So we get to shoot you, right? Air Raid asked cheerfully, as he swooped above their new leader.

Actually, I'm the one with the new artillery, so I'm the one doing the shooting, Rodimus retorted with equal good humour. So long as you don't get too annoying, I'll calibrate on some rocks first.

But while we're getting there, we could help you test out your new manoeuvrability!

Air Raid started in on a strafing run, and Rodimus casually accelerated as he swerved aside. Loose rocks sprayed in his wake, causing Kup to take his own evasive manoeuvres with a curse, but his wheels kept traction.

We're still within twenty miles of the base, Air Raid! Silverbolt rebuked. No shooting!

C'mon, it was just a little light strafing…

Kup pulled alongside Rodimus with his own reproach: "You should ask more respect of them."

"We had enough formality yesterday, Kup. Let me just have a day off, O.K.?" Being treated as a friend rather than a Prime was a welcome relief. For the first time since taking on the name, Rodimus was actually having fun.

He should have known that wouldn't last.

What the… those aren't EDC! Skydive called.

Decepticons incoming! Slingshot snapped, only to second-guess himself. No, wait… are they?

Aerialbots, fall in! Silverbolt ordered.

As the Aerialbots got into formation, Rodimus transformed, furiously scanning the sky, but it was a few seconds more before the incoming fleet was visible from the ground. The Aerialbots might not recognise them, but he did. Those are Galvatron's soldiers!

Looks like you'll get your strafing run after all, Air Raid. Let's take them down!

Rodimus was not letting the ceasefire go that easily. Silverbolt, wait!

Hold back, Hot Rod! We'll take care of this.

Rodimus Prime is your commanding officer, Silverbolt! Kup barked through the com-link.

There was a mortified silence until Rodimus realised he should be the one to break it.

Aerialbots, fall back and hold your fire! I want to try talking to them first. The relief he felt when they complied was embarrassing, but he needed to forget the radio conversation. The real question was if the Decepticons would listen to him…

… And he felt just as awkward trying to get their attention. He walked forward, away from the others, empty hands half-raised, his own splayed fingers in the path of his arm cannons. "Cyclonus! Scourge!" He hoped he had got the names right; he knew almost nothing else about them. "There's no need to fight. We want to talk."

This reception was unexpected, and Scourge banked warily, delaying their charge. It could be a trap. Our advantage is in the skies. We should keep to our original plan.

He is freely offering us that which we came for, Cyclonus replied. I will talk to him.

Better you than me.

It occurred to Cyclonus that Scourge was a coward. This Autobot might be as well. He watched Cyclonus' approach with his shoulders straight and his face defiant, but he was posturing. Perhaps the bravado covered his fear of a stronger opponent… yet there was a strangely familiar sense of power about him.

Cyclonus stayed on his guard, transforming before he landed so he was looking down on the Autobot when their optics first met. This close, Cyclonus thought he recognised him, but he was still wary of his own memories. "Have we met before, Autobot?"

"We, uh, interacted briefly at Autobot City." The Autobot smiled disarmingly. Humour was his tactic then.

Cyclonus favoured a more deadpan technique. "You looked smaller when you were running away."

The Autobot's optics flickered, conceding the strike, but his voice and posture firmed up as he answered: "I'm not running now, and you're not firing."

"Perhaps, but I shall not long have confidence in our relationship if you will not introduce yourself."

Another wry flicker of the optics. "Fair point. Rodimus Prime, the new leader of the Autobots." He extended one hand.

Cyclonus ignored it, his focus on keeping his face still while confusion coursed through him. If this was the new leader, then was Ultra Magnus dead after all? But they had seen him merely hours ago. Which was true?

Cyclonus, Scourge cut through his disorientation. He has the Matrix.

That was the sense of power that seemed so familiar. Cyclonus' optics flared and he took an involuntary step forward. "You bear the Matrix…. How did you get it?"

It was Rodimus who was confused now, slowly withdrawing his spurned hand. "I found it within Unicron."

"And Galvatron?"

Realisation and reluctance hit the Autobot's face at the same time. He did not want to talk about this.

Cyclonus took another step forward, grabbing the Prime by the shoulders. "What of Galvatron?"

The young Prime proved his strength, never shifting as Cyclonus leaned his weight into him. Behind him, the smallest and oldest of his party had drawn his gun, and Cyclonus wasted no time in raising his own. "Drop your weapon, Autobot. This is not your fight."

The old Autobot glowered back. "I'll drop my weapon when you let go of him."

"It's not anybody's fight," Rodimus Prime added, wary optics not leaving Cyclonus' face.

Cyclonus stared Rodimus down for a moment then released his grip. "If this is a talk, then talk." He stepped back, the old Autobot lowered his weapon, and they waited.

"I found Galvatron with the Matrix inside Unicron." There was something hollow in Rodimus' voice and optics now, but he did not avoid Cyclonus' gaze. "He… started to offer me an alliance… against Unicron. But then he started screaming—I think Unicron was controlling him somehow."

Red pain.

"After that, he tried to kill me. So I fought back."

"You defeated Galvatron."

"The Matrix gave me the strength to defeat Galvatron," Rodimus corrected.

Blue light.

"I don't know if I killed him." Rodimus was still talking, but Cyclonus could not tell if the Prime was looking at him or at a memory. "I… threw him, and he went through a wall and out into space. Then I opened the Matrix, and it destroyed Unicron."

Despite himself, Cyclonus flinched, remembering the agony that had come with Unicron's death.

His reaction seemed to bring Rodimus back to the present. "Look, I did what I had to do at the time. We all did. But Unicron's gone now. Whatever hold he might have had on you is over. We can choose our own path." He started to step forward, then stopped himself, trying to lock Cyclonus down with his optics alone. "It doesn't have to be fighting."

He was desperate for peace, Cyclonus thought. That was his vulnerability. "We killed Ultra Magnus," he tested.

"Ultra Magnus survived your attack."

So that was the truth of it. Had the Autobots rejected him as leader or had he stepped down?

"We'll bear no grudge against you for that," Rodimus promised.

"You will truly allow us to choose our own path?"

"Yes. Let this be the start of a new era…"

Cyclonus cut him off by raising his gun. "We choose to be Decepticons."

Rodimus' shoulders slumped, but Cyclonus allowed him to bring up his own weapons before he fired. The Autobot leapt away, evading Cyclonus' shot, returning fire. However, his aim was poor, and he staggered on landing.

Shadows flew across Cyclonus as Scourge and the Sweeps attempted to scatter the Aerialbots. The old Autobot transformed, now a pickup truck charging at the duel. Somebody strafed the ground, the pickup swerved too quickly and spun on the loose terrain.

For now, the Prime's allies were distracted, and Rodimus was clearly unskilled in close combat. Cyclonus pushed forward again. This time his opponent tried to rush him, seeking to use strength over skill. Cyclonus swung a punch, but the Prime's reflexes were quick: he ducked—yet not far enough. The glancing blow across his head sent him reeling backwards, off balance.

Cyclonus caught his arm, steadying him long enough for Rodimus to look at him in surprise. The Decepticon held that look while his other hand pushed his gun up beneath the Autobot's chestplate and fired at point blank range.

As the blue light in the Prime's optics flickered out, Cyclonus let him fall.

Notes:

I'm taking some licence with Rodimus' ineffectiveness in combat, since he managed Galvatron perfectly well at the end of the Movie. My rationale is that Galvatron was emotionally broken at that point, while Rodimus was on some kind of Matrix rush. Realistically, I can't buy that Rodimus becomes instantly adept at combat when his limbs have grown several feet, his weight has shifted and his firepower changed up. A lot of learned skills could carry over from Hot Rod, but he's going to need to get a feel for the new body.

I've also done a fair bit of fudging on how much the different sides should know about each other. There's no reason the Autobots would know Cyclonus' and Scourge's names, but I figure they may have heard them called in battle. For the Decepticons, I've made a distinction between memories and datatracks—along the same lines of how an amnesiac might still be able to read. It would make sense for Unicron to leave/import the Decepticon datatracks whereas memories are less important.

The question then is how much is on those datatracks? An exhaustive list of Autobots seems unnecessary, but subteams would be on there. Ultra Magnus was the target of their previous attacks, so they would definitely know him; however, Cyclonus only saw Hot Rod at Autobot City (attacking him during the "Stay close to me!" banter) and probably saw even less of Kup. Everybody else would be totally new to them.