now this world was the place of a fighting scene. After their leader Optimus Prime died in the battle of Autobot city and Ultra Magnus took over the Autobots had fled from the Decepticons and their new mysterious leader Galvatron. On their way to Cybertron to stop the dangerous "Killer Planet" that had appeared in their home-system they were attacked by Galvatron´s forces and crash-landed on the junk planet.
But the Decepticons had found them here too. What the Autobots didn´t knew at this point was that Galvatron was recreated from Megatron by Unicon for one purpose, destroy the Matrix before it can be used against him.
Galvatron however had his own plans.
xxx
The sky over the are was full of Decepticons. Ultra Magnus had allowed his fellow Autobots to escape in the underground of this planet and then destroyed the entrance behind them. But that meant that he was trapped now with the back to the wall.
Shortly after Megatron and Optimus Prime died in the battle of Autobot-City, Galvatron appeared and took over the Decepticons. He executed Starscream who was, according to rumors, responsible for Megatron´s ultimate demise and was since then hunting the Autobots down.
Ultra Magnus remembered when he met Galvatron the first time, right after his activation. He remembered him all to good, killing an Autobot before his eyes just after helping him come back to life.
Why? That had Magnus asked himself for centuries. He never got an answer. The mysterious things Galvatron had done, Def-Charger´s death, his and Elita´s rescue. Nobody could tell why he did that, nobody knew what he wanted. Nobody even knew his name, until now.
"I Galvatron will crush you just as Megatron crushed Prime." That was the first thing he had told him after 9.000.000 years.
Where had he been the entire time?
Why had he returned? Why now?
What did he want?
Ultra Magnus wasn´t sure about the answer to all this. But he knew Galvatron was dangerous.
Of the things he had said, Magnus remembered one line very clearly.
"There are things out there you know nothing about, threats you can not even imagine. I am only one of them. You should never forget this."
Things we can not imagine? Like the Killer Planet that is threatening Cybertron in this moment?
Galvatron returned at the same time this thing appeared. Was that only coincidence? Was there a connection between him and it? Was his statement more than a universal advice to be careful? Had it been a hint about things to come? Was it possible that this thing had been out there the entire time? Who could say that.
They had been on their way to try to fight the Killer Planet with the Matrix when Galvatron attacked them. Was that it? Had he tried to stop them?
It all didn´t matter to him right now. Here he was standing before the Decepticons, with the Matrix in his hands. He had tried to use it against them and failed. Optimus Prime had at his death repeated the old prophesy that the Matrix would light their darkest hour.
Of course he realized, he had been a fool. This wasn´t their darkest hour. It was the monstrous planet that was over Cybertron.
"Magnus I want the Matrix", Galvatron said to him.
Ultra Magnus managed not to show his shock about the words of the Decepticon. He was after the Matrix and he cursed fool took it out and presented it to him.
´Optimus forgive me´, he thought to himself. If they lost the Matrix they would loose the only chance to stop this threat and they would also loose the symbol of unity of the Autobots. Not that this would matter if they would all be destroyed.
"Never", Magnus called out the answer more confident when he truly felt. Galvatron´s reaction came instantly.
"Sweeps terminate him." At this order the four identical looking jets targeted him. They shot him, again and again.
"Die." He heard Galvatron say. Then he only felt how his limbs were blown apart and it became dark for him.
Galvatron triumphed. He had known it, he knew Ultra Magnus would be his way to the Matrix. Rescuing him was worth it in the end.
Once he had saved his life only to destroy him now and for him to be his key to freedom and power.
Now he would either bring Unicron under his control or destroy him. In fact, he actually preferred the second option.
Optimus Prime had fallen, Ultra Magnus had fallen and Unicron would fall soon.
"Unicon my master, with this I shall make you my slave", he said.
Light years away, over his mental connection to his creations, Unicron heard his words and cried out in anger.
Galvatron looked a last time at the fallen robot. Actually, he realized, he owed Ultra Magnus his thanks.
Your death will not be in vain Autobot, he thought. Through this I will stop Unicron and Cybertron will be saved.
xxxxxxx
Cybertron in the year 2005, Iacon outlands Autobot resistance
Ultra Magnus, the one who came from the year 2011, awoke from his recharge circle. Like so many times he had remembered his destruction at the planet of junk.
Similar to organic beings Transformers "dreamed" in their sleep and for him it was all too often this scene.
He had luck back then, the Sweeps had mostly only hit the connection points between his body parts and not vital systems. If his spark had been destroyed it would have truly been over.
But like this the natives of the planet of junk, the Junkions, were able to repair him.
Magnus left his room to talk with Roadbuster. Their operation would soon begin.
At his office he met him and Red Alert, the main security officer of the Autobot forces.
"Ah Magnus", Roadbuster greeted him. "Tell him what you have found out Red Alert."
The security officer looked at him strangely for a second. Although Red Alert seemed to believe his story and where he came from, but it was no secret that he was one of the most paranoid creatures in the galaxy.
"A new Decepticon leader, Galvatron appeared a few days ago. He killed Starscream just as he tried to take command, burned him down to ashes with one shot. But so much is publicy known", Red Alert explained. "Our spies in headquarters however say that there are rumors that Galvatron is actually a rebuilt version of Megatron." He lowered his voice nearly to a whisper as he said the rest.
"Some even say rebuilt by that thing out there in space and they say that it is a intelligent being that had forced Galvatron into servitude. It even seems to have a name, Unicron."
Roadbuster saw that Magnus didn´t look surprised.
"You already knew that right? Because you are from the future."
"You have told me as we met after I arrived here. That means in a few days from now", Ultra Magnus answered him. "I am, that means my other self is, right now on the way to Cybertron and will arrive soon."
Roadbuster only nodded with the head at Magnus explanation. Red Alert on the other hand was starring at him with an open mouth until Roadbuster addressed him again.
"Tell him the rest Red", he told him.
"Oh yes", Red Alert continued, "our spies also say that there are rumors that Galvatron had just returned from a travel through time. Some Decepticons say he went to the past to escape Unicron´s grip."
"But that are all only rumors right? We don´t know if anything of this is really true." Roadbuster wanted to know.
"Magnus?" He looked questioningly at the Autobot from the future, who looked like he was in deep thought.
"Yes", he answered him. This had been the way how he had finally found out the truth about Galvatron. Who he is and were he came from.
"This was the point from where he started", Ultra Magnus murmured to himself.
"What do you mean?" Roadbuster asked him.
"Nothing that is important now. Good, when my past self comes to you in a few days, tell him everything Red had told me right now and I mean everything. He needs to know."
"Of course I will. You can count on me", Roadbuster assured him.
"And Buster", he added.
"Yes Magnus?"
"This proofs some Decepticons simply talk too much."
"Yes Magnus", Roadbuster replied.
xxxxxxx
5.000.000 years earlier, somewhere in space
On a small world, a moon that circled around a gas giant, intelligent life had developed, a small society of organic beings.
But this world was now facing it´s end. They had the bad luck that their planet happened to be in Unicron´s path.
The population of this moon was relatively small, only around 700.000 individuals and an agrarian culture. This world had no space travel and that meant nobody even had the chance to escape.
The fangs of the monster were slowly digging into the planet and ripping this world to pieces. All life on it would be extinct. But for Unicron this was only a small step on his way.
As this world had died he was thinking.
Since he had reached the system where Primus planet should have been some centuries ago he had been searching the surrounding systems but found nothing.
That he found this small world here was more a coincidence. He could not even locate Primus presence anymore.
He was hiding, probably stalling time and no doubt preparing for their final confrontation.
Unicron was sure of it. Some day he would find Primus and till then he would continue with other worlds that came into his path.
xxxxxxx
Thousands of light-years away on Cybertron, deep under the surface of the planet, a robot was standing and talking to a voice whats source he couldn´t see.
"Are you sure about this Primus?" The robot asked the voice.
"Yes, my children are not ready yet to face Unicron. The fact that Cybertron left it´s orbit was in the end for the best. It bought us time.
If I go into sleep Unicron will no longer be able to detect me and it will give my children the time they need to develop to the point where they can fight him", the voice explained.
"I will download my mind into the Matrix and reduce my conscious thoughts to a minimum.
Now go to sleep too my child. When you awake again, you will have a duty."
xxxxxxx
The year 2005, Cybertron
Ultra Magnus thought about a conversation he had with Hotrod a short time after he awoke from his repairs by the Junkions, as they were boarding the ships to fight Unicron.
"You are in no condition to fight yet", the younger Autobot told him. Deep down Magnus knew he was right. He had just nearly been killed and not really recovered. But he could not let them go alone.
"I won´t just stay behind while you fight, I have to go", he replied.
Ultra Magnus flew with the Junkions, Hotrod with the other ship.
In the following battle Hotrod took the Matrix from Galvatron, became Rodimus Prime and defeated Unicron. Like he had predicted Magnus had barely played a role in the final fight.
But here he was again, thought the Ultra Magnus from the future. The Autobots here were soon going to fight the Decepticons and Unicron and this time, he told himself, he would make a difference.