Song: It Was Always You – Maroon 5

Arcee and Road Rage were preparing for the race with Blurr and Bolt overlooking their progress. If there was one bot she would fear on the track, it was Road Rage. Although the latter didn't try to hurt her, she could tell there was an aggressive style to her driving techniques.

When they drove up a loop, Arcee used her speedster ability and managed to reach the top finally after several failed attempts, moving downward at the end to complete it. She swelled with pride. "Yeah baby! That's more like it!"

Blurr smirked on the sidelines with Bolt cheering. "Easier when you have the power made for it! Keep it up, ladies!"

Moonhunter had his paws on the upper railing of the stands, tail swaying eagerly as he watched his owner navigate Dreadnaught Speedway. Bolt pet him and chuckled, "I don't think they have Nitrotiger races just yet, but we'll see. You'd love it."

As Arcee managed to get a lead on Road Rage around a corner, she spotted the finish line as she took the final ramp. The small truck behind her was roaring close by and she took no chances in slowing her approach. However, just as she reached it, she suddenly fell into a portal of light on the track. Road Rage skidded to the side and hit her brakes before transforming right as the portal disappeared. Any aggression she held dispersed immediately and she stared down where Arcee once was. Gesturing confused and panicked, she peered around uselessly and then looked at the two mechs in the stands who had equally stunned postures.

"I didn't do anything! I swear!" Road Rage instantly yelled out.

Blurr was bewildered but slowly Bolt figured out what had happened, shaking his helm before placing a servo over his faceplate with a sigh.

Arcee, on the other hand, tumbled and found the light melt into a transparent tunnel where warped planets, stars, and galaxies flew past her. She felt like she was freefalling yet the whipping energy around her made no flow of air. It was becoming recognizable as several planets seem to be growing around where the tunnel seemingly ended. She landed roughly onto stable ground.

All around her was visible space with colorful nebulas swirling in view as well as many galaxies. But the most unusual sight was eight planets orbiting around the platform which she stood on with floating debris hovering below it. Distant yet big enough to make out their features, she identified Cybertron immediately with its dark grey and shimmering blue bio lights with two moons among it. Next to it was a sunburnt planet with blending cybernetic features. Velocitron. The others she started to piece together as she glanced at each. Earth was obvious but she guessed the lifeless grey planet barren was Chaar. A metallic planet that seemed to be built with layers and a faint section of water visible within had to be Caminus. Half a planet that looked like someone threw together spare parts was Junkion, and a water world identical to Earth's structure but covered in dark spots had to be Aquatron. The final planet had an unknown shade of reddish-pink water with bioluminescent blue land noticeable on its shadowed side more so. It had a few moons and a belt of rock orbiting it. That had to be the last planet, Kanjis.

"Beautiful, aren't they?"

The Allspark's voice startled her, and she whipped around to see it float down. A few comets shot past behind it, and she examined her view as she asked, "You couldn't just appear on Velocitron? You had to send me back here?"

"I love space because everything around you is affected by time; neither space nor time can function without the other. These are just a few of the worlds I can watch over. I felt you needed to see it yourself to understand the vast differences you know and will encounter."

"You get pretty lonely on Cybertron, don't you?" Arcee asked, raising a brow as she looked away from Velocitron. "The Metal Heads are on Velocitron...that was the danger you spoke of, isn't it?"

"Yes, I sense their legion grows stronger. But that's not why I summoned you here. The relics of old, the artifacts of Primus themself, have been lost for some time. I want to bring them back home, all 30 of them, which is why I am calling on you to help. On each world, a couple of their relics can be found. You may recognize some of them."

Arcee placed her servos on her hips with a neutral frown. "A relic hunt again? We went through this scrap on Earth twice! I have things I have to do! Can't you just spawn them back?"

The Allspark met her sass bluntly. "No. It is rather inconvenient but there is a logical explanation. You see, the relics of Primus have the same mystical power as me. While I can bring you here, you are not endowed with Primus' essence. Cybertronians are not directly created by Primus' spark itself but the Well which lies in their sub-spatial realm. The Thirteen Primes were born from their spark and all the relics tied to the Primes were created using the powers inherited from them, therefore the relics are considered extensions of Primus' soul too. Some relics were rebuilt into current weapons by people among the factions, but they are still tied to me."

"So, you're saying you and the relics are, in a weird way, Primus' offspring? Don't tell me Unicron was involved in this process. Bolt already gave out that mental image on the isle, and I really hope it's not true," she said.

"Unicron is not responsible for anything except using his powers to give me half of my abilities and the corruption of those born of Primus. Being their brother, he is the only one capable of altering the functionalities of the relics and me through a telekinetic connection, something he never bothered with as he would rather destroy us and everyone associated with his planetary sibling. Thankfully, he is not a concern anymore as you and your former team of Autobots have made sure," the entity stated though she could tell there was a slight unnerved tone at the implication she made the moment prior.

"Okay," she huffed, "which relics lie on Velocitron?"

The Allspark seemed to revel in the chance to be mystical and responded, "On the planet where the roads are the way of life, three relics of Primus wait to be rediscovered. The origin of power is the origin of all, providing stability to even the most shattered ideals and artifacts. What is seen is not just what it can be as its sharp edge can strike down anything in its way. The sands of time fall continuously, impaling all who dare to stop it, but it is no weapon."

Arcee blinked as she listened to the descriptions, reeling her helm back slightly with a grimace as she tried to piece together what any of that meant. "What the hell does that even mean?! We've talked about this! No one can understand you when you speak in riddles, especially since I wouldn't even know what to guess any of those things to be!"

"Right...habit. The first item you need to find is the Origin Matrix, a relic that can stabilize any other artifact that has been destroyed or segregated as well as the tortured and fragmented minds of those who wield it. It cannot be used for anything otherwise and was commonly used to keep the Star Saber together but since the blade has been repaired entirely, it was no longer needed. The second item you seek is the Amalgama Scythe, also known as just the Scythe...no, not the bot. It is a weapon that can transfigure itself into whatever the holder desires and is one of the most powerful of Primus' relics for its unpredictability, given to Amalgamous Prime by Primus to fight Unicron. The last relic on Velocitron is the Blades of Time. Do not be fooled by its name; it can tell you past, present, and future and was Vector Prime's specialty. Its contents forever flow in an endless loop, and it is believed that if it flickers its stream, that is a warning of a crucial decision upcoming that will determine the fate of worlds, galaxies, and perhaps the universe itself. Many who peered into it for too long were said to have been driven mad by the passage of time."

Arcee stared open mouthed and flabbergasted, finally her optics moving to glance quickly to the side unsure if what she was hearing was just in her head or not. "Whoa, whoa, wait a minute!"

"Something wrong?" The Allspark asked, peering down at her as its rings rotated slower to show its concern.

"Yeah! The Origin Matrix, the Scythe, and the Blades of Time are here on Velocitron?! Where would I even begin looking for lost relics such as those?!"

"Those you have befriended will guide you. When you find the relics, and I have all the confidence you will, meet me on the floating platforms below the city overlooking the land. There's an older speedway that was designed around the pillars holding the city up and it has seldom visitors, perfect for not drawing attention to ourselves. Can you do that?"

"Ummmm...talk to Override and the others to see if they know anything and bring back the relics. Got it," she shrugged, "I guess."

"I believe if anyone can do it, it's you. Make me proud, brave warrior."

Suddenly, the planets around her cracked with symbols with a blinding light, each a different language akin to the world they represented, with Earth having what appeared to be Latin covering it. They rotated around her whispering as the Allspark's energy pulsed. Light consumed every inch of visible space.

"Arcee?!" Her hearing and head throbbed as someone new took the place of the distant outline of the Allspark. "Are you alright?! Arcee!"

Bolt came into view, snapping his fingers close to her audio receptors which she slightly turned her helm towards in response. Moonhunter got into her face, his nose the largest thing in her view which fogged up her optics briefly. Once she saw she was back on Velocitron, she groaned, "Augh, the Allspark really knows how to communicate when it wants something."

As the Vehicon and a concerned Road Rage helped her up, Blurr looked at her confused more than the others. "Wait...you just disappeared then reappeared in a ball of light from the ground and you've been in contact with THE Allspark?"

"Arguably, not the strangest thing you'll ever encounter being friends with us," Bolt interjected. "The Allspark is very much real and very much a pain in communicating with. You should hear its riddles."

Arcee nodded, "Speaking of such..."

"Oh no," he muttered.

"...the Allspark wants relics. It told me there are thirty relics it needs returned to it, three of which are here on Velocitron. Now, this can't leave our circle alright. If everyone on Velocitron knew we needed those objects, it would be utter chaos, but I trust you two enough to keep the peace."

Road Rage held a servo to her chin, "Like relics of Primus himself?"

"Born from their powers, yes. Bolt, you know the lore better than anyone on Cybertron or you would know exactly what these are. The first item I need to find is the Origin Matrix. It was once a part of the Star Saber long ago."

Bolt tapped his claws together. "I know of the Star Saber, built by Solus Prime under Primus' influence, but I forgot about the Origin Matrix given its rarity. Give me a second...aha! The Origin Matrix was a gift to, ironically, Optimus Prime, a.k.a. the Thirteenth Prime at the time. Now, I don't remember who gifted it, but it was for Optimus to wield and was the predecessor of the Matrix of Leadership. The legend is that there were five different Matrixes created and the Origin Matrix was the first ever built.

"There was a problem though and that was Liege Maximo grew jealous of Thirteen being babied, despite being very young against the others regardless hence why and believed he should inherit relics as powerful as the Origin Matrix. Solus Prime, who was probably the closest carrier figure Thirteen ever had, refused to let him take it, and Maximo's conflictions with Solus' peaceful reasonings grew so bad that Solus had Thirteen hand it to her and encased it in the Star Saber making it able to reform with all the pieces collected, which Prima accidentally broke the first time in his fight against Unicron funnily enough. From that moment forward, the Origin Matrix was forgotten except by everyone who knew it was in the blade, like three people really, and it disappeared. If it's here on Velocitron, it must have been moved here by accident...or someone used it to get a quick payday, I would imagine."

Arcee frowned, "What the hell is wrong with Liege Maximo?! First, he drives the Megatronus over the edge with paranoia that kills Solus, then I learn he tried to take what didn't belong to him?"

"It's a bit worse when you recount how I just said he and Solus didn't get along because of his pride and greed...now her murder by Megatronus, who he manipulated into investigating Solus, doesn't seem so suspicious anymore, does it?" Bolt stated, crossing his arms proudly.

Blurr and Road Rage glanced at each other surprised. Moonhunter tensed at the unknown mixing reactions of his peers and flicked his tail annoyed while watching the exchange between Arcee and Bolt.

The queen grew disheartened at putting together the theory, which started to make sense much to her disdain. "That's...fucked up."

"Tell me about it," the Vehicon mused. "Liege Maximo was a master manipulator and quick talker, could simply talk his way into anyone's berth room if he wanted. He was known for this and that's why the Allspark started not trusting the Primes before being trapped by them because although the evidence of his involvement in both events with Solus was there, he got away scot-free. He was never charged with assisting Megatronus' murder of Solus, by the way. He was the one who convinced the Primes to sentence Megatronus to that dark planet you fought him on. The Allspark merely helped because it was afraid of retribution."

The blue Velocitronian merely said to the side, "And I thought Ransack had problems."

Narrowing her optics, Arcee said, "Although I'm curious now about what Ransack has done given I missed out on that whole situation here prior, I think we should get back on track. The Origin Matrix...any idea who would know where to find it? Anybody?"

Road Rage suddenly blurted, "Why don't you ask Override? I mean, she's the leader. Maybe the Origin Matrix was once mistaken as some sort of heirloom and passed down? She knows this planet like the back of her hand, people are a different matter though, so if something has hidden here, there's a chance she might know of it under a different alias."

That was a good enough start as Arcee believed she was going to get. She felt if the Origin Matrix was on Velocitron, assuming the Allspark wasn't trying to pull an elaborate prank, it would be near the cities. Arcee, Bolt, and Moonhunter left the Dreadnaught Speedway and rode the Railworks Highway to the FastTrak Command Complex. The watchtower of the highway was gleaming as workers made sure the Energon was flowing nicely, a big change in comparison to when they first arrived with the abnormal growths assaulting it.

When they walked into the complex itself, it had been cleaned thoroughly from the party and Override was looking at the vast energy beam in the center of the building that showed off the power to FastTrak's controls.

"Override, just the bot I need to talk to," Arcee said happily.

The red and white femme turned to her with a smile, waving before speaking in a cheerful tone before Moonhunter jumped up to nuzzle her. She laughed and pet him. "Hello, Arcee, Moonhunter, have you been getting ready for the big race?"

"Yes, but something came up in the middle of the practice. Perhaps you will know about this...if you believe me, that is." Override gave her a look as she continued, "I need to find artifacts from Cybertron and I've been told by a friend of mine on Cybertron close to Primus there might be three relics here. It's vital we return them home. Have you ever heard of the Origin Matrix?"

The Velocitronian leader shook her helm. "Unfortunately, the name doesn't ring a bell. Um, any description you could give me?"

Bolt then said, "Silver with handles and a red core, able to be held and almost as big as one's chest plating. Kind of looks like it could be the top half of a grip for a sword...?"

Override scrunched her nose plating briefly before looking towards the floor, then her optics got wide, and she clapped her servos together. "Do the handles go out horizontally then go vertical at the ends?"

"I think so."

"Okay, bear with me," she gestured, "but in a museum within Traction City, there was an unknown object that was found out in Quickslide Desert and brought there a few years after Ransack was killed and our war ended. No one knew what it was, but we have put it up on display in the museum since then. The investigators believed it to be Cybertronian but the faint symbols around its core didn't match the common Cybertronian language."

Arcee gasped and quickly pulled out Dagger Prima, holding it on its side to reveal the language of the Primes on its grip as well as the secondary language it carried of the Allspark's on the blade itself. "Is this the language you saw by any chance? Either of these?"

She nodded when Override hesitated to touch it out of respect waiting for her approval and watched as the latter studied the symbols closer. The leader then pointed at the Allspark's unknown dialect. "This is it. In fact, I think both are on it, but this one is the most prominent I remember. What languages are these?"

"One is the language of the Primes, the other is direct from Primus and the Allspark. I guess they just had their own language before any Cybertronian was ever created. Unicron probably spoke it too, but it died out after the Thirteen Primes were born. The Primes' evolved into what we have now, not the Allspark's."

"Wicked, so this friend of yours...is...!" Override gestured with a grin, unable to finish her sentence out of sheer excitement.

Arcee laughed, "Yep, the Allspark wants its relics back. I hope you don't mind-"

"No, no, no, no! If it belongs to the Allspark, I'm not going to fight it over what rightfully belongs to it. The Origin Matrix, hopefully it is, is all yours! Take it," she said. "I'll even go with you myself to make sure you get it. Come on."

Bolt nudged Arcee and held his servo up high with a chuckle, which she immediately high fived before giving a silent "yes!" Override had her employees open a ground bridge to the museum and Moonhunter moved immediately through it with his tail in the air to the delight of Override. They went straight into the main lobby of the museum, and Arcee was in awe at the large building.

Energon pools floated above them in glass that were organized in a staircase-like pattern up to the ceiling. The walls had various paintings with stained glass murals of unknown subjects. But in the dead center of the lobby and encased in a secure transparent box was a Matrix. True to the description of Bolt's, she could confirm that this was the Origin Matrix itself. Its red core glimmered like a ruby in the sunlight. The Nitrotiger sniffed at the stand curiously as his owner and friend approached it. Suddenly, Dagger Prima seemed to react to being in proximity to the relic by glowing. Both items began whispering like they were communicating with one another.

"Wow! The real Origin Matrix! Oh, Optimus is going to have a field day with this," Bolt snickered. "I never thought in my entire existence I would see such a thing. I think I can die happy now...again...maybe not, but you know what I mean."

Override instantly went to the museum security and staff desk to explain the situation. Although she got a few disappointed looks, they relented and unlocked the box, carefully removing the Origin Matrix to give to Arcee.

When she held it, she gasped as her mind slowly drifted into a relaxed state. It was almost intoxicating how any small woes she had, any concerns that crossed her mind abruptly vanished once she was in range of the relic. She thumbed the handles of it, peering into its red haze that seemed to call to her. It was faint but she thought she heard it whispering, a common trait it seemed for anything tied to Primus. That also proved useful if she ever had to tell real relics from fake ones.

"This is...wow, you have to hold this, Bolt. Hold it. Hold it," she grinned nearly pushing it towards him.

"Okay, alright, give me a second to actually wrap my servos around the damn-oh, that feels good," he said. "It's like nothing ever went wrong...are you sure this isn't killing us because that's suspicious as hell to me that it can do this."

"I'm sure. That's the real deal. We should give this to Megatron. I really want to see his reaction now. It's like everything bad in your mind just dissipates."

Bolt pointed a digit at her though he didn't let go of the handles with either servo. "Good idea, but gold standard idea: therapy Matrix. Imagine all those bots with PTSD and all they have to do is hold this and it would clear their minds, no nightmares or any trauma to be seen. Clear as the sky in the processor."

Arcee made a surprised expression before remarking, "That's a great idea. We'd have to run that by the Allspark to get it back for sessions but that would be game-changing, and my therapist would probably yell 'Thank Primus!' for everything he has to deal with between me and Megatron."

"...You have a therapist?" The Vehicon mumbled.

Override laughed at the whole exchange between while Moonhunter was content lying next to the Origin Matrix's former box pedestal. "I take it you'll be returning it now, right?"

As she choked back more laughter, Arcee nodded, "We will. Thank you. One relic down, two to go. Next up is the Amal...Amalge...Amalgama, sorry, Scythe. Wow, that's a mouthful of a word."

Bolt gave the Origin Matrix back to Arcee who hooked it to her hip and huffed, "You're talking about Amalgamous Prime's Scythe? It just goes by just the 'Scythe', first off-"

"Not what the Allspark told me."

"-and secondly, the Scythe was said to be interchangeable, meaning it could change its form to whatever the user wanted. Keep in mind, there's a huge chance it doesn't even resemble what its original form is right now depending on who has it, so we wouldn't know what to look for. The story goes, if I recall correctly, Amalgamous Prime was a shapeshifter, invented it to match his flow of stealth and anonymous nature. Bots like Makeshift, whom you met once during Starscream's scheme to replace Wheeljack, are descendants of him to give you a clue on how the weapon works the same as the power someone related to him can wield. It was also said to be...unmanageable."

"What? The weapon or the user?" Arcee asked.

"The weapon. The Scythe was rumored to be conscious in its own way. It would take the shape of what you wanted, didn't mean it would necessarily do what you needed it to do if it didn't like you, kind of similar to the Forge of Solus Prime almost but with more of an attitude...like the friendly-firing type. If any weapon of the Primes had a body count, the Scythe would be the guiltiest. It's the color of rustic gold with black-tipped blades and light-yellow lights decorating it, identical in coloring to its original owner."

Override shook her head, "Well, regardless of its interesting history, I'm afraid this is where I'm quite useless. I've never encountered anything of that nature nor heard of that. The only weapons expert I know is a friend of Road Rage's, but he never reported any weapon as such and he's a stickler about keeping her informed of all the latest technology of weaponry. She reports everything he says to me all the time. I would start there if anything."

"Tell me, Bolt, how do you know all this?"

"What do you think I've been reading in my spare time as Head of the Iacon Archives?! I have access to all the classified and secure files of the Primes...and you really think I wouldn't read them?!" Bolt exclaimed in annoyance at his queen.

The two bots and the Nitrotiger, who had to be awakened, traveled back to the Dreadnaught Speedway, but they weren't prepared for what they encountered there. A small fire on the side of the track and two bots whose body parts were slightly burnt said one thing...but an angry, red-eyed Road Rage told the other half of the story with Blurr trying to hold her back.

"She's just a little temperamental! Nothing she really means! Sorry! Road Rage, stop," Blurr hissed as Road Rage tried to climb over his shoulder to get the mechs.

"You road-hogging, self-absorbed loser! I'll kill you and your friend in your sleep, you stupid motherf-ARGH!"

The growl that followed made both Bolt and Arcee cringe in fear. When Blurr pushed her near them, they backed away a few feet. Road Rage bared her hidden fangs trying to peer around the speedster who deflected her. When she attempted to move around him, not wanting to hurt him specifically in her fury, he threw up his index finger with rare malice equal to her own.

"Try it and I'll toss you off the city ledge! I'm faster than you are and don't think for a second that I can't lift you!" He then noticed the Cybertronians and smiled, "Hi, guys, sorry but Road Rage got into a little confrontation. Uh, you can see why she's not allowed to race...right?"

As Road Rage made a crude gesture to the bots still recovering hooked over Blurr's arm who restrained her from moving past him, Arcee frowned, "Yeah, I can imagine. Look, we need to talk to her about a weapons expert she may know about a missing relic."

Blurr understood but narrowed his optics when he heard the femme he held back shout random insults before snarling, "Road Rage! Yield! Calm yourself! Arcee needs your help, you little gremlin!"

Upon hearing Arcee's name, Road Rage's form changed to her softer appearance, and she grew a big smile, optics returning to bright yellow and her cheery demeanor back full time. "Arcee! Yay! We missed you! What would you like to know, dear?"

Moonhunter backed behind Bolt's legs scared but Arcee addressed her sudden interest. "Override told us you know a weapons expert. Do you know if he ever came across a scythe-like contraption or any type of weapon that could shift form?"

"Oooh...no. That sounds cool though! Is it a relic?"

"Yes, the Amalgama Scythe-"

"Just the Scythe, again," Bolt interrupted.

Arcee sent him a look before continuing. "-which is the weapon of Amalgamous Prime. The Allspark says it's here. So, can I talk to this expert?"

Road Rage instantly replied, "Oh, I never met him physically, but I know where one of his shops are. In the market area, there's always a package for me on the table ready to take after I transfer my payment to him. He sounds nice. A lot of trophies and little cool doohickies in there too, but he always calls me to let me know of new offers!"

A shop in the market...trophies and other things. Slowly, Arcee's face dropped as she realized she knew exactly who Road Rage had been talking to.

"Arcee, are you alright? You looked spooked," Bolt said.

She regained her composure and quickly said, "I think I'll talk to this guy personally. Bolt, you and Moonhunter stay here and help them clean up. I'll, um, take point alone. Also, tell Megatron to meet me here in about an hour or so. Okay? Okay."

She abruptly transformed and sped off to the suspicion of Bolt and the others. However, the Vehicon remained silent, merely grunting with his optic visor dimming slightly.

Arcee raced to the buyer's market where Silos was set up and went inside his shop, slamming the door to notify him of her presence. She knew he could sense her even if she hadn't done that. "Silos! Why are you doing business with Road Rage of all people?! Are you insane-never mind, I already asked that before but still?!"

She heard shuffling in the back and watched Silos appear stretching his arms like he had just awoken from a nap. His chunky, muscular physique was far more distinguished mid-stretch than normal. Cracking his neck, he sighed, "Must you be so loud?"

"Yes, I think I earned the right to. Why are you selling weapons to Road Rage?"

"She bought them, not my problem who gets them. She told me she has a collection of weapons in her home, so she buys the rare ones. She got in contact with me a couple months ago and since then, I've been sending her updates on what I have in stock. Why do you care?"

Arcee gestured stubbornly before letting her arms fall to the side with a slap against her outer thighs. She sighed, "You do not care for your personal safety, do you? Besides, I need to find a special artifact but I'm running out of time. I asked if she knew someone who might have come across it and somehow, it led me back to you."

The Metal Head sat on a reclined chair he had stashed in a corner, bringing his clawed feet to rest on a table in front of it and tail lounging about with a flicker unmoved. "What do you want to know?"

"Amalgama Scythe, weapon of Amalgamous Prime. It can change into whatever the user wants. It's said to be gold, black, and silver. Ever heard of it?"

"By name, no, but by description...pray tell, what if I did? What would you be willing to give me in return?" Silos sneered.

"It's always something, isn't it?" Arcee scowled.

"You can't get something for nothing. What galaxy do you think we live in?"

"What do you want?"

"What are you willing to part with?" The Metal Head asked, gesturing with his spiked elbows on the armrests and hands moving with little effort.

Arcee looked at the floor in thought. She needed her weapons; she had no extra skull gems, and she had no favors from Silos in need of completion. Worse comes to worst...slowly, she grimaced as her optics trailed up Silos' form. He wasn't ugly per say...

"I was thinking of something more valuable," Silos quickly intervened with a raised brow. "I don't think this is in the cards for you, not to dismiss your beauty nor how interesting the opportunity would be, mind you. I'm just not that big of a jackass."

She breathed a silent sigh of relief. Suddenly, Arcee remembered that she still had Mourningstar's crest, an item of value worth quite a lot. She brought it out and watched as Silos' pupils expanded right as he laid eyes on it. He sat more upright, taking his feet off the table and leaning more inward with his hands clasped together.

"Remember this?" Arcee smirked. Silos reached out to grab it, but she held it back. "Ah, ah, you want it? What would you be willing to give me in return, Captain?"

Silos slowly began to grin, fangs glistening in the store light, before he got up and moved towards the back. After seeing a few things being pushed aside or chucked out of the way without care, he finally grabbed something long and twirled it, a blur of yellow light emitting from it. As he did so, Dagger Prima glowed again, and more whispers came between the objects. The Scythe seemed to pulse in response which earned Arcee a glance from an intrigued Silos.

"I found this a few weeks ago buried in a canyon in the Rippling Desert on the other side of the world. I wanted some rare Energon that grew there and stumbled upon this. I had planned to sell it, but I kept delaying finding a buyer because something about it was unusual. I wanted to study it. No matter what I tried though, it wouldn't respond to my organic disposition though it would, at least, change into what I wanted. Never could get it to work beyond the physical appearance."

He came back into the main room and gave it one more twirl before flipping it to hold the bladed side with the grip facing Arcee. He offered it to her, and she carefully took it like it was delicate. She traded the crest and examined the simple blade. It looked almost like a regular scythe but the thick panels towards the middle as well as pieces of the blade separated by pure energy yet still in formation signified that it was anything but normal. Then she thought hard of what she wanted it to be.

Immediately, the scythe shifted. Its blade tucked away as its base realigned its parts. The muzzle of a blaster slid up from the middle panels, and Arcee found herself having to change the way she held her new weapon. She had imagined a gun like a sniper rifle. To see it in front of her from the remnants of the Scythe itself, she was awestruck. It helped that she could feel energy radiating off it like nothing she held before aside from the Origin Matrix.

"Is that it?"

"Yes, Silos, you just made my job easier. Now all I need to find is the Blades of Time," she said more so to herself.

"Sounds mystical, these 'Blades of Time', but maybe I would know it if I saw it," Silos said.

Arcee shrugged "That one I'm not sure of. I would have to ask Bolt first because he's the history nut of our team. I'll put him on exterior audio but don't say anything. Bolt, I found the Amal...I found the Scythe. Now all I need is the Blades of Time. What can you tell me about those?"

"Hey, been wondering where you went. As for the Blades of Time? Well, first and foremost, it isn't plural as it sounds. The Blades of Time is an hourglass, not an actual weapon. Vector Prime created a copy of his powers and placed it in a never-ending hourglass. The sand pools at the top and bottom were said to appear like a mandala pattern with a hole in the center of each end, creating a constant stream of sand flowing downward to represent the continuous flow of time. I remember because there was a drawing of it under his files. However, there was a danger to this relic. It was said that if anyone tried to obstruct the flow, break it or shake it, whatever the case...well...they would, uh, cease to exist. Their time would run out, and that pun is unavoidable and very accurate unfortunately. Staring at it also could drive an army insane or so Vector Prime said as well. Personally, I wouldn't go around testing those theories if you ever find it."

"Thank you, Bolt. Ask Blurr or Road Rage if they know about it for me, please?"

"Absolutely!" The Vehicon said enthusiastically, "You know, this is fun to do. We should go on hunts together more often."

"We'll see," she laughed.

Right as she ended the communication, Silos huffed, "A never-ending hourglass? Can't recall anything of that nature except...the sands. Mourningstar had quite a collection of artifacts he stole. I didn't care much for what I knew he had, but there were some I only got glimpses of before we got on bad terms. I remember sand. It was half covered by another item. I don't know the shape of what it was, but it never grew full, never built up on the bottom. Override no doubt had a deep search of his warehouses and office after arresting him. If what I saw was the Blades of Time, it's locked up now."

Arcee smirked, "Well, I'm sure she'll part with it with some convincing. Thank you for your help, Silos. See, it pays to be nice."

"Doubtful in the long run," he chuckled.

Megatron transformed and bounced slightly upon landing. Bolt didn't even look up from his data pad as he interchanged between reading about the race and watching Blurr and Road Rage verse each other on the track. The larger mech sat by his former subordinate and Moonhunter lazily looked up before nodding back to sleep in the sunlight.

"Enjoy your flight, Megatron?"

"Velocitron's quite a travel. It felt nice to stretch my wings and just go, you know?"

"If creatures such as vortekias didn't exist, I would dare to drive around the world. But I'm pretty content with my research."

"How's Arcee?" Megatron suddenly asked.

Bolt hesitated to answer but decided to do so anyway. "Arcee's been busy. The Allspark wants her to find relics that have been left behind on these planets, three of which are here. She found two of them, Override had found the Origin Matrix quite some time ago and the Amalgamous Prime's Scythe was with Road Rage's weapons supplier. She didn't say anything about him, which is suspicious to me."

Megatron frowned, "Arcee's attitude changed ever since she wandered off chasing those bellbats you wanted. I think she ran into something that spooked her and she's been paranoid ever since."

"Road Rage merely mentioned her weapons dealer and Arcee suddenly looked like she saw a ghost...and she headed in the same direction..." Bolt said, trailing off in thought. "...I don't think it's something but rather someone. She knew who Road Rage was talking about. That's why she didn't want me to go with her. Someone's here who shouldn't be, but they don't seem to be causing trouble or...?"

The ex-Decepticon leader growled, "If they dare to hurt Arcee or get her into trouble, there will be a problem."

"I wouldn't start pressing her about it though. She'll tell us when she's ready."

"True...but something just feels off about it. It's not her necessarily."

"You're concerned something's going to happen. I don't blame but you must remember, Arcee's capable of taking care of herself. If something does happen out of our favor, she will fix it and you know it."

Megatron smirked as Blurr cut off Road Rage, and the femme growled in the distance, "I know you did not just do that!"

"Maybe I did. What'chu going to do about it?" The blue mech taunted.

Suddenly, Blurr's bumper was hit aggressively as Road Rage's stripes near her tires turned from dark red to nearly black again. She started chasing him down as he tried to dodge her.

"Well," Megatron started, "Arcee's always proven those who doubted her wrong."

Bolt nodded, "Exactly, so why are you doubting her?"

"I don't mean to."

"You're paranoid, the same paranoia I remember on the Nemesis when you believed Starscream was scheming behind your back, talking to people he shouldn't be...and he was but that's beside the point. Arcee isn't Starscream. She won't betray you; she won't do anything to hurt any of us, not directly if something accidentally occurs. You can trust her. You did it on the Allspark's isle and this should not be any different. You and Arcee need to let go of the past because you two scare me sometimes with your thinking process."

The king consort stayed quiet this time, acknowledging Bolt's reassurance with a simple nod.

Arcee contacted Override and explained the situation. She found out quite quickly Mourningstar's possessions were being held in Traction City's secure prison vault awaiting use for evidence in conviction trials. Once done, they were often sold or placed back where they were originally taken depending on the circumstances. She agreed to meet Arcee at the main prison processing complex where the vault was kept.

When she went into it, the first thing she heard were two wolf whistles from the passing detained prisoners being moved across the building to other departments. Some of them were very lewd in their calls while others just winked. She huffed unamused and continued to the center desk of the precinct. The security officer there seemed confused as to why someone like her would be in a dangerous place, but it wasn't like he knew of her history which would have put half the prisoners here to shame. She smiled inwardly at his bias.

"Can I help you?"

"Hello, officer. You wouldn't happen to know if Override arrived here yet? I was asked to meet her-"

"If that's the case then Override would have called us, I think. She's always on time. That's how I know you're lying. Be a good girl and leave before I charge you with trespassing."

Arcee snarled, "Never backtalk me. I'm a grown-ass bot, talk to me like one, not as some lost kid in a park. You have no idea how many mechs like you I have kicked the afts of."

The security guard scowled, "Why you little-"

"Sit your ass down before I send it through this floor!" Arcee yelled stone-faced. When he froze, she emphasized her demand even louder. "Now!"

With everyone staring at him like he had been scolded by his mother, he took his seat slowly but didn't stop glaring at her until the doors opened behind her. He seemed to grow a small grin at first thinking Arcee was in trouble but then they both heard clapping. Override, in all her glory, walked up to them and laughed.

"Never have I seen a bot put my security in their places like that. Aren't you full of surprises, Arcee." She then said to the guard, "Don't worry, she's with me."

The guard's face turned priceless and Arcee made sure to save it in her memory files for when she wanted a good laugh in the future. Override escorted her back into the restricted section. A few of the prisoners who had watched the exchange cheered her on. Once they were out of the public eye, Override started typing in classified codes into the keypad. The doors opened and the first thing Arcee noticed was Mourningstar himself in the back.

"If you're wondering, he doesn't get along with others and we fear putting him directly in the prison itself would cause the other prisoners to become more violent. He also has connections I believe even among my staff. Very few people have access to this section of the building right now. So, for the time being, he's going to stay here."

Mourningstar chuckled darkly, "Ah, the beautiful Arcee. Freeing my cargo wasn't enough humiliation. Now here you are to mock me to your spark's content."

Arcee sneered, "No, I'm just here for something I think you had that didn't belong to you."

"That narrows it down oh so little. There were plenty of femmes that I had but no one ever called me out to return them, did they? Specifically?" The red mech asked as he leaned against his cell wall.

It enraged Arcee to hear that though she knew Override was just as hostile about it; she could feel the tension the second he mentioned the bots he took advantage of, but she played cool just so she could leave faster. "An hourglass perhaps? Something with sand specifically."

The echo wasn't lost on Mourningstar who pursed his lips and side-eyed her. He finally sighed, "Maybe. Several years ago, I sold twins to a mech in Sidewinder, a small town up north. He didn't have much money, but he did have a nice gold and red hourglass. At first, I thought of dismissing him, but I had never seen one like it. I decided 'why not', and I traded for it. I sat on my shelves since then. Interestingly, one of my slaves investigated the hourglass, wanted to shatter it to get back at me in her cute rage. The second it touched the floor, it didn't shatter, but she collapsed and never awakened. Quite a sad loss. We were having so much fun."

"Your definition of fun is very contrasting to everyone else's," Arcee prodded.

"I know, and I really wanted to have some fun with you after my auction. Perhaps another time?" His smugness showed no mercy. "How about both of you together and I get to-"

Arcee punched her knuckles together in warning. "Touch either of us, you die."

She didn't blame Override for dragging her away, slightly blushing as Mourningstar let out an inappropriate, playful growl. "I like the feisty ones the most."

"That guy is such a monster," Override grimaced. "Let's just move on please?"

"Agreed. Sorry."

They went to the vault that had over five locks on it. With the knowledge of what the Blades of Time looked like, they knew it was just a matter of finding it. It took Override a few minutes to get the locks undone. When she did, she grunted as she pulled it open, and Arcee stared amazed at its contents revealed to her. Various confiscated weapons, mods, and personal items sat useless on the shelves lining the interior. A few bigger items had to be placed in the middle of the vault to allow the personnel to access the back area.

Arcee split off from Override to search for the hourglass and its crimson coloring. When she reached a certain spot in the vault, Dagger Prima started glowing and whispers were heard. However, the whispers didn't seem to be coming from the dagger; it was somewhere around her location. With the whispers so loud, she could confirm the relics both spoke in the unusual language of Primus and the Allspark, not of the Primes. What they were saying to each other, she couldn't even guess.

"Where are you?" Arcee whispered back finally.

As if to answer her, a golden red glow appeared behind her, and she whipped around to see it coming from an object hidden in the middle of a shelf behind a knife and a box. She pushed them aside to reveal an hourglass with sharp-tipped pillars that kind of reminded her of swords. The top bulb had a mandala pattern of sand slowly moving inward into a pit while rejuvenating its pattern every time a piece of it disappeared. The same went for the bottom bulb and in between both sandy portals lied a stream of sand going forever downward in the same loop Bolt and the Allspark both described. The metal of the hourglass was golden while the sands were red, and she swore the small black holes the sand stream led into and exited from had faint stars and galaxies within. Time and space; both Vector Prime's powers rolled into one.

She blinked and looked away, remembering the warning of not staring at it for too long. No doubt countless bots peered into those small vortexes to see the universe's mirror contained within only for their minds to shatter trying to search for more answers than the questions they originally had.

She then called out, "I found it, Override."

The Velocitronian leader reached her, blue optics went wide as Arcee held it. "The Blades of Time. And to think all these relics were under our noses. Not even Mourningstar knew what he had."

"Just don't drop it," Arcee joked.

"Arcee..." she scowled disappointed.

"Bad timing?"

Override tried desperately not to crack a smile but failed, lightly punching the queen's arm in frustration.

Arcee laughed too before saying, "Come on, I need to get these to the Allspark. What's the quickest way to the speedway below the city?"

"Barren Heights Speedway? That's been closed for some time. It was once the ultimate thrill but became too much of a liability. We wanted to take it down, but I never got around to doing so. The young bots use it as a hangout spot around dusk into the night. Why would the Allspark want to meet you down there?"

"It thinks it'll draw less attention than spawning in the middle of a post-battle defensive city."

The red and white femme completely understood with an awkward, "Right."

As they passed Mourningstar again, ignoring his more lascivious comments, Override signaled the guards to summon them a ground bridge to Barren Heights Speedway once the restricted section was closed off and echoing with its lonesome prisoner's demonic laughter.

They teleported to a platform overlooking the desolate speedway. Very few people were seen walking about the track or hanging out in the old stands. The underside of Delta was nothing but rows of giant columns but peering down to the surface below was a bit too much to take as Arcee backed away a few feet in concern.

Override read her reaction and crossed her arms. "Yeah, that's exactly what the problem was. Racers who had spun out or got into wrecks on here...falling from this height rarely is survivable. The railing prevents small collisions but add high speed to the mix and it's so easy to go over. They were dubbed 'death races' at some point right before I took leadership. You see that corner right there just after the wall ride on the pillar? A family friend was racing against fifteen other people. Did the wall ride but came down that slope to the corner. The trick was to slide around the corner then shoot the straight. She did it a thousand times. But that day her tires didn't take to the slide technique, bounced off another racer and then hit the railing hard before going up the side of it and..."

Arcee grew disheartened putting together the picture. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"The dangers of the race come in all forms. Just have to carry on and drive forward no matter what. That's how we always lived. Nothing will ever change that."

"Forgive my impudence but I noticed everything about Velocitron is decided and practically is racing. You make all these decisions regarding it. Have you ever grown tired of it?"

Override raised a brow, "You mean, you think we're addicted to it? What am I supposed to reply with? That we consume the track until we die...?"

Arcee didn't say anything, but she looked at Override with an expression that read that the question didn't stray far from a possible answer. That made the Velocitronian leader peer down distraught.

"Maybe we do have an overabundance of tracks and so many races...it's just what we're used to?"

"Yes, but my concern lies a little in the fact that you are letting a race decide everything, not really going into direct conflict yourself with your own opinions. I mean, I understand these races mean everything to you but to everyone else, it just sounds like you can't stop doing it even if you tried."

Override shrugged nonchalantly, "I don't think I can either. It's just...an addiction to the speed itself I suppose. But is it truly bad?"

"No," Arcee said without missing a beat. Giving the speedway one last glance over, Arcee then spoke into thin air. "Alright, Allspark, I got what you wanted. I'm here."

For a second, nothing occurred, and Override merely raised a brow. A crack of light suddenly ruptured among the platform, moving across it like a snake before energy emitted from it circled in front of them. With a flash, the Allspark appeared before them. Override was almost paralyzed in shock, but Arcee simply saluted with a chuckle.

"Took you long enough."

"The relics. The Origin Matrix, the Amalgama Scythe, and the Blades of Time are before me at last. I thank you for returning such precious artifacts of old. If I may," the Allspark said.

Arcee let the three relics go and they circled the Allspark almost in glee. The bots both heard their whispers now. They seemed excited to be reunited with their counterpart. All three vaporized into small orbs and vanished into thin air.

"They have been returned to Primus. Keep up the good work. We're counting on you."

The Allspark rotated its rings quickly and did its own twirl before disappearing in a similar fashion as it appeared back to Cybertron.

Override stuttered, "That was t-the...?! A-and it vanished l-like...like?!"

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Arcee smirked. "So, any tips on the race tonight I should know?"

AN: So, some of you are going to be asking how it's possible for the Blades of Time and all the relics that will eventually be introduced are in one piece when in canon, they are separated into multiple pieces. I mainly changed this because to have to hunt down all the pieces of multiple different relics would take too long. There are a few that will be in multiple segments but that's because it worked out that way. I couldn't do it with all of them so I cheesed the canon to fit better into this story the same as a few other canon facts not aligning with the novels, video games and TV series because of the difficulty pertaining it. It would drag on a bit too long going by everything that's canon.

Another thing I wish to point out is if you haven't noticed, Velocitron is very gluttonous in its racing habits and I feel like that is never called out in any media when it should be. It is their culture but there's such an overabundance of it that it makes the Velocitronians feel like they don't have the capability to make sound judgements in any media they appear in because of it. Before anyone hits me with the "that's not what gluttony means," the sin of Gluttony is not about food. Food is commonly associated with it. It is actually the overconsumption of anything, not necessarily "eating." You can overconsume TV; you can become gluttonous of any habit to the point of overindulgence that matches what Gluttony represents. True, overeating is a form of Gluttony but it is not its only description. The more you know...