The idea that Megatron is trying to convert Cybertron into a giant battleship is based on the marvel comics. The jet engines and their main reactor in the sector Kalis are described in the "City of Doom" storyline and the idea was already mentioned briefly earlier in the comic line.
This is the final of the past storyline. It is the longest chapter so far and the first major battle.
Chapter 8
"War is a series of catastrophes that results in a victory." (Georges Clemenceau, 1841-1929)
The sector Kalis - 9.000.000 years ago
The Autobots were preparing for battle. Optimus entire force had moved to Kalis.
The Autobot Cronus had given then detailed information about what the Decepticon Leader was planning... and the location of his base.
The other Autobots were quickly informed about Megatron´s plans for the future of Cyberton. They all agreed on one thing. The Decepticons had gone far enough without them doing anything about it. It was time for them to fight back.
If Megatron should be able to raid other worlds, then the Decepticons would soon become unstoppable. They had to confront them before the happened.
Some of the Autobots however not fully trusted Cronus. They thought he might be a spy.
It was suspicious to them that this Autobot knew so many thinks about Megatron´s plans. The most of this information could he have gotten by simply living here and watching the Decepticons for some time. But some details he knew could not be explained in this way.
Cronus claimed that he had this data from a Con who had attacked him and who he had taken out.
It was possible, theoretically. But some like Kup and Prowl still didn´t completely trust Cronus and his statements.
It was however as both Alpha Trion and Optimus Prime said, what Cronus had told them was too important to simply not act on it.
The least thing they had to do was to send a strike-force to Kalis to confirm Cronus words. So far everything he told them was true.
xxxxxxx
The Autobots had now assembled a few miles from their destination. The former members of the Elite Squad and Ultra Magnus had taken the officer posts.
Next to Optimus Prime stood Elita one the leader of the female Autobots and like Magnus a fellow (reborn) creation of Alpha Trion. She was once the femme named Ariel - the companion to Orion Pax - Optimus past self.
"The Dececticon base is in the center on the city. This tower in the middle of their defenses is the the main building. According to Cronus information it is also the control-center for a underground reactor directly beneath it, that is controlling the turbines," Optimus explained to his assembled troops.
"When everybody knows the plan and his role in it, we are ready to strike now."
"Yes," Kup replied, "we all got really very detailed information from Cronus. It is more than astonishing that he got that much from a single shot down Decepticon. Many wouldn´t believe it."
He slightly glared at the informant.
The other mech starred back at him for a moment. Then he decided to answer to Kup´s doubts.
"I know you don´t trust me, but everything is exactly as I said. Go and watch the area if you want. The Decepticons are down there. I am not leading you into a trap," Cronus assured the distrustful Autobot.
"You have to understand why some of us find it hard to completely trust everything you said," Ultra Magnus told him and the others diplomatically.
"We were trying to find out what Megatron is planning for years now. And now you suddenly show up and simply tell us absolutely everything we need to know at once?
Of course some of us have their doubts", Magnus said with a side-look at Kup.
He was - just like Optimus Prime himself - somewhat in the middle of the Autobots when it came to his opinion about Cronus. He wasn´t willing to believe what he said unseen.
But he was not one of the ones who were already convinced of him to be a traitor either.
"I understand you completely," Cronus answered. "Even I was surprised that this single Decepticon told me so much. Maybe he was just a sell-out. Or maybe he had gotten second thoughts about the Decepticon´s plans.
But I don´t work for Megatron... and I am willing to do everything to prove it. I will go with you right into the mid of the Decepticon forces."
"Yes and I will be with the entire time to take a look at you," Kup added sarcastically.
"We will attack in two groups," Optimus Prime ordered.
"Ultra Magnus, Ironhide - take your people and attack from the North. I and the rest will come from the West."
"Understand," Ultra Magnus replied.
"We are ready," Ironhide told him.
"Good," Optimus raised his voice. "Autobots transform."
With that command his troops were closing up to their target.
xxxxxxx
The Decepticon fortress consisted of the main tower, several smaller buildings and a heavily armed defense wall around them.
This was currently one of the best guarded places on Cybertron. From here Megatron controlled the new hyperspace engine that would transform the entire planet into a space-craft.
xxx
The three Decepticon elite seekers Skylord, Thundercracker and Skywarp were patrolling the area in their atmospheric jet form.
They flew a few miles above the city. Skywarp and Thundercracker in formation behind the Air Commander. None of them had detected any remaining inhabitants so far.
Their order was to search for Transformers who were still in the sector and remove them, if necessary by force.
The patrol flight was nearly over.
"I am detecting something", Thundercracker told the other two.
"Several signals are coming in our direction."
"Okay. We will check this," Skylord replied.
It didn´t take much time for them to see what their sensors had detected - Autobots, a large number of them.
Skylord contacted the base.
"Shockwave. Do you hear me? A number of nearly 200 Autobots is heading for your location. Have you understand me?"
"I have received your warning," the other officer replied. "We will prepare defenses. Return to base and join the troops."
After getting the answer of the one eyed Decepticon, the three flyers turned around and flew back to the control tower.
A large army of Autobots led by Optimus Prime was heading directly to the location of their base.
So far unknown to the Decepticons, there was a second group - led by Ironhide and Ultra Magnus - coming from another direction. But the Autobots knew it was only a question until they would be detected two.
Still - Optimus group´s open approach might buy them a bit of time to get closer to the enemy.
xxxxxxx
Megatron had already heard that Autobots were coming. He didn´t know if they had found out about his plans or if they were simply attacking because the Decepticons had claimed this sector for themselves.
It didn´t matter right now. They needed to be stopped.
He stood right now in front of his assembled ground troops. Right next to him was Blitzfight, a Decepticon who had a battle tank as a alt-mode and was the commander of the ground forces in this sector.
In that moment he received another call.
"Megatron. Do you hear me?" It was Starscream´s voice.
"Yes Starscream. What is it?"
"I have located a second group of Autobots that is coming in from the West," he informed him.
It was the second warning of this sort Megatron was getting. So the Autobots had separated into two groups to take them by surprise.
"Good work Starscream. Return to base."
"Thank you sir," the seeker answered.
xxx
The Autobots were slowly coming closer to the Decepticon base.
As Skylord, Skywarp and Thundercracker had reached the tower, they transformed and landed in front of the rest of the seekers who had assembled by then and were standing in attention in robot-mode.
The Air Commander instructed them about the coming battle and their individual duties. As he had finished he said a few other words to everyone.
"Give everything and look out for yourself," Skylord declared. "Remember, if you should be shot down you can not expect anybody to come back to you. This is a battlefield, never forget that", he told them loudly.
"Attack." The order came from Megatron.
At his word all seekers ascended into the sky. The other Decepticons followed them... in the air or on the ground.
The first Autobot group was now less than one mile away and were moving fast.
Megatron recognized the leader. It was the same large, red and blue Autobot who had confronted him during a energon raid four years ago.
Given what he knew now, there was only one possibility about the identity of this robot. The rising Autobot Commander called Optimus Prime.
The seekers were the first to open fire.
They shot a few salves into the path of the approaching Autobots who were still in vehicle form. Several of them had to stop to avoid the assault.
Then Optimus gave the order to transform. Moments later they had changed into robot mode and were firing back.
Megatron flew now just a few dozen meters above the ground, right in front of the leader of the attackers.
"So we meet again Autobot. If I am not mistaken you are Optimus Prime - the new leader everybody is talking about," Megatron addressed the mech.
"Yes - I am Optimus and I am here to stop you," he said determined.
The Decepticon Commander only smiled at the words of his opponent. It was bad that this attack was endangering his plans for Cybertron, but at least he had the chance to take out his currently most dangerous enemy.
He fired his fusion-cannon at Optimus... but missed.
The Autobot returned the fire but Megatron was also able to avoid the shot.
Blitzfight was in formation at the top of four other tank-mode Decepticons. They were now shooting at Optimus and the rest of the Autobot main force from a few hundred meters distance.
The seekers were at the same time taking the Autobots under fire from the sky.
xxxxxxx
Ultra Magnus and Ironhide´s group had meanwhile reached contact with the enemy as well.
The first ones had been a small group of three guards who had originally been securing the base.
This three Cons opened fire on them on sight. They were however easily eliminated with a few shots by Kup, Prowl and Cable.
Then, a few moments later, a larger group of Decepticons came in and the real fight started for them.
Megatron had now seen the second Autobot group as well.
He realized that it was led by a robot who seemed to rival Optimus Prime and himself in power. This interested him. He decided to confront the other group first.
The three elite seekers Skylord, Thundercracker and Skywarp now attacked the second enemy group from the sky, each of them killing one Autobot.
xxx
Jazz - one of the recruits Optimus had gathered during the last months, engaged a few seekers together with Ratchet.
Megatron was flying over the battlefield, Soundwave and Blitzfight close behind him.
He fired his fusion gun at a crowd of Autobots on the ground. Two of them were hit and completely obliterated. The blast ripped through their bodies and killed both in an instant.
Optimus was hit by a shot in the shoulder.
As he looked around he saw a large Decepticon with a smoking gun standing behind him.
"I am Blackbeast," the dark armored robot told him, "I am the one who will kill you."
The Decepticon transformed into a wild looking creature with sharp teeth and claws and attacked.
xxx
Ultra Magnus and his group were fighting their way through a line of Decepticon ground warriors as they were intercepted by Megatron.
"As I see the Autobots are creating even more fighters of Optimus Prime´s form. Not that it will help them," the Decepticon leader addressed him.
"Yet - a warrior of your power is rare Autobot, too rare. Don´t you see that your side will lose? We will be ruled by the ones who have the will and the power for it. Why don´t you join me? I could need someone like you."
"Forget it. I have seen what happens to the ones who are happen to stand in your way Megatron," Ultra Magnus replied.
"And you should have learned from it. As you want Autobot," Megatron said and fired again.
"We know what you are planning," Cronus yelled at him. "I have told them about your plans to activate the jet turbines."
Megatron starred at this Autobot. How could this robot have found out about his plan? He asked himself this for less than a second. Then he raised his weapon and shot at Cronus.
He fired but the blast only gazed the Autobot.
Megatron aimed to finish him off. But before he had the chance, he was engaged by Ultra Magnus again and the two continued their fight.
"Do you trust me now?" Cronus asked Kup as he was lying on the ground.
"Okay. I admit you don´t seem to work for him," Kup told the now wounded robot. "But tellig him that in the face was still a very stupid idea."
Ultra Magnus fired one of the missiles that were placed on his shoulder at Megatron. It hit the Decepticon leader in the chest and seemed to have caused some level of damage.
xxx
Skywarp teleported and appeared directly in front of the former Security Squad members, surprising the Autobots.
He opened fire and caused minor damage to a few of them.
They draw their weapons, but he had already teleported again. He was now a few hundred meters away from them.
"I will deal with him," said Fist and followed the black seeker.
xxx
Optimus Prime´s foe was strong and dangerous and Prime was injured.
This Decepticon Blackbeast, he had to admit, did really justice to his name.
Optimus body was one of the most powerful constructions on Cybertron. But he knew by now that being a fighter was also to a great part intuition and skill, not only strength and programing.
For a moment, he acted without a conscious thought. He acted faster than the Decepticon could react.
Optimus managed to grab his enemy at the throat and threw him down.
Blackbeast tried to draw his gun at him again. But Optimus had already aimed and shot the Decepticon in the head before he had the chance.
As the dead Transformer sank to the ground Prime had already turned around to fight off other enemies that came from all directions.
xxx
The Autobot Fist got his name due to his ability to transform his hands. Right now his right one has become a gun and he was shooting at Skywarp.
But the seeker was able to avoid all his shots, either by using his teleportion or simply didging.
Suddenly he teleported directly in front of the Autobot and wildly fired his guns off at him. The first shots only scorched his armor, the next ripped through his chest and destroyed him.
xxx
Ironhide had been fighting Decepticon ground forces for some time now.
At first he had tried to back up Ultra Magnus. But then Megatron and Magnus had been separated from each other by several other fighters intervering.
The ground troops, in first line the tank-form Cons, Ironhide had to admit were good to fight for him. If there was any sort of enemy especially created for him, it was them.
Despite being an Autobot, Ironhide had been a warrior for practically his entire existence. Fighting was a part of his life.
Then he saw something that really interested him. He was a warrior through and through, but Ironhide always kept some morals.
And killing defenseless beings which were separated from their bodies and completely helpless was something he really detested.
Right now he saw the seeker he had met two years ago... and he had really no intention to let this murderer get away.
From the distance, Ironhide shot Gunpoint right under the wing to get his attention.
Just as he had wanted the Decepticon was now flying down to him.
xxx
Proxis was a young Autobot recruit. This was his first real battle and he was burning for the chance to finally see some action and fight the Decepticons himself.
Now he had his chance. He was looking for a fitting foe.
Proxis saw a silver and red seeker in jet form, who he doesn´t recognized from any of the briefings. He took aim and fired at him.
The Decepticon however dodged, transformed, turned around and charged at him with incredible speed.
Proxis tried to take another shot at the seeker. But he was simply to fast for him.
After he missed him twice the Autobot became nervous and started to fire blindly at the flyer.
The Decepticon jet only looked at him mockingly.
"I see you think you can best me Autobot?" Starscream asked.
"I guess you are a young recruit right? Someone who is out to prove himself? So was I not long ago," the seeker stated while he shot back and hit the other robot in the shoulder.
"But between you and me is one great difference. I actually have talent." With that he fired both his weapons and killed the Autobot.
Then he transformed back into jet form and flew upwards to continue the battle in the sky.
Starscream felt like he never did before as he fought in the air and on the ground. There had been several smaller skirmished, but this was actually the first major battle he took part in.
He felt alive. No success he had, no discovery he had ever made before could match with this simply feeling to take on your enemies and to win.
He was fast, he was powerful, he faced enemies and was able to defeat them. He even faced Autobots who had much more experience and were able to hold himself and more.
Megatron was right, he was a warrior. He could be one of the greatest and he should and would be.
Starscream had finally found an answer to all his frustration, his loss and his pain. He took aim on another Autobot and fired.
This one fell down wounded and damaged, yet still alive. But Starscream was already searching for other targets.
With this the true lord of the sky was born.
xxx
Gunpoint was closing up on Ironhide from the air. He fired at the Autobot a few times.
One of the blasts hit Ironhide´s hand-gun and destroyed it.
Gunpoint smiled. He believed he had already won and flew closer to the Autobot. Who so far made no more attempt to fight back.
Ironhide however had only waited till the Decepticon had reached the perfect distance fo a kill-shot.
As Gunpoint was relatively close to him, he took aim.
That was the moment Ironhide had been waiting for. He took out the gun that he had hidden in his underarm the entire time. He like many warriors was carrying secondary weapons in storage places on their bodies.
And shot the surprised seeker down before he had even a chance to react.
Gunpoint crashed in a short distance to him.
The downed seeker transformed back into robot-mode, as Ironhide approached him.
"It is harder to take enemies down who are not helpless prisoners right?" The Autobot sneered at the him.
In Gunpoint´s face was a look of understanding. Ironhide saw that the other had realized that he was talking about.
"You better draw your weapon," he told the seeker casually.
Gunpoint aimed at the Autobot warrior. But before he could pull the trigger, Ironhide had already fired at him.
He shot him three times in the chest and into the spark-chamber. The Decepticon sank to his knees, dieing.
After a short moment Ironhide was back on his way to the main tower.
He was trying to find Ultra Magnus or Optimus.
xxx
Megatron realized he had been been separated as much from Prime as from this new warrior, whose name was Ultra Magnus, as he heard the other Autobots approach him.
Now he was standing before a number of opponents he had never met before.
One of them, he recognized from files as Cable - a member of the Autobot Security Squad.
He and his team were now following Optimus Prime but their leader had supposedly been killed two years ago.
Above them Shockwave was flying in his gun-mode. With a single shot he killed two Autobots, practically melted them down. Shockwave was as good as ever.
Megatron´s group had now the advantage over the Autobots present. He aimed his fusion-gun at Cable and blasted the robot´s head off with a single shot.
Next to him Soundwave killed one of the remaining Autobots.
They had won at this small place of the battle.
xxx
At another spot however it looked different. Ultra Magnus and his group had by now fought their way relative close to the control tower.
Optimus Prime and Elita One were coming in from the other side.
Ultra Magnus was now confronted with Blitzfight the Commander of the ground forces and one of his followers.
"Takeshot,"the Decepticon ordered his comrade, "we take this guy from two sides. No matter how strong he is, we will get him."
"Yes." The other warrior grinned.
Blitzfight attacked Magnus from the front while the other tried it from the side. In question of strength he had no great problems to hold both of them off, but he was in danger of being shot from two directions.
Blitzfight aimed his weapon at his face but the Autobot managed to dodge the blast. Ultra Magnus fired his second missile and hit Blitzfight directly. The impact at short distance destroyed a great part of his upper body and killed him in an instant.
Takehard was for a moment distracted by this. Magnus used the chance, gripped the Decepticon by the throat and shot him in the head.
Next to him Kup, Prowl and Grim-Side were still fighting several opponents.
At this moment the remaining Cons were taken under fire from the other side. Optimus Prime and the ones who were with him had arrived. One of the Decepticons were aiming at Grim-Side but Elita One killed him before he could fire.
They were now in close distance to the control tower. If they could shut it down they would have won. But it was not over jet. Megatron and Shockwave were coming to them.
The most dangerous warriors of both sides were now standing against each other.
Optimus Prime, Ultra Magnus, Elita, Ironhide and Kup against Megatron, Shockwave, Soundwave and Skylord. All of them were already damaged by the battle.
Both sides were now firing an each other or in hand to hand combat.
Optimus against Megatron, Magnus against Shockwave, Elita against Soundwave.
Kup and Ironhide had taken Skylord under fire and finallymanaged to shoot the Air Commander down. He crashed several kilometers from them. But then something happened.
Sometimes however coincidences have the greatest possible impact.
A fallen stone or a tripped foot sometimes could change the course of the world.
Something now happened, that decided the battle.
And not only that. A single incident that was significant for the fate of the entire planet and the history of Cybertron.
The Autobot Prowl - like everyone of his model-line - had two small missile launchers built on his shoulders. He fired them at one of the seekers.
But the Decepticon was able to shoot the missile before it reached him. The laser fire of the Con however only gazed it, not enough to destroy it but enough to sent it out of control.
It flew aimless over the place till it met a target, the control tower. Through coincidence, it hit the support line of the control system for the main reactor.
Everybody saw it as the missile exploded but nobody could do something.
Megatron and Optimus Prime saw what happened but it was to late to stop it. One of them wanted to reform Cybertron into a weapon of battle, the other wanted to stop him. But what took place then was something none of them wanted.
For a moment nothing happened. But then, because the control system wasn´t working anymore, the reactor went out of control.
The ground began to shake. Something deep inside of Cybertron exploded, either a supply pipeline or the reactor itself. Flashes of lightning went out of the control tower and torched the entire area, short-circuiting the systems of several Transformers.
They all retreated from the tower, bringing some distance between it and them.
A giant quake was shaking the entire planet, getting worse and worse. Then the control tower exploded. A shock like never before went through the entire metallic globe.
To the shock of everyone the ground under them was starting to break apart. A giant crater was opening in the middle of the sector, filled with molten magma and the fire of burning plasma. Several Transformers couldn´t get away in time and fell helplessly into the inferno. The most Decepticons since being able to fly were able to get away, but the Autobots fell to their death.
Megatron was floating in the air full of shock, above the destruction. All his plans were crushed, his dream about Cybertron as the mobile heart of his empire destroyed. All he could do was scream.
"No", he shouted. That was all he could do.
"That can not… not like that." he called out to Soundwave who was beside him. "All my plans - my dream to recreate Cybertron, everything is destroyed. And all that because some damned..."
Soundwave laid his hand on Megatron´s shoulder to get his attention.
"Situation is hopeless," he told him. "Retreat recommended."
He knew Soundwave was right.
"Decepticons retreat," Megatron screamed like never before... full of rage.
xxxxxxx
The damaged form of the Air Commander Skylord was lying at the side of the battlefield.
He had been able to transform back into robot mode... barely.
He had been shot down during the battle. As Megatron´s order to retreat came, everybody who was able to followed it. Some wounded warriors were carried by their comrades.
Skylord had told his seekers before the battle that they could not expect anybody to help them. That didn´t mean nobody would be helping a wounded warrior. Only that there was no guaranty.
Some of the ones being helped, were so by personal friends. Or simply by warriors who thought it was their duty to save their allies to fight another day.
But a few were being overlooked.
Skylord noticed that someone was standing next to him. A hand was offered to him and after a moment he took it. As he looked up he saw the face of Starscream. The young seeker was smiling at him.
The young talented warrior had come to help him, Skylord realized.
While it wasn´t a good thing that one of his fighters would see him in this state. He was glad that someone saw him going down and came to rescue him.
And he was glad that Starscream showed his loyalty in this way. He knew that this robot had great potential and could be one of the best fliers of all times. Skylord would be more than happy to help this young seeker with his carrier after they returned.
In this moment he realized that he was looking in Starscream´s gun. The young seeker was still smiling. The discharge of his weapon was the last thing Skylord ever saw.
Starscream looked around. He realized that in some distance a few fleeing Autobots had seen what he had done but he didn´t care. Should they see and fear him.
He knew he would be the greatest.
The new master of the sky transformed and flew up into the air.
xxxxxxx
A few mile outside of Kalis the surviving Autobots had regrouped.
Kalis was now a disaster area.
"There is no mistake", Kup pointed out. "Cybertron was thrown out of it´s orbit", he said.
Everyone murmered at this statement. A certain young Autobot felt at that moment worse than anyone else on the planet.
"Optimus. I. It was my fault. I am sorry I have failed us all like that", he apologist.
"Prowl listen to me. It was an accident. You had no way to know that this missile would get shot and hit the tower", Optimus assured him.
"I should have been more careful", Prowl said to them.
"And what would you have made differently?" Kup asked. "Not shooting on a battlefield? I would have done the same thing. That could have as easily been me or everyone else here." Kup looked around.
Prowl saw that nearly everyone nodded.
Optimus placed both his hands on his shoulders.
"You have a great potential as a warrior. What happened today was a accident that could have happened to everybody else too, even if the consequences were terrible. You were not at fault", He told him, convinced of his words.
"And what shall we do now?" Ultra Magnus asked.
"Cybertron was thrown out of orbit", Optimus replied, "that may be a global disaster but at least the planet is not under Megatron´s control either. He will not be able to raid the resources of other worlds and we have still a chance to stop him. And some day we will stop him", he declared.
It was all as it should be.
xxxxxxx
Some time later, deep in the Underground sections of Cybertron.
The single Autobot Transformer was walking alone through the long forgotten corridors that led to the core area of his home-planet.
Until he arrived in a large, nearly empty, hall.
"You have returned," a voice - coming seemingly from everywhere around him - greeted him. "And everything had turned out as planned."
"It did my Lord - but the consequences. All this deaths..."
"I know. But it needed to happen. Megatron´s plan had given us an opportunity. For the sake of us all, Cybertron needed to leave it´s orbit," the voice of Primus - original creator of Cybertron and God of the Transformer race - stated.
xxxxxxx
Decepticon Flagship in the year 2005 - 9.000.000 years later
Galvatron, Cyclonus and Scourge reappeared at exactly the same place where they had vanished earlier - before
"Had everything gone as planned?" Sweep 2 asked. "I guess not", he stated as he saw Galvatron´s expression.
"We had to live through all this again and for what?" Galvatron said angrily. "We were not able to change anything and everything was put at risk. It was all for nothing."
"Do you plan to use that device again?" Cyclonus asked him.
Galvatron thought about what nearly happened. Then he crushed the time-travel controller with his hand.
Galvatron knew he had another chance. He would find Ultra Magnus and take the Matrix from him and he would use it against Unicron. It was the one thing that could stop him and he would be the one who brought Unicron down.
xxxxxxx
6.000.000 years earlier - somewhere in space
No - it was here.
He knew it had been here. Deep in the wides of space the monstrous being known as Unicron was furious.
He was in the same star system where Primus spirit had been transferred into a meteorit all those millennias ago.
Unicron knew it. For eons he had sensed the movements of exactly this star through space, through his mental connection with Primus.
He had mentally felt Primus presence in this part of space for so long.
But now he wasn´t there. He had found a way to leave.
In his anger Unicron was screaming out into the universe in a language that consisted of radio wave, telepathic messages... and pure hate.
"I will find you!" he called out. "Where ever you are. Some day I will find you and then it will be your end."
Authors Note: In the original version Cronus was just a mask and a cover identity for The Fallen. Here I have changed Cronus origins and The Fallen had spend most of Cybertron´s history banished from this reality, like in his original comic appearance.