Chapter 33-Before the Storm
Optimus sat in the Ark's rec room with the other Autobots having a much needed break from all the crazy events that have happened lately. After the incident with Annie and Jezebel, everyone needed a reprieve. Annie and Darren were still recovering from their ordeal and were taking a break from working with the Autobots for a while (though Debbie still wanted the twins to maintain a certain distance from them, but the twins were adamant about not up and leaving the Autobots because of this). Optimus didn't blame them. Things had gotten really intense lately, and that wasn't even counting the war still going on in the greater galaxy.
It was a quiet moment for the team; Optimus sat at the bar with his old-time drinking buddy Jazz, Skyfire was chatting with Bumblebee about her golden days as a Seeker ace back on Cybertron, Bulkhead and Ironhide were engaged in an arm wrestling match with Refute acting as judge and Arcee was playing with Peppercat, dangling a string in front of the feline Minicon. All in all, it was just a couple of soldiers having some down time.
Jazz glanced over at Optimus, who was intently reading a datapad while sipping on a can of Vistriol. "You know, if you stare at that thing any longer, it might burst into flames."
"Hmm?" Optimus looked up at his friend. "Did you say something, Jazz?"
"What are you reading, boss bot?" Jazz asked. "I doubt it's the Sunday news."
"I was reading the information Gina and Sara gathered for me." Optimus skimmed over the text on the datapad. "The angels have clearly been involved in humanity's past. They might have even helped the creation of the Arian Empire. But the real question is why they were here in the first place?"
"You're tryin' to learn about those freaky statue-things from reading dusty old bibles and religious hullabaloo?" Skyfire snorted and leaned back in her seat. "Good luck with that."
"Aren't they just here for conquer this world and all that a jazz?" Jazz grinned a bit at the joke he made and Arcee rolled her eyes. "I mean, they have a strong god complex that makes those Circle of Light yahoos look sane."
"Be nice, Jazz, they aren't all that bad." Arcee lightly scolded. "But he is right. They seem pretty intent on asserting their dominance over Terra, and we're in their way of getting the job done."
"I don't know. I think their animosity against us is more than just eliminating the competition." Said Optimus, stopping on a passage he just finished. "What I've just recently read was…disturbing to say the least."
That made the Autobots nervous. Anything that could unsettle Optimus was not something they could brush off. As the Matrix bearer, the Autobots were accustomed to having Optimus see and hear things outside the scope of the common mortal. This made him the foremost expert on all things metaphysical and supernatural, though he was no expert in those areas (Xaaron was more adept in that field). Commanding an army during a galactic civil war was hard enough without cosmic events trying to snuff him out.
Jazz looked over Prime's shoulder and read the passage. "Are you reading a doom prophecy, boss bot?"
"Seriously? I gotta see this." Skyfire looked at the datapad with Arcee and Bumblebee. "What's it talking about?"
"Just something about nine spheres aligning and the heralding of the coming judgment about God's messengers." Jazz said, frowning. "Man, they talk about divine justice a lot in this."
"It's a religious prophecy, so expect to see at least three of those phrases per scripture." Skyfire remarked.
"Nine spheres? What's that mean?" Bulkhead asked.
"It's referring to nine planets, specifically the nine planets of the Sol system." Optimus explained. "The passage foretells of an even that will happen when all nine planets align, ushering in the arrival of the messengers."
"…Alignment as in the planetary alignment the humans talking about on the telly?" Skyfire questioned, now sounding a bit nervous. "The one happening in a few days?"
Optimus nodded. "The very same."
That made the team even more uneasy. All this talk about angels reminded them of Fortitudo, a powerful being who nearly wiped them off the face of the planet. The various encounters the Autobots and Decepticons had with those strange, angelic beings were growing in number and it set everyone on edge. Now there was some prophecy referring to a very real cosmic event that was going to happen less than 20 hours from now. It could just be a coincidence, but Optimus wasn't taking any chances.
As for Optimus, he felt something ominous in the air. The Matrix was giving off one of its foreboding feelings again, a warning that something not of this world was coming. The last it did this, Fortitudo tried to kill them all. If this had something to do with another event involving those angels, he wanted to be ready. But he couldn't gleam anything on these beings just from reading religious texts and folk tales.
"Speaking of doom prophecies," Bulkhead said. "Where's Prowl?"
"Hanging out with Wheeljack and Ratchet." Bumblebee answered. "They're still dissecting Jezebel's corpse. If you ask me, they should've just burned that monster and scattered the ashes over the sea."
Ironhide snorted and chugged down the rest of his drink. "That's the thing, Prowl doesn't ask for permission. He just tells you what he's going to do."
XXXXXX
Prowl looked at the remains of the monster named Jezebel, the demon that possessed Annie and nearly killed Bulkhead, Darren and Centurion. A few days had passed since she was killed, and her body was already showing signs of decay. The flower petals on her plant-like extensions were brown and shriveled up, and the fleshy parts of her body started to visibly age and wrinkle. Despite this, she didn't show signs of rot or rigor mortis.
The corpse sat on an operating table in the medibay, with both Wheeljack and Ratchet examining every inch of the body. After hearing of Bulkhead's account on Jezebel's connection to the ring, he wanted to know just what the hell she was. All these enemies with supernatural powers popping up was starting to get on Prowl's nerves.
"Did you two find anything out yet?" Prowl asked them.
"Aside from the obvious, there's nothing much else to learn." Ratchet said, studying pieces of the rose petals under a microscope. "She's not an angel, since she's flesh and blood. Her genetic makeup is actually almost completely human, albeit mutated."
"She doesn't look human, Ratchet." Prowl pointed out, running his firm gaze along the dismembered body parts. He made sure to avoid looking at the head. Something about those cold, lifeless eyes unsettled him and made it hard to look into them.
"Thank you for that observation, Prowl." Ratchet didn't even try to hide his annoyance at Prowl's interruption. "I know she doesn't look human, but her genetic composition is still human for the most part. Even her flower extensions have human DNA in them."
"So what does that tell us?"
"It tells us that Jezebel was human once." Ratchet said. "According to Gina, Jezebel was the name of a Middle Eastern queen in ancient times, back when the Roma Empire was still around. We may not have concrete proof, but Bulkhead's claims of some statements she made lends some credence to it. She might be that very same queen."
Prowl heard of that as well. Jezebel worshipped an idol, the goddess Jubileus, who was an inspiration for the Church of Andraste's religion. Fortitudo mentioned that name in reverence as he died. If this really was the same Jezebel from the Kingdom of Bagdad, then how did she become like this? Was she another one of the angels' biological experiments?
As he pondered this, he looked at Wheeljack, who was studying the ring. The once bright lavender crystal rose was cracked down the middle, and had faded into black, probably the result of Annie separating it from her body. Upon a closer look, he could see tiny, barely visible roots along the inside of the ring, roots that had been buried in Annie's finger and slowly infecting the girl with Jezebel's essence while simultaneously leeching power from the girl. This information had been supplied by Annie herself, who was still suffering from the after-effects of being severed from Jezebel's power. Ratchet actually had a hard time pulling Annie's severed finger, which was still attached to the ring, out of the ring and its leeching roots.
Upon inquiry, Wheeljack had given the most basic answer possible. "I've got nothing. Whatever gave this ring its power, it's gone now, as evidenced by the lack of color in the crystal. I'm getting some faint energy readings from the shards, which were similar to the readings Mjolnir and Nightshade's bow gave off, so I can only assume they all run on the same energy source. I can only assume that this energy is also what turned Annie into that…thing."
"Yes, but what is this energy? We keep running into it far too much for it to not be important." Prowl grunted in frustration. He didn't like being in the dark about things like this. He liked to be prepared, to have something to base his investigations on. It was moments like these that made him wish to be a mechaforensics officer again. "So many unknown variables. This planet is a hot zone and we don't even know what we're fighting against."
"Knowing our luck, the answers will come to us sooner or later in the future." Wheeljack sighed and looked at Prowl. "We're doing our best here, but there's only so much we can learn from corpses, Prowl."
Prowl nodded. "I know, keep up the good work you two."
He turned to leave the room, but Ratchet gave him some classic advice before he left. "Don't push yourself too hard, Prowl. It won't do you any good to be distracted by something we can't answer by ourselves."
'That's not my problem.' Prowl thought. 'My problem is that I'm not pushing myself hard enough.'
He was utterly amazed at how out of control things had gotten since they arrived on this world. Ever since the Minicons awakened, it seemed that a domino effect was set off, and one major thing was happening after another. Breaking protocol and exposing themselves to some of the natives, aliens hiding for thousands of years right under their noses, a human terrorist organization waging war on them. Too many rogue elements were involved and it irritated Prowl to no end that no one was at least trying to keep track of them all.
Prowl like having a plan, something to keep them on track and under control. It kept things orderly and clean, allowing him to focus on doing his job. But Optimus and the others seemed content with rushing forward and shooting their guns nonstop or were too busy fraternizing with the humans and Minicons to focus on fighting their enemies properly. When was the last time they actively tried locating the Decepticons' headquarters, or even the Nemesis? Has anyone tried to get a straight answer as to how the Minicons obtained combiner technology in the first place? No one was asking the big questions, but that was why Prowl had this job, to look into these things and ascertain their threat level and overall effect on their mission on this planet.
They were fighting an unknown enemy with tremendous power, and Prowl was not going to sit by and wait for another one of those things to attack them. He had to go about this logically. Let the others run into battle like Wreckers on their suicide missions, he had his priorities straight, and that involved winning this war by any means necessary.
XXXXXX
Nightshade and Songbird flew over the snow covered mountaintops of the Gong Gong Mountains in Xing. It was deathly cold and windy, but it wasn't anything she couldn't fly through. Thankfully the weather was clear, so she didn't have to suffer flying through a snowstorm or something equally frustrating. The pair were on a routine energon scouting mission to replenish their dwindling reserves, thanks to the Autobots capturing and cleaning out the last mine they dug up and everyone was pulling double duty. Nightshade didn't mind the extra work, as it saved her the trouble of having to go on a scavenger hunt for another damn Minicon. She was getting tired of being humiliated by the humans' toy robots.
"Nightshade," Blackout said over the comm. "This is Blackout, do you copy?"
"I hear you, Blackout. What is it?"
"Search just detected a faint energy signature not too far from your position. It's just a few kliks east of your current location."
"Copy that, I'll go check it out." She said.
"Um…shouldn't you wait for back-up?" Blackout asked. "Lord Megatron had specific orders for us to go in pairs."
"I know what his orders are, Blackout, I'm not a protoform. I can take care of myself." Nightshade said sharply. "And I never said I was alone. Now send me the coordinates."
"Yes, ma'am."
Blackout transmitted the data to her and she adjusted her course to fly towards the location. It was even closer than she thought it was, and they almost flew right past it. That was odd to her, since her long range sensors should've detected something at this distance. Even as she approached the coordinates, which was a small mountain with a hole on top, none of her sensory arrays were giving any indication to any energy readings.
"Blackout, am I at the right place?"
After checking the satellite data he was linked to, he confirmed it. "Yes, I triple checked the coordinates from the sat data. You're right on top of it."
Narrowing her eyes, Nightshade switched modes and powerlinked with Songbird. She descended into the hole in the mountain's peak and lowered herself inside. Strangely enough, the entire upper half of the mountain was hollowed out, too unnatural be the result of some geological event. Scanning the area for any threats, she landed in a deep pond of ice cold water at the bottom, now far enough from the hole that there was barely any light that reached the interior of the mountain.
The place had an artificial feeling to it, nothing to see; no formations, no caves, no tunnels, not even any animals. Just one giant cavern filled with ankle deep water. Cautiously she took a step forward and heard a rumble.
Nightshade leapt back and pointed her pulsar cannon at the bubbling water in front of her, but what rose out of the water wasn't some creature or golem, it was a pedestal. Nightshade watched perplexed as a stone pedestal slowly rose up out of the water, reaching her height before stopping. The stone monolith had a cone-shaped energy field and floating inside it was a golden disk. A closer look showed that there were numerous symbols on the disk, and none of it looked terran.
"This is interesting." She muttered and keyed her comm. "Blackout, come over to my position and call for the Nemesis. I think I've found something Megatron would like to see."
XXXXXX
On the Nemesis, Megatron, Nightshade and Starscream stood around the golden disk that floated inside the stasis field. Diagnostic scans were run over every inch of it, recording the symbols and deciphering it in the ship's computers under Knockout's supervision.
"Are you sure it's not of terran origin, Knockout?" Megatron asked, not taking his eyes off the disk.
"I'm 100 percent positive, my lord. This disk if made of a gold alloy similar to the metal found on this planet, but its composition shows that it's been made using a highly advanced process that humans aren't capable of performing yet." Knockout explained. "This isn't just some ancient relic, it contains data. And it's alien."
"Another worthless piece of junk then." Starscream spat. "You should've chosen a seagull for your alt mode, Nightshade, if all you're going to do is bring back trash."
"Shut your mouth you second rate sky spawn!" She hissed.
"Quiet." Megatron growled, silencing them. "Nightshade, was there anything in that cave that hinted at the disk's origins?"
"No, I couldn't find anything." Nightshade said. "I had Search run thorough scans and everything, but that was it."
Starscream scrunched up his face, glaring at the tiny symbols engraved on the disk. "We don't have time to be fooling around with this thing. We need to be focusing on finding more energon. We're still running low and we haven't any sufficient deposits that can hold us."
"Maybe if you spent less time strutting about the ship like you're Megatronus himself and actually spent more time looking for energon, we'd be in a better position now." Megatron said. Looking to Knockout, he asked, "Has the computer finished translating the data yet?"
Knockout checked the computer and frowned. "Some of it, my lord. Seems there's quite a lot of data hidden on the disk."
"What info has it translated already?" Nightshade asked.
"It looks like…coordinates." He told them. Starscream perked up at that.
"Coordinates? To what?"
Knockout shrugged. "Not a clue. There isn't much info to go on considering all of it is in alien lingo."
"That's not good enough, Knockout!" Starscream said, trying to assert his dominance over the medic, who didn't even look worried. "Whatever is on that disk could spell our victory. Translate that data faster or-"
"Starscream!" Megatron's voice was like steel and Starscream immediately straightened up. "You would do well to remember that I give the orders around here, not you."
"Y-Yes, Megatron, I understand. My deepest apologies." Starscream stammered and cleared his throat. "I shall go to these coordinates and investigate the location."
"And I will go with you." Nightshade said. She smirked at Starscream's visible displeasure. "I'm a better tracker than you. It'll make the search go faster."
"I appreciate the help." He said through gritted teeth.
Megatron snorted at the display. Things would go much smoother on this planet if his people weren't trying to usurp each other like a bunch of animals vying for the position of alpha. This was a military strike team, not a pack of wolves in the animal kingdom.
"Nightshade, Starscream, take Flamewar and Blackout with you for backup in case things go wrong down there." He said. "Be on your guard, we don't know what we're running into here."
"You have nothing to worry about, Megatron. We will be on our…best guard." Nightshade gave Starscream a side glance that didn't encourage cooperation.
"We certainly will be." He sneered back at her.
XXXXXX
The coordinates were located somewhere in Azteca, deep within the Amazon Rainforest. Nightshade, Starscream and their team had to search from the ground, with the trees being too thick to see through from the air. Flamewar's tracking abilities came in handy here as she led them through the wet, murky rainforest without incident.
"You're very good at navigating through the wilderness." Blackout said.
"Of course I am." She said, acting as if she expected him to be a bit impressed with her skills. It was only natural, really. "I'm a huntress, dear. Most of the creatures I've hunted tend to live in dense areas like this place, but a few trees and caves are not enough to hide from me."
"Such a humble femme you are." Grid, Starscream's Minicon partner, muttered. He cursed when another bug flew in front of his face. "No wonder people loved you so much with a kind heart like that."
"Watch it, little one. Most of the prey I've hunted are no bigger than you." Flamewar warned.
"Ha! If that's the case, then you aren't a true huntress. Just one who likes to talk big and flaunt her tiny trophies like she accomplished something." Starscream laughed and shook his head. "What a waste of talent."
"Would you two shut up? We're on a mission here?" Nightshade hissed. Flamewar noted that she looked a bit more frazzled than usual and smirked at her discomfort.
"Trouble in paradise, Nightshade?" Flamewar remarked.
"Silence, wench. Something's not right here, ever since we've arrived to this part of the forest, there hasn't been any sign of wildlife. No birds, no mammals, not even insects." Nightshade said, narrowing her eyes. "Just silence."
Now that she mentioned it, the others did realize that the usually noisy jungle was eerily quiet. For a place that harbored almost 30 percent of Terra's fauna, the only sound that they heard was that of the wind rushing through the trees. Blackout kept his eyes open and scanned his surroundings for any signs of life.
After half an hour of walking through the thick vegetation, and listening to Starscream's incessant grumblings about burning the rainforest to the ground after conquering the planet, they finally reached their destination-an ancient Meruvian city. It was larger than what the humans had previously discovered in past explorations of the region, and it was certainly larger than the other Meruvian cities discovered in the area.
Walking into the city, the Cons saw that much of the area was overrun with dense foliage that had grown over the buildings and the statues. Nature had reclaimed this place for itself, and it looked like it would stay this way for a long, long time.
"Nice place they have here." Flamewar commented. "Think they have anything useful to steal?"
"It's a human city, Flamewar. Of course they don't have anything useful here." Starscream said. "Just keep an eye on the statues. I swear, if one of them turns out to be a golem, I'm leveling this city with an air raid."
"For once, we agree on something." Nightshade said.
They traveled through the vine covered stone streets of the city towards the center, to where the coordinates indicated. Usually, large cities of the Meru Empire had a large pyramid in the center for worship and religious sacrifices. However, this particular city had a large dome instead, one that was made of solid gold and covered in symbols shockingly similar to the one found on the disk. Flamewar hummed in appreciation at the lavish décor of the structure.
"This looks like the place, all right." She said.
"So we came all this way for a dusty old building?" Starscream glared at the dome as if it insulted him, which, in his mind, it probably did by just getting in his way. "What a waste of time."
"No one cares if you're frustrated, Starscream. There has to be something important about this place if the disk pointed us here." Blackout said. "Your orders, Nightshade?"
Nightshade looked at the symbols on the exterior of the dome. Just from the difference in aesthetic alone, she could tell that this probably wasn't built by the humans who lived here. Someone put this here long after the city fell.
"Blackout, shoot it." She commanded.
Blackout raised his arm and fired his thunderclap cannon, blasting the side of the dome with a sonic blast that would've shattered stone on impact. To the Cons' surprise, the blast did nothing to even scratch it, leaving only a tiny scorch mark that would be wiped away by the humidity.
"That crosses blasting our way in." Nightshade muttered.
"I'm pretty sure Megatron wants this thing in one piece, Nightshade." Flamewar said, fingering her crossbow.
"You're assuming that we can even get inside. Besides, I feel like we should try to figure out what it is first before trying to take a peek." She said and stepped up to the dome. She idly ran a finger along one of the symbols, but flinched back when she felt a sharp sting in her finger.
The minute her finger touched the dome, the symbols started to glow one by one. Nightshade took a step back, but a glowing white hand took hold of her arm and pulled her forward. Blackout reached for her, but Nightshade was already pulled into the dome before he could reach her, her body phasing through the wall like it was water. As soon as she was inside, the dome turned solid again and Blackout couldn't break through it. He fired his cannon a couple of times, but it did nothing just like before.
"Nightshade!" Blackout yelled.
Flamewar looked at the dome with wide eyes. "What the hell just happened?"
"I don't know but we need to call this in." Blackout said. "Nightshade might be in trouble!"
Starscream was equally as shell shocked as the others, but his mind was worrying about something else entirely. In another circumstance, he would've been jumping for joy at Nightshade's seeming demise. But he knew that Megatron would've found some way to blame him for this incident and he utterly dreaded having to explain this to him.
"Megatron is going to kill me."
XXXXXX
For the past few days, Optimus had Teletran-1 monitoring global news networks and the internet for any unusual occurrences in the world. No one knew what he was looking for, not even Prime himself, but he remained alert for something that might happen. When he wasn't doing that, he was keep an eye on the upcoming planetary alignment, which was in just a few hours. Only those who personally knew him, like Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet, knew that Optimus was acting on instinct at this point, brought about by the Matrix.
"Optimus," Sparkplug walked into the command center to speak with Prime. "Please, you need to take a break."
"I can't, Sparkplug. Not today." Optimus said, not taking his eyes off the screen.
"You aren't doing anyone any good by running yourself ragged. You need to settle down, Prime, your behavior is starting to worry the others." The Minicon leader said. "You're on the verge of giving Liftor a nervous breakdown with all this pacing and prep work."
Optimus sighed and rubbed his eyes, turning to Sparkplug with a weary expression. "I'm sorry. It's just that with everything happening all at once, I've been a bit…"
"Scatterbrained?" His little yellow friend supplied helpfully.
Optimus chuckled. "Yes, that."
"Come and have some energon with me. Ironhide just replaced the tank an hour ago so it might taste good for once."
"One can only hope."
Suddenly the computer gave an alert, making Optimus sigh. When he checked the computer, his expression darkened, making Sparkplug frown. "What is it, Optimus?"
"It's an encoded message." Optimus said.
"From who?"
"Megatron."
"Megatron?" Sparkplug looked up at Prime in surprise. "What does he want?"
Optimus read the message over, which was short and to the point, as was Megatron's style. "He wants to mee me in person to discuss an important matter."
"Alone?"
"No, I can bring one other person, and he will do the same."
"This sounds fishy. Tell Megatron to frag off, Optimus, I don't trust him." Sparkplug said. Looking back up, he saw the contemplation in Prime's face. "Don't tell me you're actually going to meet with him!"
"Megatron hates me with a passion, Sparkplug, and we barely exchange words outside of battle. He wouldn't request to talk unless something happened that forced him into this situation."
"Maybe you're reading too much into this." Sparkplug noted. Optimus couldn't really deny that.
"Still, I must see what he wants." Optimus said. "If this meeting is genuine, then something could be wrong. I'd be a fool to just dismiss this."
He was well aware that this was risky, but he couldn't shake the feeling that this was possibly something leading to a greater event that was much bigger than their skirmishes on this planet. For once, he hoped that he was wrong about that.
XXXXXX
The meeting place as set in the Xingese province of Yu Dao, which was known for its abundance of rice fields. It was early morning in the countryside, and the climate was humid and warm. Heavy mists kept the morning sunlight from reaching the ground, but it provided a rather good bit of scenery too. Optimus had to admire Megatron's choice of the meeting location.
"I don't like this, Prime. What if something happens?" Ironhide said, looking around. "We could be ambushed."
"We're in the middle of the rice fields. There's no place to hide with the mist this shallow and we have clear view of our surroundings. It'll be foolish to stage an ambush in a place this open." Optimus said.
"It's Megatron, he has a way of making the impossible possible." Ironhide grumbled. "I swear, if this is some trick-"
"I can assure you, Autobot, this is no trick."
Optimus and Ironhide saw Megatron and Soundwave walk out of the mists. Megatron stopped about two feet away from the Autobots, with Soundwave hanging back a bit. He was unconcerned about Ironhide pointing his cannons at him.
"All right, Megatron, we came just like you asked." Ironhide growled. "Now what do you want?"
Megatron looked t the red Autobot like he was dirt at the bottom of his feet. "Optimus, you could've at least had the courtesy of muzzling your attack dog. His barking is already annoying me."
Optimus kept Ironhide from lunging at Megatron with a firm hand on his shoulder. "Get to the point, Megatron. Why are we here?"
"I'm here to propose a truce." Megatron said.
Optimus blinked, not sure if he was hearing things right. Ironhide was just as surprised as he was. "Excuse me?"
"A truce, Prime, a temporary one." Megatron continued. "At least until we can defeat our shared enemy."
"The angels."
"You've seen what awesome power these beings have at their disposal. And you also know how far they're willing to go to destroy us. I want to wipe these things out before they do the same to us."
"You seem eager to take care of them, Megatron." Optimus noted. "Speaking from experience?"
"Once, and like all my enemies, they were crushed beneath my feet." Megatron said, deliberately vague on the details of that unpleasant encounter. "And recently, we've stumbled upon a possible structure that I think might be of use to us, although our attempts to enter it have been ineffective so far. I want to know whether there is a possible Cardinal resting there like the one on the floating island. Being an expert on all things spiritual, I figured that you were the mech to call."
Optimus crossed his arms. "And how long do you think a truce between us will last?"
"Only as long as it's mutually beneficial. It wouldn't bode well for our respective armies if we were to perish at the hands of an alien force, would it?" Megatron smirked. "After fighting that last Cardinal, I am not privy to fighting another one, so I'm not taking any chances. We will work together just for this one occasion, then if there is no threat, we can go back to trying to kill each other."
Ironhide looked at Optimus. "Prime, you're not actually going to agree with this clown, are ya?"
"Ironhide, we both know how dangerous these creatures are. If this has some connection to them, then it's worth investigating." Optimus looked at Megatron. "Very well, Megatron, we have a truce. But if you betray us, not even Knockout will be able to put you back together."
Megatron smiled. "Duly noted."
XXXXXX
Optimus did not enjoy explaining the situation to the other Autobots. They all protested his decision to accept Megatron's truce, especially Prowl, who threw a whole slew of potential scenarios of how this mission could go wrong. Jazz, though just as suspicious as everyone else, understood the circumstances and agreed with Optimus on his decision. This wasn't just about the war anymore. Everyone's survival was at stake.
The operation itself had to be handled carefully; Optimus would go with Prowl and Wheeljack to the coordinates Megatron supplied him. Taking a ground bridge to the heart of the Amazon, they followed his directions to the ancient Meruvian city they were informed about. Optimus and his companions were on constant guard, but he ordered his mechs not to fire unless fired upon. They found Megatron and Starscream at the large golden dome in the center of the city, with Soundwave running scans on it.
"Where's Nightshade?" Prowl asked. "She's always hanging over you like a shadow."
"Nightshade is…preoccupied." Starscream said, stepping forward. "I have been chosen to stand by Megatron's side while she's out playing golden retriever."
Soundwave paused in his work and turned to the Autobots, eying their weapons. "Lower your weapons. We are not here to fight."
"Forgive me if I find it hard to believe." Prowl said.
"Stand down, Prowl." Optimus walked up next to Megatron and looked up at the dome. "So this is the structure you were talking about?"
"Looks impressive, doesn't it? Which means this wasn't made by human hands." Megatron remarked and turned to Soundwave. "Have you found anything yet, Soundwave?"
"Negative, Megatron, there are no visible entrances I can detect, and the dome extends underground as well, barring any attempts to dig underneath it." Soundwave said.
"So it's a giant sphere, then." Wheeljack said. "My, things are getting more and more interesting today, aren't they?"
"Have you tried entering it the old fashioned way?" Prowl asked, keeping his hand near his blaster.
Megatron wordlessly raised his fusion cannon and fired it at the dome. To the Autobots' surprise, the beam's energy was completely deflected by the dome. "Does that answer your question?"
Optimus narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, feeling the Matrix hum faintly in his chest. He reached out and slowly touched the dome, ready to move if something went wrong.
As expected, then his contact with the dome caused a reaction, but this was different. Not only did the symbols glow like before, the entire dome began to tremble.
"What's going on?!" Starscream stammered.
"We should be asking that question!" Prowl growled.
Optimus stepped back and saw a glow coming from within his chest. "The Matrix? What's…ah!"
Optimus doubled over as the Matrix burned painfully in his chest, just as the dome glowed brighter and brighter, enough to force those present to cover their eyes from the glow. The part of the dome in front of Optimus opened up and four tendrils of light grabbed his arms and legs and started dragging him inside.
"Optimus!" Wheeljack fired his blaster, but the laser blasts were deflected by the tendrils. Prowl ran to aid his leader, trying to hit the tendrils with his shock batons, but he was smacked away and knocked onto his back. Even Megatron tried shooting them, but his fusion blast was blocked with relative ease. All their attacks were being deflected by some force field around Optimus.
"What is this?" Megatron muttered in shock.
Optimus continued to struggled against the bonds that restrained him, but there was little he could do with the Matrix having him in constant pain. He was dragged into the door of light and the dome's opening closed behind him, leaving a seamless wall behind once more.
"Prime!" Prowl shot at the dome, but his blaster did little to no damage. He turned his gun on Megatron, making Soundwave and Starscream point their weapons at him. "I knew it was a trap! This is exactly the sort of thing you would do!"
"Stop whining, Autobot! This isn't my doing." Megatron sneered. "The same thing happened to Nightshade."
"Nightshade? But how…" Wheeljack realized what that meant. "You mean she's in there too?"
"It was her fault for touching the damn thing. If she just stayed away, we wouldn't be in this mess." Starscream hissed. "We thought Prime's Matrix could at least get her out of there, but apparently even that thing was no more useful than a rusting turbofox."
"I figured this whole truce was just another way to help yourself." Prowl circled around Megatron. "Even when there's a third party trying to kill all of us, you're still trying to win this war."
"Don't act like you're any different, Prowl. Your hands are just bloodstained as mine." Megatron replied. "Now put that gun away before I shove it down your throat!"
"Go ahead and try it!"
"Megatron," Soundwave called his leader. "Something is happening with the dome."
The assembled cybertronians looked at the dome, which was still glowing and emitting a dull hum like a tuning fork on a low octave. The ground in front of the dome rumbled before something large broke free from the ground and climbed out of the hole it made. The figure stood to its full height, towering over most of the people there save for Megatron.
It was another angel, a humanoid figure clad in red and gold armor from head to toe, wielding a large golden broadsword and a red shield with gold highlights along the outer rim. It had a bird-like head that was also covered in a slender helmet and stomped forward with its sword raised to the two teams.
"I am Ardor, proud warrior of Her Grace and defender of this sanctum." He pointed his sword at Megatron. "You are not welcome here, aliens. For trespassing on sacred ground, I shall smite you all where you stand."
"Be my guest." Megatron grinned. "I welcome a good distraction."
XXXXXX
Optimus groaned as he laid face down on what felt like a platform, but saw only a large nebula cloud keeping him stable. Sitting up, he looked around at his surroundings, which was just a wide expanse of darkness as far as the eye can see. It was like he was in the middle of a void, drifting in outer space, without any stars in the stellar horizon. Unsettled by the silence, Optimus took another look around and spotted something else next to him.
"Nightshade?" Optimus blinked and knelt down over her, gently patting her face to rouse her. "Nightshade, wake up."
She groaned and her eyes flickered online, briefly glancing around before her purple eyes focused on Optimus hovering over her. Nightshade grimaced and pushed him away.
"The first thing I see in this place is your face. This really must be hell." She muttered, standing up.
"Forgive me for not being Megatron." Optimus said and crossed his arms. "Now are you going to tell me what you're doing here?"
"I was trying to figure out what this thing was before I was grabbed and dragged into this place." Nightshade said, and she smiled. "I'm guessing Megatron brought you along thinking you know some way to open the dome?"
"That's a good possibility, if not a risky one to take." Optimus said. "I didn't think he'd take such a gamble to free you."
"If it makes you feel any better, you weren't much better at all." Nightshade commented and looked around. She frowned and shook her wings. "Why does it feel like we're being watched?"
"Probably because we are." Optimus replied.
Suddenly the two cybertronians were assailed by a powerful pressure that weighed down on them. Optimus and Nightshade were forced to their knees, unable to remain standing in the face of a powerful aura. It was like being in the deepest part of the ocean with water pressing down on them at all angles. Then as quickly as it appeared, the pressure stopped and the weary soldiers stood up again.
"What the hell was that?" Nightshade hissed.
"The ruler of this place." Optimus guessed. That was nothing natural, someone was flexing their muscles at them.
"So we meet at last, Optimus Prime," Said a woman's voice, cold and regal, like a queen's. It came from everywhere, and was loud enough to make their body's rattle right down to their steel bones. "The one who leads the invasion of my world."
"Who speaks to us?" Optimus called out. "Show yourself!"
"And you better make it snappy. Neither of us are in the mood to play charades." Nightshade said.
For a moment, there was silence, and then a giant ball of light, like a sun, appeared before them. The light morphed into a giant golden face; it had the feminine features of a human female and wore an elaborate headdress that enhanced her inhuman beauty. She looked down at Optimus and Nightshade like a goddess would a mortal-as if they were insignificant, feeble, and altogether, weak. She treated them like the Decepticons treated all organics-as if they were barely worth more than their names.
"I am Jubileus, Mother of the Hierarchy of Laguna and the one true God." She declared. "I am that I am."
XXXXXX
Megatron and Ardor swung their swords at each other and their blades clashed with a metallic clang. Megatron was knocked back a few feet from the strength of Ardor's attack, his arm vibrating a bit from the force of the blow. Despite this, he grinned at the thought of a great battle. He hated these things with a passion, but damn if they didn't offer a good fight.
Ardor lunged at Megatron, but Soundwave and Starscream opened fire on him, pelting his extravagant armor with laser bolts and concussion blasts. Stumbling back a bit, Ardor raised his shield to block the weapons fire and then lifting his sword to deflect a rear strike from Prowl's batons. Wheeljack cracked his energo-whip and wrapped it around his neck, pulling as hard as he could to drag him to his knees.
"Fool!" Ardor bellowed and kicked Prowl in the chest with a large foot. He spun around and slashed his sword at Wheeljack, who ducked to avoid being beheaded. He then charged right at the two Cons.
"Kill it, kill it!" Starscream hollered. He changed to jet mode and fired two missiles at Ardor, only for them to hit the angel's shield. Soundwave fired three rockets from his launcher and got a direct hit on Ardor's body, but he still kept coming.
"Rumble, Frenzy, deploy!" Soundwave fired the two mechs from his chest and stepped back.
Frenzy struck first, unleashing his sonic scream to stop the armored warrior in his tracks. Rumble charged, flanking him to deliver a strong punch that would've pulverized regular metal and stone. However, Ardor was more powerful than they thought. He forced his body to move, spinning around and slashing at Rumble just as he struck with his pile drivers. The golden sword easily sliced through Rumble's arm, severing it and stunning Rumble long enough to Ardor to kick him aside.
Ardor turned back to face Frenzy, his sword beginning to glow. He slashed and released a horizontal energy wave that slammed into Frenzy and sent him crashing into a building. Ardor quickly raised his shield and blocked the fusion beam Megatron shot at him. A beam that could blast a hole in a mech as big as Ultra Magnus was blocked by a shield that wasn't even enhanced by energon.
"You all attack me over and over again even though you know it's futile." Ardor said, spinning his word around. "I don't know if you creatures or brave or just too stupid to realize how outmatched you are."
"It's a little bit of both!" Wheeljack shot two shells from his shoulder cannons at Ardor's face. They were both shrapnel warheads that exploded and riddled his head and upper chest with razor sharp filaments that dug deep into his armor. Wheeljack then snared his shield with his whip and pulled as hard as he could.
But Ardor didn't go down easily. He pulled his shield arm back and wrenched Wheeljack forward off his feet, slamming his armored fist into Wheeljack's face and sent him hurtling back nearly twelve feet down the street until hitting a statue and knocking it over.
"Wheeljack!" Prowl ran to help his friend, leaving Ardor with the Decepticons.
"Now," He said menacingly. "Who's next?"
XXXXXX
The golden face of Jubileus sat before them like the sun, her eyes staring straight into their souls as if casting judgment upon them. Behind her, thousands of copies of her head appeared, some close, some far, others merely tiny points of light in the distance. Soon the entire void was filled with copies of her heads like a wall of stars, and they all stared at Optimus and Nightshade with the same piercing gaze.
"So," Optimus said, keeping his voice calm. This presence, her very aura felt oppressive, suffocating, but he did not show fear, and was glad to see Nightshade doing the same. "You are the one Fortitudo spoke of."
"The Cardinals are my will given form, my sword through which I smite those who threaten my law. They are like me in all but form." Jubileus glared won at them. "To stand against them, is to stand against me."
Optimus knew that trying to convince her that he meant no harm was near impossible. He didn't know what she was or where she came from, only that she was a powerful being who sought to kill his friends and destroy everything he cared about, and he wasn't going to let that happen.
"Whatever we did to anger you so, know that we did not mean to do it intentionally." He appeased to her. "We had no idea of your presence on this world when we came here."
"And now you know, and you will die here knowing of the travesties you have brought upon my world." She said in darker tone. "I will not have aliens born of metal disrupt my Divine Plan for this world. Terra will be the cusp of my evolution and there is nothing you can do."
"Apparently being divine also means you're hard at hearing. You aren't the first whack job to call herself a god, and you'll die just like the others." Nightshade growled.
"We are the gods of light and darkness, chaos and order, the people of the Oracle who have learned to harness the essence of life itself, Quintessence. With your power and might, we will achieve enlightenment and shed these forms to become even greater, and those who acknowledge us shall share that splendor. Those who refuse will be struck down, just like you." Jubileus declared, her voice coming from a thousand mouths speaking at once. "Who are you to defy the Word of God?"
"You're insane. You truly believe yourself to be gods." Optimus grunted. "Who are you to rule over these people? Who do you think you are to enforce your will upon others under the guise of divinity?"
"We are the dolems, and Terra is just one of many worlds we have blessed with our presence. Other races have bent to our will and this world will be no exception. And you cybertronians, who burn everything you touch, will be an example for those who resist our efforts of obtaining the ultimate evolution."
'Primus, there are more of these things across the galaxy?' Nightshade thought, giving Optimus a glance. "What do you mean by example?"
"You can feel it, can't you, Optimus Prime? The alignment of the nine planets." Jubileus smiled. "When the planets join as one, the Cardinals of the North and South will awaken and annihilate you aliens right down to the last pitiful soul. And they won't stop until your bodies are sent back to the earth from where they came!"
XXXXXX
"Wheeljack!" Prowl ran up to Wheeljack, who was lying in a pile of rubble, half conscious and groaning. "Answer me, Wheeljack, are you alright?"
Wheeljack groaned and held his aching head, which rang like a church bell. Ardor punched like a wrecking ball. "I can still remember my name if that's what you're asking."
Prowl helped Wheeljack to his feet and looked back at the Cons.
Megatron was still fighting Ardor in melee combat, and it was clear that Ardor was much faster than him. Reading his movements and attack patterns, Ardor blocked or deflected many of his strikes and didn't seem to be keen on giving Megatron time to breathe. Soundwave and Starscream kept their distance, dealing damage with long range attacks. Energy blasts chipped away at his armor, but for the most part, Ardor remained undamaged. Whenever he pushed Megatron away, Ardor would slash an energy wave at them to force them back. Starscream had already taken a serious blow to the chest and was barely keeping up with the battle.
"Any plans for taking that thing down?" Wheeljack asked. Prowl shushed him.
"I'm thinking." Prowl took a good look at Ardor's body. Like all armor, there had to be small seams near the joints for the wearer to move fluidly. He could see those very seams in its armor, but they were small and too well protected to fire lasers at them. That meant getting in close, which was also a problem given that both sword and shield were dangerous at close range, not to mention of Ardor's supernatural strength. That just left one unconventional method…
"We're going to have to do hit and run maneuvers." Prowl said, lifting his electric batons. They were useless against that kind of armor, but aside from his blaster, it was all he had on hand.
"Prowl, you won't be able to get close without getting cut in half or punted across the city. You're going to need something with a little more kick to it." Wheeljack reached into one of his many hip compartments and pulled out fire tiny objects. He flicked his fingers and showed Prowl his secret weapon.
Prowl raised a ridge at Wheeljack's solution. "Ninja stars?"
If Wheeljack had a mouth, he could be grinning. "Exploding ninja stars. It was going to be a gift to Jazz, but I think he won't mind if we use them ahead of time."
Megatron and Ardor were still locked in combat, their blades ringing each time they hit each other and the ground littered with deep gouges from Ardor's golden sword hitting it whenever it missed a cut. Soundwave charged at Ardor from behind and fired a concussion blast into his back, blasting off a few pieces of armor, but took a punch to the face that shattered his optic visor. Starscream rushed in and stabbed Ardor in the back, sinking his bayonet right into his stony flesh, and was backhanded for his troubles.
Megatron used this distraction to leapt up and bring his blade down on Ardor's shield arm, cutting it off at the elbow. He grinned as he saw the limb fall to the ground with the shield and backpedaled to gain some distance.
"You feel the pain, don't you?" Megatron taunted. "Where's your divine protection now?"
"Insolent fool!" Ardor hissed and swung at Megatron, who ducked under his blade. "Not even your heathen gods can save you when I'm done with you all!"
Ardor swung his sword again and Megatron quickly grabbed the shield from the ground, which covered his entire body. The sword hit the shield and Megatron remained unharmed, though the blow sent him flying back across the courtyard. Ardor marched towards Megatron, its sword glowing as it prepared to fire another energy blade, when three pointed stars stabbed into its arm.
"Hmm?" Ardor looked at the tiny stars embedded in his arm, and suddenly had a face full of flames as they exploded in his arm, blasting his armor apart and taking out a chunk of his arm.
Prowl ran to Ardor's left, throwing three of his own stars with pinpoint speed and accuracy. They stabbed into Ardor's arm and another explosion engulfed Ardor's body. More armor was destroyed, and he was even more damaged than before. Even still, he was still slashing energy blasts at Prowl, tearing apart large swaths of land before a falling rock caught Prowl in the back of the head, staggering him. Ardor kicked Prowl into the rubble and slashed at Wheeljack, who was almost cut in half by the large sword.
"I am a soldier of God! You weapons cannot kill me!" Ardor roared. "No one can shatter the divine protection that Her grace has given me!"
"Just shut up!" Megatron shouted.
Megatron fired his fusion beam into Ardor's back, blasting him into one of the stone houses and had it collapse on him. He walked over to the fallen warrior, who was still alive, if just barely. That one shot to his unprotected back had destroyed most of Ardor's torso, revealing the complex network of crystalline veins and his pulsating crystal heart, a smooth red orb that had a rapidly fading glow.
"I…my sacrifice will not be…in vain…" Ardor rasped. He was barely able to move his head. "She…will kill every last…one of you monsters…our glorious…"
"Go preach it to the choir." Megatron pointed his cannon at Ardor's head and fired one last blast that destroyed his head.
"You're welcome by the way." Wheeljack called out. Prowl glared at him and he said, "What? I just wanted some recognition for my part in this."
Megatron paid them no mind. He wasn't here for the Autobots, he was here for his lieutenant. Looking at the dome, he knew conventional weapons would have no effect on it, not even his fusion cannon.
'But what about unconventional weapons?' Megatron thought, looking at Ardor's golden sword lying next to his corpse.
XXXXXX
"Cardinals?" Nightshade stared up at Jubileus' face with wide eyes. "You mean there are more of those things?"
"The four Cardinals are born in the four corners of the world, resting within their domains until the promised day. But your presence on this planet has caused them to awaken before they were meant to, and so my hand is forced." The goddess said. "But they will do their duty to me, and that is ridding this world of your kind so that humanity will evolve untainted by your sin."
"Why don't you do it yourself?" Optimus asked. He was getting tired of her divine chatter. He had dealt with people like her in the past, people who had caused so much misery because they were doing "God's will". "You are an all powerful being, snuffing us out should be no problem for you."
"If I had my body, I'd do just that. But alas, I am but a shadow of my former self, and I must give this noble task to my Cardinals. They will awaken when the planets align and then hunt down your factions to annihilate them with the might of the Host itself."
"You won't have us!" Nightshade screamed. "We will kill your precious Cardinals just like we did with the dragon."
"So I will send more soldiers." Jubileus replied easily. "Our numbers are legion. You may fight and win a battle, but eventually you will fall. I will get what I want and that is for to achieve the ultimate form of evolution and shed our physical bonds. But first, I must eradicate you aliens and cleanse this world of your taint. That is my will, so says the Goddess of Light."
There was a loud rumble from outside and cracks started to form in the dome.
"What was that?" Nightshade asked.
"Our friends." Optimus smiled.
Outside, Megaton hefted Ardor's heavy sword onto his shoulder with Soundwave's help. Feeling the power flowing through it invigorated Megatron and he swung it again, releasing another energy wave that hit the damaged surface of the dome with a loud bang. The damage the dome was taking clearly effected both its defense systems and Jubileus herself, as evidenced by her projections vanishing with large groups. Optimus couldn't help but liken the scene to watching stars die in the distance.
"So even in the face of God you still defy me," Jubileus was nonplussed by her fading apparitions. "Never have I seen mortals as foolish as you are."
"You'd be surprised how people act when you push them into a corner." Optimus remarked.
"You will not be able to escape. Nothing happens on this world without me knowing."
"Watch us." Nightshade shot back as she took out Gandiva and fired an hour, taking out the wall in one shot. They ran through the hole they made, though Optimus took one last look at Jubileus before leaving the dome.
Jubileus let them go; she could've stopped them, but she had little power to hold them indefinitely. It didn't matter anyway, others will do her work, carry out her wishes. She knew where they lived now, and the Cardinals will strike them so hard that no one will ever retaliate against her kind again. Killing them would be a mercy. No, she will break them and spread their ashes across the cosmos before focusing on this planet's evolution. Salvation was within their grasp, and the aliens were standing in their way.
"You may run, Prime," She said as the last of her apparitions faded into darkness, leaving on her face in the void. "But I will find you, catch you, and burn your body and soul into ashes with my purifying light…"
Her face slowly disappeared into nothingness as the dome started crumbling to dust.
XXXXXX
"Prime, you're alive!" Wheeljack exclaimed, patting Optimus' shoulder. "Thank Primus you're all right, I was starting to think we were screwed."
"Nice to see you have faith, Wheeljack." Prowl said dryly.
Nightshade walked over to Megatron, who nodded his head to her. She knew he was relieved to see her, though he didn't show it. She was one of the chosen few he trusted, and Nightshade was too great an asset to lose in this war. She was also happy to see a glint of relief in his eyes as well.
"Good to see you're still operational, Nightshade." Starscream said, waltzing up to her. "We all thought you had perished."
"You would think that, wouldn't you?" Nightshade sneered and turned to Megatron. "As much as I like to chat, we better get back to the Nemesis. We need to raise our defenses."
"For what?" Megatron asked. He saw the faint panic in her face and wondered what she had seen in that dome. "Who are you expecting an attack from? The Autobots?"
"No, something much worse."
"She's right Megatron." Optimus said. "These creatures, they call themselves the Dolems. Two Cardinals, each as powerful as Fortitudo, are about to awaken when the planets align and are set to head towards our respective bases."
"You lie! It took all of us just to fight that last beast, and now we have two on the way?" Starscream exclaimed. "We can't fight them on our own!"
"Try to grow a spine, Starscream. We don't have a choice!" Megatron growled. He turned to his archenemy. "What is this Prime? An uncoordinated attack on both our forces?"
"No," Optimus replied grimly. "It is a declaration of war."
XXXXXX
Sitting in the middle of the North and South poles were obelisks, pillars of black onyx, similar to the one on the floating island of Brigadoon. Their age, and how they came to be was known only to the frozen tundra that harbored them, for they have stood sentinel over their respective zones for millennia. No one knew they existed here, and no one would know what their presence entailed for the people of Terra at large.
In the vast expanse of outer space, the planets slowly drifted into their alignment. An event that happened once every ten thousand years, the planets of the Sol system; Mercury, Venus, Terra, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, all fell into perfect alignment. It was a sight to behold for astronomers and stargazers, but no human knew of its metaphysical impact on the obelisks on Terra.
The gravitational pull of all the planets combined surged through Terra, beginning and ending at the poles. The obelisks, which have sat in place undisturbed for longer than humankind's existence on this planet, began to glow. The ancient, inhuman symbols that layered their smooth surfaces were illuminated and started to crackle with energy. They began to vibrate, giving a low hum that reverberated throughout the thick ice. Both obelisks released a massive wave of energy that flowed through the earth, surging through the atmosphere and encompassing the planet from both sides. Of course, the humans never saw this energy, as it was invisible, but those certain individuals, most notably espers, felt something wash over them, like an electrical charge that ran through their bodies.
And deep within a secret compound in Osea, two generals looked to the sky, their eyes glowing a deep amber, and smiled at the sign. It was happening.
Once the entire world had been saturated in this energy wave, the obelisks exploded in brilliant flashes of light, and from the blast point, large monstrous forms emerged from the ice. The creature from the South Pole crashed through the glaciers that held its body and jumped into the ocean, its large form moving through the water like a giant shark. The entity from the north rose high above the hole it created in its escape and floated over the icy plains of the Arctic. Both creatures, separated by thousands of miles, move at the same time for different locations on the planet, ready to accomplish their missions.
The Cardinals have awakened and the storm has just begun.
Three more chapters to go in this story! It was hell, but I'm really satisfied writing this story the way it was supposed to be written. Thanks for reading and please leave a review.