Once again, and I will say this every time, this story idea is not mine. I have a friend on TikTok, Deckar Terdax, who came up with this plot idea, that he pitched as a movie concept, and I really liked it. He gave me permission to write it as a fic, so here we are!
I hope you all enjoy! :)
God Bless and Good Day!
~The Lupine Sojourner
Perhaps this ambush may not have been the wisest course of action… Optimus feels a little ashamed he and Brawn are having trouble with this team of Vehicons. It had been Brawn who discovered the signals indicating the Decepticons had mobilized…again. For the fifth time in the last two Earth weeks. Perhaps he was a bit rundown from chasing Decepticons nearly constantly, and that was why he couldn't deal with them as quickly as he would like.
Regardless, Brawn had been forced to concede ground and was out of Prime's sight. He feels sure the Wrecker would have notified him if he were in real trouble, so he focuses on the battle in front of him.
He slams his ax into a Vehicon's abdomen, then uses the momentum to send the trooper flying into another. He forgot there was a third trooper and the Vehicon manages a solid roundhouse kick that sends him sprawling nearly ten feet away.
Prime groans as he slowly sits up. As he does, trying to move quickly, the Vehicon that attacked him made his way toward him, blaster aimed for his Spark Chamber. Suddenly, a shot ring's out. Optimus flinches slightly, but as he looks up, he sees the Vehicon has a smoldering hole in his chest. The Vehicon collapsed and, revealed in the glow of the sunset, stands a figure with a rifle raised. Optimus couldn't make out any details of his savior, but he did recognize the silhouette.
"Commander?"
The figure walked forward, lowering its weapon, and confirmed Prime's suspicions. It was Ultra Magnus, the Autobot's second in command, commander of the Autobot Elite Guard, and one of Prime's closest friends.
"Ultra Magnus, reporting for duty, sir." He said, offering a three-clawed prosthetic to Optimus. Optimus took it and allowed Magnus to help him to his feet. "It's good to see you again, old friend."
Under his battle mask, Optimus smiled. "Likewise, Ultra Magnus. It has been so long that I had begun to fear the worst for you."
Magnus nodded in understanding. "I apologize for not reporting in sooner, but the comms on my ship never got repaired-" The commander is interrupted by a shout as a pair of Vehicons start rushing toward them, one showing the gash from Optimus' axe. Optimus and Magnus quickly take a fighting stance and square off against their opponents. "-after we left Cybertron," Magnus continues as he parries a punch, quickly returning it, "my ship was attacked, and we had to divert all necessary power to stasis lock." Magnus blocked a kick to his midsection and delivered a powerful blow to the Vehicon's head. Optimus, in the meantime, grabbed the Vehicon he was fighting by the arm and threw him into the one Magnus is fighting, giving the commander a quick breather to finish what he's saying. "We weren't sure how long it would take for anyone to find us."
At the mention of "us", Optimus takes a moment to look around, half-expecting to see someone else, but he didn't see anyone. "Is your apprentice here with you as well?" Before Magnus could answer, the two Vehicons were back on their feet, blasters aimed at the two Autobots.
But before they could act, sparks came flying out of one of the Vehicon's head and he collapsed. His companion looked over in surprise until he suffered the same fate. The two Autobots stand momentarily perplexed until a female voice comes over their radios. "Been here the whole time. Just waiting for the right time to help you out, sir."
Magnus is the first to respond, finger on his earpiece. "Moonracer, how many times do I have to tell you…" he is cut off as a gunshot and a cry of pain are heard.
On a ridge not too far from the battlefield, a Vehicon was lying on the ground, clutching his leg and groaning in pain. Above him stood a young mint green fembot holding a smoking pistol in one hand, and a sniper rifle resting on her shoulder. She looked down at the injured Vehicon with a bright smile on her face. "'Cockiness in battle will end in defeat', and 'Always mind your surroundings'. Got it, sir." She said with confidence, saluting with her pistol.
Ultra Magnus couldn't help but smirk slightly at his protégé's response. Moonracer had come a long way since Prime assigned her to him. But she still had a way to go before becoming an official member of the Elite Guard. Optimus also couldn't help but smile.
"I'm glad to hear you're here as well." Prime said over the radio. Magnus spoke up next. "Is the Vehicon you injured still functioning?" he asked.
"Only got him in the leg." Moonracer answered. "Do you want me to bring him in for questioning?"
Magnus looked up to Optimus, who only nodded. "Affirmative. Bring him here and Optimus can lead us back to base." Magnus ordered.
"Yes sir, Commander. I should be there in a few minutes."
The radio clicked off, and Magnus turned to Optimus. "I trust you do have somewhere safe we can take him?"
Prime again nodded and turned pointing away from the sunset. "About twenty miles from here is an abandoned military base we have been using. We will be able to interrogate our prisoner there." Optimus replies, looking around to make sure the skirmish is over as Moonracer approached, leading the limping Vehicon toward her mentor and commander, her pistol aimed at its back, just in case.
Optimus transforms and leads the way to the Autobot base, Magnus and Moonracer in the rear to prevent their prisoner trying to make a run for it. Along the way, Brawn joins them, reporting all the troopers he'd engaged were 'down for the count'.
True to Optimus' word, the abandoned military base soon looms up and as they pull in, a few other Autobots register who is with Prime and salute, murmuring among themselves.
"Is that really Ultra Magnus?"
"I heard his ship was lost in space."
"I heard he'd been either captured or killed."
Optimus clears his throat to gain the Autobots' attention, transforming to address them in robot mode, Moonracer leading the prisoner to makeshift cells with Mirage as her guide, the younger Autobots chatting amiably as they walk.
"Ultra Magnus and his apprentice, Moonracer, have indeed arrived to join us." Optimus begins. "They are a valuable addition to our ranks here on Earth. As he and Moonracer adjust to life here, we must aid them in learning how best to function on a new planet. I trust you will all make them feel welcome here." Murmurs of agreement and welcome ring out. "Additionally, we have obtained a prisoner in hopes of gaining more information regarding the Decepticon presence this planet has faced in recent days." He looks around as whispers continue to circle the gathered Autobots. "He is being detained as we speak. That is all."
As the Autobots process the new information, a green fembot with door-wings and goggles on her head walks over, her left leg noticeably injured, causing her to limp, but her face showing no signs of pain. "Good to see you, Commander Magnus, sir." She greets, throwing a quick salute.
"Good to see you, as well, young Mayfly." He replies, smiling a little as he returns the quick salute.
Mayfly nods, then turns to Optimus. "I wanted to tell you, sir, the pod we've been tracking is nearing Earth. I know you said you needed time to think about the situation, but he's almost here."
Magnus tilts his head. "To what is she referring, sir?"
Optimus nods to a side room. "If you follow me, I will explain, Magnus. It is rather fortunate you arrived when you did."
Magnus follows, holding in questions he knows will soon be answered, instead eying Mayfly's limp and injury with a bit of concern. "I'm curious; how were you injured?" He asks.
"'Con got in a lucky shot the other day, that's all. I'm almost recovered." Mayfly replies.
"Magnus, if I may, how did you come to arrive here?" Optimus asks, wanting to satisfy his curiosity before revealing the situation with Deadlock.
"Our ship's computer detected a massive energy reading and we decided to make our way to it to investigate. When we arrived in this sector, the energy surge was gone, leaving us pondering our next move. We then found your signal with the embedded message offering refuge, so we decided to follow the signal, detecting your specific life signal when we entered the atmosphere. You know the rest." Magnus sums up briefly. "Now, if I may, what is the situation Mayfly referred to? Who is coming?"
"Mayfly, please bring up the transmission we received." Optimus says, turning to the young scout.
Mayfly nods and makes her way to the computer and types for a few moments, then hits a final key and turns to the holographic display as the Decepticon Deadlock appears and begins speaking.
"This is Decepticon Deadlock. I am trying to reach Optimus Prime. I have stolen valuable intelligence that will prove useful to the Autobot cause. I am coming to Earth to deliver it in person, that I may apologize for my previous actions and align myself with the Autobot cause." He bows in an apologetic gesture. "I wish to express my regret for my error in aligning with the Decepticons, and to express my desire to amend my mistakes by fighting for you, Optimus Prime." He straightens. "I pray this message reaches you before my arrival."
After the message cuts out, Prime and Magnus stand there in silence, staring at the last frame of the transmission. Finally, Magnus spoke. "When did you receive this message?" he asked.
Prime turns to him. "We picked it up three days ago. From what we can gather, he had sent it long before then. Mayfly brought the message to me and vouched for him, but I did not have the numbers to spare for a retrieval team at the time."
Magnus looked back at the frozen image of Deadlock. The implication was clear; Optimus was asking him to lead the retrieval team. If he is being honest, he feels wary of helping an enemy that would have no qualms of backstabbing him if the chance arose. And yet, he could hear the sincerity in Deadlock's voice. Plus, Magnus knows Deadlock has a different reputation than the other Decepticons. And Mayfly is no fool; she would not vouch for this Decepticon with good reason. After a moment of thought, Magnus comes to a decision.
He turns to Mayfly. "You vouched for him?" He asks.
Mayfly nods. "Yessir. He and I were once trapped together in the old tunnels beneath Cybertron after he intercepted me on a scouting mission. I was searching for a rumored Energon cache, and found it, but when I engaged Deadlock, a stray shot hit the Energon, closing off the tunnel and trapping us. Instead of killing me and escaping, he helped me, and didn't resume our battle after we got out of the tunnel. He just…left. I feel like he is different from other Decepticons. I trust him when he says he's defecting." She says, her face showing her faith in Deadlock.
Magnus nods. "Then I'll find him and bring him back to our base."
Optimus smiled and set a hand on Magnus' shoulder. "I knew I could rely on you, old friend." He turns to Mayfly. "You are dismissed."
Mayfly salutes and walks away. However, she pauses at the door, turning back to eye Optimus. "Sir…if possible, I'd like to help bring Deadlock back to base."
Optimus shakes his head. "We have discussed this before, Mayfly."
She sighs. I'd hoped with Magnus arriving and agreeing to the mission, I'd be allowed to go… "Yessir."
"Tend to your injury and recover, then we will discuss your return to the field." Optimus says kindly, smiling at her, and she salutes before leaving.
Magnus looks to his leader with a grim expression when the doors close again. "You're right not to allow her to go. If Deadlock has defected, we both know he'll be after him." Magnus says in a low tone.
Optimus' smile fell at this statement. He knows all too well who Magnus is referring to, and what they are capable of. "Even so," Optimus replies, "if he has chosen to leave the Decepticons, we cannot turn him away for that reason."
Magnus nods solemnly, knowing Optimus is right, before turning to walk to the hanger doors, then he pauses and turns back to face Optimus. "I hate to ask, given your circumstance, but I will need assistance for this mission."
Prime walks over to Magnus. "I can spare a few of my soldiers for your mission." Optimus said. "I will ask to see if there are any volunteers."
Smirking a little, Magnus puts a hand on the hanger door with a knowing look in his optics. "I already know of one volunteer." He says as he opens the door.
Giving a startled yelp, Moonracer tumbled into the hanger in front of Optimus. Seeing the two looking at her, Moonracer suddenly snapped to attention. "Apologies, sirs." She said rather hastily. "But I was coming to report that our prisoner… well…" Her troubled expression says more than words.
Optimus and Magnus exchange a knowing look. Their prisoner had opted to offline himself.
Despite this, Optimus turns to the young bot. "I gather you heard what we were discussing?" he asked in a calm tone.
Moonracer gave Magnus a quick glance, where she shriveled slightly at the rather displeased look he was giving her for eavesdropping. But she turned back to Prime and straightened herself up. "I did, sir. And Commander Magnus is correct; I would like to volunteer for this mission."
Magnus didn't like the idea of his student accompanying him on this particular mission. Given what it could possibly entail, he didn't want to see her at the mercy of the Decepticon that would most likely be after Deadlock. But when he turns to Optimus to voice his opinion, the Prime is giving him a look that said he had made his decision.
So, begrudgingly, Magnus turned to Moonracer. "Very well. Once we have more information on Deadlock's approximate landing area, we will be leaving."
Moonracer gave a sharp salute. "Sir, yes sir."
At this, Optimus stepped out of the hanger, but not before giving Moonracer a warning. "Be careful," he said in a serious tone. "This will not be a simple recovery mission. What you may face should not be taken lightly."
Optimus left the two in the hanger to see if he could round up a few other volunteers. Magnus turned to Moonracer to admonish her for listening in on a private conversation when she suddenly spoke up. "A Decepticon that wishes to join our side? I didn't think such a thing was even possible."
Magnus was caught off guard by this remark. He had known the young bot to be extremely optimistic, perhaps naively so, yet he never expected that she couldn't believe that this was a possibility. Maybe bringing her along wouldn't be a bad idea after all. She wouldn't be taken in easily if this proved to be a deception. However, he recalls Mayfly's story, and the evidence that Deadlock had a strong sense of honor.
"Deadlock has a reputation very different from most Decepticons." Magnus explains. "I often heard stories of how some of our troops were ambushed by him, and yet, he would allow them the time to prepare themselves to fight if they were unarmed." Moonracer looked up at her mentor, optics wide in surprise. Magnus continued. "I had even heard rumors that if he was beaten in combat, he would allow the winner to leave peacefully." He turned to face his apprentice. "Not all Decepticons believe fighting for their cause is the right thing to do. Deadlock is proof of this. But they stay loyal out of fear of what may happen to them."
"That Megatron would execute them?" Moonracer asks, frowning a little.
Magnus' face suddenly went dark as he turned to face the base in front of him. "Not Megatron," he answered grimly. "Someone worse."
Moonracer felt a chill at the answer. Someone worse than Megatron? Shockwave maybe… she thinks to herself, then suddenly realizes something. "If I may ask, sir, is it who you said would be after Deadlock?"
Magnus didn't turn to face her but nodded. Moonracer looked down, feeling a growing sense of dread fill her. She looked up and asked.
"Who is it?"