Song: Ain't No Rest for the Wicked – Cage the Elephant

Megatron sat on his side of the berth, observing Arcee face down and tired. Her white cover armor had been ripped off, discarded near their personal wash racks but she never put it back on. Instead, she supported her natural blue coloring with the pink highlights standing out once more. It was nice to see her as a normal bot again, and he knew she liked it too. Her biggest comfort was being herself, not a queen. He could respect that in more ways than she knew; he sometimes thought his crown and the decorative markings he got becoming the king consort on his chassis were a bit too much.

"Are you okay?" The warlord asked humorously.

She turned her helm to the side, enamoring him with her baby blue optics with the faintest pink lighting the rim of them. "Just contemplating a few things. Do you think I can help the other worlds? Is it even possible to?"

Megatron placed his crown to the side, uncaring where it was as he focused only on Arcee. "I think if there's a will, there's a way. But if you go, I'm going to. This doesn't have to ride on you alone. I managed to unite Chaar and its sister planet, Chasia, when I was the Decepticon leader."

Arcee snickered, "You threatened to blow up the planet if the Chasians didn't comply. I wouldn't call that unification or diplomacy."

Megatron held up a digit to defend himself only to drop it a second later. "That...depends on how you look at it. The point is it worked with...some persuasion. I'm not saying go up to any of the planets and do specifically that, but I willed it and it was. All you have to do is be honest about what you want to achieve and work with them to achieve it no matter what they ask. My way was a bit more, um, eccentric."

Arcee perched her chassis up on her arms in thought. "So, the Allspark mentioned eight worlds. Isn't there over twenty-five colonies and worlds overall we used to trade with?"

"You mean like Devisiun and Hyperion? Technically, there's over eighty-five counting all planets we have colonized or resided on temporarily. How many planets are birth planets, as in where we as multiple species have come from? About twenty-five of them. At least, that's what Optimus once told me when he was a librarian and I was a gladiator."

Arcee stared at him dumbfounded. "You're joking me."

"No, I wish I was."

"Okay, so only seven worlds out of eighty-five of them are in danger and I'm expected to reinstate relations with them? If I do any more, I think I would kill myself. That's too much."

"Oh, don't worry, most of those eighty-five worlds are either abandoned or destroyed, not pointing any fingers on why now but not many are in commission," Megatron smiled sheepishly.

Arcee narrowed her optics, "No wonder no one wanted you to rule; you're scary when you want to be."

Megatron merely sighed, "Let's ignore my vices and focus on your virtues instead. I think if anyone can do this, it's you. You are the queen; it's a stubborn job but you're more stubborn. I would know. Just show the other worlds Cybertron has changed and help them with whatever is threatening their way of life. That alone will prove yourself to them if not the eagerness to fix what the bots in the past managed to ruin. Trying speaks more than talking."

Smiling, she readjusted to cross her arms to lie her head down on them as he gently massaged her winglets. "Tomorrow, I think we approach this as more than queen and king though."

Megatron nodded in agreement.

Haywire was surprised that Arcee managed to convince the faction leaders to come as she said. Predaking, Grimlock, and The Matriarch all stood before him as the Allspark appeared from behind with a whoosh of energy, observing the meeting with interest. Shockwave stood to the side to support his boss and sparkmate. Bumblebee was present with Optimus. He had heard Windblade was invited but she declined as she was currently on Caminus to see family and took the Combiners that made Victorion with her. The last leader was Ultra Magnus who was unable to join because he was busy with problems in the Xeroxi District in northern Cybertron.

"Did she tell you why you are all here or did she lay it on me?"

"Mixture of both really," The Matriarch said with an honesty Haywire kind of despised.

The doors to the meeting room opened and everyone was shocked to see Perceptor and Bulkhead, the former of whom immediately quipped, "Did you really want to start this party without me? Long time, no see, boys! Optimus told us about this meeting so we figured we would drop by, know what we might need to not almost die...again."

The Allspark was quick to answer Perceptor's sarcasm with its own. "Do not worry, you will be the last to go if anything. Something threatens the worlds of old, the ones Cybertron has left behind in malicious pride. This threat will spread if it is not contained soon. Cybertron will be next if the wrong decisions are made."

Predaking frowned, "I'm doubtful this threat is powerful enough to destroy Cybertron-"

"-But if the other cyber worlds are in peril, including Chaar, that implies it might be an inside job. If I find out someone threatens my planet, I WILL RIP THEM APART AND-!"

"Matriarch!" Shockwave growled.

She calmed down and clutched her chest, "Sorry, habit."

Bumblebee pinched the bridge of his nose plating. "Are we a hundred percent sure the other worlds are in trouble? If we go poking around in their business and try to return trade between us and them within this 'false' claim, it could start a whole new conflict. Cybertron versing itself with Rockrider hijacking the throne was one thing as was the war with Megatron, but planet against planet? I hate to say this but there are plenty of worlds stronger than ours with better resources, especially with Cybertron still recovering from our civil war that destroyed our planet. I don't think we can risk that."

Grimlock shook his head, "But if we do nothing, those worlds might die. We have already lost over half of the colonies our ancestors created eons ago by sheer idiocy, war, and lack of resources. Our race is endangered as is theirs. Cybernetic life like ours is not common in this universe. Once we're gone, there's no evolutionary bypass. Organic creatures like oxygen-breathers can come up in any shape or form. Metal-based life, we are very limited by how we are born."

"The Dinobot's right," The Matriarch said. "We do nothing and it's equivalent to killing them ourselves."

Perceptor scowled, "You're just defending his words because your planet might be in the crossfire of this so-called threat."

"Shut up, lab rat!" She growled back, "You'd do the exact same thing if you were leader. Don't be acting like you're better than any of us that have to make decisions like this on a daily basis to make sure we survive."

"You all are acting like idiots," a voice said.

They all turned to see Arcee walk in with Megatron. To everyone's surprise, neither queen nor king consort had on their crown or specialized armor. Seeing Arcee back as her original self was unexpected but most everyone agreed it was a welcome change. The only thing that couldn't be removed was Megatron's fancy tattoos. Other than that, they looked like the same bots they all knew and cared for.

The Matriach crossed her arms, "About time you showed up. So, Queenie, you want us to vote or something?"

"Yes, to make it quick and to the point, who here thinks it's a good idea for me to investigate?"

Megatron, Bulkhead, Grimlock, Predaking, Optimus, Perceptor, and Shockwave all raised their servos, leaving Bumblebee, Haywire, and The Matriarch the odd ones out. Arcee gestured around triumphantly while The Matriarch grumbled about wasting time.

"See, just needed the approval."

Bumblebee sighed, "That's what you called us for? Alright, Arcee, have it your way. Just be considerate if you anger anyone."

Arcee frowned, "I'm not that bad."

Predaking interjected, "I think he means just don't lose your temper. You aren't bad, but you do need to work on some of your spur of the moment decision making when pressed. We have a lot riding on you."

"Let's do it then," she grinned.

Haywire met her enthusiasm by saying, "And the queen has spoken. Alright, Arcee, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. If you think we can do this, then I have no qualms preparing for anything."

Optimus nodded, "We will keep Cybertron safe while you traverse the other worlds but be careful. I sense there is more than meets the eye with whatever lies ahead."

Bulkhead then added, "We'll be your backup and your communications. If you need us, don't be afraid to holler."

"Great! Now that we agree, let's head out, Megatron-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Haywire scoffed, "you can't go yet! First off, you haven't even prepared yourself! Your weapon systems? Are you really going in blindly without getting everything you need? Also, we still don't have the Space Bridge Nexus running. You're going to have to fix it before you leave for any planet!"

"Damn it, it's always something," she scowled.

Megatron replied, "He's right though."

Pointing towards Fortress Maximus in the distance, the red mech said, "Before you do anything else, go to the Fortress and meet with Scythe to make sure your aim is still as good as your snappy comebacks. We'll meet you over there in a couple minutes. Let me finish briefing them on a few other things, but you are not to leave there until you finish your training."

Arcee gave a mocking salute before walking out to Megatron's humor and Haywire's distaste. Going to Fortress Maximus as a regular bot felt better than being escorted. The Fortress pathway sloped up and Arcee transformed to make the best time, eager to get it done and over with. Navigating the Fortress was different though.

Various halls led to one place or something completely different. She was almost lost until a voice called her name. She quickly looked back to see Scythe leaning against the wall.

"Lost your way?" He smirked.

"I liked you better when you were single and bitter; I could bite back from those comments of yours. You're too direct now with what you say, doesn't work."

"Ouch, that hurt," he laughed. "Love does that sometimes as you should know, your Majesty."

Arcee sighed, "Point taken. So, Haywire says I need to make sure my weapons are up to par for whatever happens."

"Follow me," Scythe immediately said. "Your fighting techniques...I know you have the experience, but I want to see it firsthand. Beat the targets. Get hit and it's over. You will have to try again."

"Such high standards."

"I mean it is you, so should I expect less?" He retorted back.

Arcee couldn't argue with that as they reached the training room will all the dummies to beat and gadgets a fighter could want. She gasped in delight seeing the swords and hammers most of all. Scythe merely looked at her with a raised brow.

"I know that look. Feel free to use any of them. Let me know when you're ready."

Arcee scoped out the single headed hammer with spikes on the other end and grew a wicked grin. The damage she could do with it was unsaid but if she was on a time restraint, a blade would move alongside her as fast as she could go far easier than with a hammer. Picking a double-bladed sword, she briefly rotated it and liked how simple it could be maneuvered around her, perfect for quick movements.

She raised it up to point at Scythe who took his place above in the control room with a few of his staff. "Bring it on!"

"I was joking when I said you needed to get all the targets. I know you can do it, but I don't want to have to clean up everything you destroy. Get a good number of enemies out of the way and we'll move on. I'll tell Haywire you passed with flying colors."

"Don't be holding back on me now," she grinned.

Scythe activated the course, and the simulation took hold of the room. The background changed to a starlit sky with the dummies appearing to move robotically growling at her. In a battle-ready pose, she leapt at the first one in sight. It looked similar to Wrathzone in structure but different helm design and red.

She wall-jumped off a vertical platform and sent a pede right into the robot's head. When she recoiled off it, she caught its chest plate to pull herself up and sink one end of the sword in its chest, impaling it quick. Its offline body briefly tried to voice its concern before collapsing as a few other robots started homing in on her. One dummy fired at her with a standard blaster which she dodged before running up to it while another attempted to step on her. Her smaller stature allowed for quick reflexes and the ability to slip by the drones without a sweat. Getting in the middle of them as some turned to face her, she smirked.

"Alrighty boys, playtime is over."

The drones were expressionless but their A.I.s seemed withdrawn by the comment before she suddenly jumped up and made a swift rotation with the double swords. Each robot was beheaded and several of them walked backwards stunned, some even clutching the area of the missing helm in confusion. They fell, and she didn't see Scythe and one other bot instinctively hold their necks with a wince upon witnessing the move.

When Arcee landed, she was crouching with one servo on the floor and the other holding the blades battle-ready behind her back. More drones were on their way to stop her...as if they could. But before she had the chance to lunge, the simulation ended, and the now colorless dummies froze in their place. She peered up at Scythe frustrated.

"What gives?! Did I do something wrong?"

Scythe was quick to assure her otherwise. "No! Absolutely not, you did...I don't know if there's a better word for fantastic but that's the least I can call it. I stopped it because I think this is too easy for you."

She sighed, "But Haywire said-"

"I can talk to Haywire. One of the perks of being with him is constant communication. If he has any doubts or questions, I can convince him easily that you are more than qualified to go back into the field. For your short but amazing performance, I'll let you keep that twin blade as a gift. But don't think it's over yet. I want to test your blasters as well while you're here, make sure all your weapons systems are responding and not rusting out in your duties."

Arcee gave a sarcastic glare at him, switching her arm into her signature blaster to non-verbally comply with his demands.

Scythe anticipated the annoyance and added, "If you beat this next text, I'll give you a personal favorite weapon of mine in return. I have no use for it, but maybe you will."

The sound of a new weapon made Arcee perk up from her tenseness and grinned, "Now you're speaking my language."

"Of course, I'm your Captain of the Guard. I have to know how to reason with you. Look alive, Arcee."

Scythe signaled to the simulator control room and Arcee saw the area shift into an Earth-like environment. New drones appeared with makeovers once more to appear like real bots. One of them, however, seemed to take a color scheme that made her pause. Black with orange undertones with red optics, the drone hissed at her. She stared into its lifeless optics and slowly, her memory of her time on the isle came to light. The forbidden planet where she fought and executed the monstrous Megatronus Prime echoed and she could still hear remnants of his dark laughter. The fire he was invincible to raged within the memory and she swore there was a glimmer of it in the drone.

"Arcee!"

The blue femme snapped back right as a standard sword nearly struck her. The drone it belonged to growled and she narrowed her optics in return. Pointing the blaster at its head, she smirked watching it realize its mistake. One shot to its helm and it fell over offline. Shooting down the others was only a matter of keeping distance a factor in the leverage she had.

She aimed for the leg joints as it would be the best way to topple larger enemies and any near her size, she hit the spark chamber. One by one they fell as somersaulted over a drone, blasting its head open, before shifting immediately to press the nuzzle of her blaster right in the chest as she landed.

Scythe just watched her go, not daring to stop her as her kill count climbed. Each move she did with precision, something he admired and expected from the bot who managed to defeat the Allspark itself. After ten minutes, he finally signaled for the control room to halt the simulation, but he noticed there were multiple drones out of commission that he was going to have to clean up after, much to his chagrin.

Arcee gave a mocking bow, "How's that for a weapon's test?"

Before Scythe could answer, Haywire's voice sounded from the control room. "It was excellent."

Both he, Bumblebee, Shockwave, and Optimus were watching, half of whom were deeply impressed. Arcee laughed as they came down to greet her. Haywire was the first to say something.

"Well, I think you are ready, though I'm still a bit concerned..."

Scythe scowled, "You act like she's your daughter. She's been through hell far more than most all of us, so don't you think she's in the clear?"

"It's my job to care because I'm her advisor," Haywire snapped back. He then addressed Arcee. "I suppose I am getting a little too protective hoping nothing happens and all that. You're the best friend I care about, and I just don't want a repeat of the incident before to occur, you know?"

Arcee hugged him and patted his back, "I love you too, Haywire, do you know that?"

"Doesn't hurt to hear it certainly."

Shockwave then said, "Arcee, I think I know how to get the Space Bridge Nexus running again but finding all the parts and correct sequence of steps will take a few hours to isolate. Megatron is currently assisting me in tracking down its power source to check for any damage obtained during the war. If all goes well, we'll have it up and running in the next day or so."

Optimus continued off Shockwave's comments. "In the meantime, the Allspark has requested your presence at the Garden Plaza in Crystal City, and Bolt wishes to have your aid in some field work in his division."

"At least, that's how he described it," Bumblebee smirked. "We'll let you know when we need your help with the Nexus. Megatron should be in touch with you."

Arcee nodded but Scythe cleared his throat to get her attention. He brought out a ray gun which she eyed in wonder before he then said, "The ricochet ray isn't the most powerful weapon on the market, but it's lightning fast and can hit multiple targets before finally stopping making for a good long-range weapon, something I think would benefit you against the unknown or buy you time to figure out an ulterior plan if not enough."

She took the weapon and cocked it, earning her a slightly worried look from Haywire and tilt of the head from Shockwave. "Awesome."

"Take care of it now, ricochets aren't very common weapons. They have a nasty recoil sometimes too, and it is possible to get hit so always try and aim with angles, so the bullets have a trajectory other than you."

Placing the gun alongside the blade on her back, she rolled her shoulders and nodded, "Will do."

When she left Fortress Maximus, she decided to speak with Bolt first. The Allspark was still her less-than-favorite entity to be around, so she wanted to start off with the person she could count on the most. It took her almost an hour, but she managed to track Bolt to the Rustic Ruins, an old city that had yet to be fixed to be habitable. She found him sitting on a hill overlooking the former residency.

She noticed the Ruins had a large Energon Equus populace, metal horses with decorative plating, bulky frames and various colors of bio lights running across their bodies. Unlike the helio-horses from Velocitron meant to be nimble as fast as the wind and the singlehorns from the Cybertron Underground that were mystical, these were work stallions. Bred to move anything that got in their way, Energon Equus were the brawniest cybernetic horses and the most stubborn when encountered untamed. They normally only accepted a few owners in their lifetime if at all and raising a herd was very costly, not to mention they were high-maintenance creatures.

"Hey, Bolt, long time...what are you doing so far out here?"

The Vehicon, now supporting silver highlights to emphasize his position as Iacon's Head, stood up abruptly almost tripping before exclaiming, "Arcee! Ha ha! What's up with you?! I feel like I haven't seen you in forever, girl! Me? I've just been making sure the life around Cybertron is coming back, slowly but surely. Documenting them is by far very fun...emphasis on the word 'fun.' They are magnificent beasts, but they haven't been among Cybertronians in quite some time, so most meetings were very rough."

"Too much for the great Bolt?" She snickered.

"Hey now," Bolt said, pointing at her, "I don't give up because of an inconvenience and you know this."

Arcee peered at the Energon Equus as they ate loose metal growing from the ground infused with energy veins. It was nice to see life rejuvenating within the years since its revival.

"So, Bolt, Optimus said you needed my help with something?"

"Well, it's, uh, it's more like a request…I've been studying the Equus for some time, but I can't get close to any of their foals without, you know, being attacked. All I want to know is simply what the foals do, what they look like and all that. Unfortunately, the mothers seem to keep their babies deep within the ruins out of sight of onlookers and predators, which is fair considering. I was wondering-"

Arcee gave an exaggerated sigh, "Do not ask what I think you're going to ask."

"-if you could bring me three foals to see up close. Don't worry, I have no intention of keeping them, just a quick study and maybe a picture. If you can do that, I would be oh so grateful."

"You're killing me, Bolt."

The Vehicon pressed his servos together. "Pretty please?"

Arcee wanted to argue but knowing how he was when such a thing happened on the isle, she dropped it and stomped towards the Ruins."

"Love you!" He shouted.

"Questioning it!" She yelled back.

The Equus herd grazed unbothered by her approach. When she got close enough, she looked at the large pillars and archways sunken by years of misuse and weather. She could use them to navigate the area without resistance from the herd and find the foals from a higher point of view. How she was meant to wrangle one was another question entirely.

She moved to the nearest pillar nearly crawling trying to draw little suspicion her way. A few glances from the herd members made her pause but as long as she made it look like she was just passing by, there would be little to no trouble. Once she reached it, she brought out her arm blades and sank them into the rusting metal. Climbing up it felt like a thrill despite the noise, and she reached the top after almost two minutes. Now the fun began. Hopping from one pillar onto a platform, she ran across the top peering down for any signs of the foals. Many adult Equus were seen but not any babies. Then she saw two beastly Equus fighting, neighing at each other baring hidden fangs with their ears pushed against their helms. The fight had a big audience but what they were brawling for was narrowed down to two possibilities: territory or mates.

Then, like music to her audio receptors, she heard the most high-pitched sounds. Moving above what was once a plaza surrounded by old buildings, she gasped at the cuteness that was the foals. They pranced and whipped their heads excitedly among each other while several carriers watched nearby. Tiny little things in comparison to the giant adults, her size pony ironically enough…just small enough to ride.

"Oh, the little babies. Mama's going to hate me in three seconds."

She waited until the nearest foal, one with pretty glowing spots, was walking just beneath her before cracking her neck and jumping down it. She used the side of the wall to slow her fall and landed right on the backside of the foal. She expected it to kick like mad but instead, the little one cried out and sprinted while its mother made an ungodly growl. It was faster than she anticipated, and she struggled to keep the foal from running all over the place. Using its metal mane, she pointed its head in the direction she wanted to go. She could hear the herd growing agitated by the mother's frantic noises. When she was out of the ruins, she forced the foal to keep straight going through the herd as they backed away uncertain. Seeing Bolt on the ridge, she made the foal towards him until she pulled back on its mane again to make the foal slide to a halt.

"And you need three of them why?!"

Bolt scoffed, "Equus come in three different patterns. Or did you not notice that?"

As she tried to keep the foal still, she frowned, "You said get three, you didn't mention that little bit of information before!"

"I thought it was obvious. You have a spotted Equus foal. There's a calico and an oval-striped type as well."

As she let him look at the foal, she glared at him but now that she knew what other specimens to get, the other foals shouldn't take too long to get. Once he had a picture, she patted its rear and watched it run back to the herd.

"Next time, details like that make my job simpler."

Arcee headed back to the pillar she first climbed though a few of the stallions of the herd were eyeing her now with distrust. With the same method, she scoured the rooftops of the rusting city to find one of the remaining two types needed. Then she spotted her next target of the oval-striped foal under an archway to the lost main street. The foal was unbothered grazing by a spotted one. She jumped to the archway and crouched down to assess her choices of approach. Falling straight down had consequences if she missed, not to mention the risk of hurting the foal, and she had nothing to slow her descent. But maybe she could wing it at an angle.

Using the arch's curve, she began sliding until she was halfway to the point of no return and leapt to roll onto a roof. An old banner dangled uselessly in the faint wind, and she grinned. Taking it, she used it to swing down and did a backflip right onto the striped foal's back. It whinnied and took off.

Using the same method as she did the last foal, she guided it through the city towards the hill in the distance, passing the now furious Equus herd. Getting to the top, she jumped off and to the side, still holding the neck of the foal so it wouldn't run.

"One more for your collection."

"Perfect! Now all you need to do is bring me the calico. That one might be tricky as it can blend with its environment more believe it or not."

After Bolt did his thing, she released it. The hunt for the calico she knew was going to be an uphill battle as the herd had gotten wise to her appearance, now she was met with resistance.

The Equus were prepared by stomping their hooves agitated, but she was ready too. This time, no slow approach was necessary. Running at the herd, she used her advantage of size to navigate the furious horses into the city. Many chased after her until she ducked into a small alley. They ran right past her. She smiled at her luck when she saw the calico foal peering at the chaos around it. It moved around a corner, and Arcee was quick to pursue.

The foal was running through the city with Arcee transformed into her vehicle mode. She followed it several blocks until she was nearly slammed into by the foal's angry mother. She increased speed to come beside it and nearly tackled the baby Equus, running at its side to keep up until she bounced off an upturned patch of metal and sat herself on its backside. With the mother following, she aimed the foal into a narrow street where old ships had gathered. She and the foal were just small enough to squeeze through, but the mother couldn't follow.

At her success, she pumped her fist in the air and used a secondary exit out of the city, following its boundaries until she once again laid optics on the hill Bolt waited on. Sliding right before hitting him, she leapt off and pointed at him.

"This is all you get now. Make it count."

He quickly obeyed and took the data and picture he needed before she let the last foal run off. Laughing, Bolt clapped his servos, "You are one great horse rider, Arcee! And even a better field agent. Maybe you can help me on other species in the future."

"Not unless you pay me first," she quipped, placing her servos on her knees out of breath.

"Here, for your efforts," Bolt said as he handed her a device and she looked at it quizzically.

"What's this?"

"A specialized commlink. I was going to use it for research purposes, but you might need it more if you plan on going to other worlds, as rumor has it. It's experimental so I must warn you with utmost importance that it can pick up anybody's comm request for communication. You can communicate not just with Cybertronians now but with possibly anyone from the other worlds that have access to your signal, given freely or stumbled upon, mind you. Just be weary of who you let yourself communicate with."

Arcee smiled and opened the grey circular cap behind her pink cheek plate, attaching the device to sync with the regular comm panel hidden beneath. "Thanks, Bolt."

"That's what friends are for. It's the least I can do and if you really are going to those worlds, can I please come? Please, please, please! I'll be a good boy. I promise."

Although Bolt's expressionless faceplate couldn't do anything of a cute, begging nature, Arcee knew that was what was going on in his head and hoped she could magically be enthralled by his pleas. She sighed knowing it was useless, but Bolt would be a good crewmember to have in case the worlds proved too much to handle.

"Fine," she caved, "you can come too."

"Woohoo!"

"But it may be a while. I still need to talk to the Allspark."

Bolt nodded, sitting down next to a few tablets he had on hand. "Do your thing, Queen, and I'll support you a hundred percent. I'm in no rush."

The Allspark breathed and with it, its gardens flared life. Crystal City reveled in its nurturing energy, and it was more than happy to give. In return, it felt the whole city's power course around it. The trees of its plaza glowed, pulsing to each purr of its haunting voice. Among the city, it sensed one life force it had grown to like despite the feeling was not entirely mutual it knew.

"Once again you stand before me. Come, let us begin."

Arcee frowned and peered around thinking for a second it may have been addressing someone else. Confused, she asked, "Begin what?"

"I want you to test your knowledge, demonstrate to me the very heart of your passion and leadership. I want you to show me why I should entrust the fate of our world in your hands."

"Everyone wants to challenge me today. It's like boot camp all over again," she sneered. "Lay it on me."

The Allspark's rings halted for a second before lining up parallel and starting to glow. The ground began to rumble and Arcee looked around uneasy only to notice no one else seemed affected by the quaking, oblivious more so. The world she knew twisted as she found herself in a spatial land. Arcee stood on a floating platform in the middle of space with an entire galaxy behind the Allspark and various nebulae and distant stars creating a beautiful endless sky.

"First question: on the isle, how did you possess the fifth gem?"

Arcee had to take a second to recall the location of the gem first. She then remembered it was in the desert where Doomsday the Driller had been encountered. "The Driller ate it, so I blew her up and retrieved it."

The answer was simple, but she could tell the Allspark was amused by the confidence of it.

"In the tales of old, how was I imprisoned?"

"You…were…imprisoned when you supposedly failed to warn of Megatronus' murder of Solus and the Primes casted your powers into Vector Sigma while you spent eons in a crystal case."

"What was the creature that pursued you across the isle called?"

Arcee groaned as she remembered its name. "The Cybertronian Predator."

"When Rockrider took the throne, why did she do so?"

"To…" Arcee paused as the memory of the unhinged elitist came to mind. She still loathed the deceased femme to the core. "…to reinstate the caste system and take out all in her way."

"Final question: in light of this journey you about to take, who was it that forewarned you on the isle of the true reason of the worlds' separations with Cybertron?"

She couldn't remember that. Very few creatures and bots she encountered on the isle spoke. Xerophorus, the Rozarian warrior of late, mentioned it but Tigressa had a better explanation as did Kor. It was fifty-fifty between the latter two.

"…Tigressa?"

The Allspark seemed to gleam proudly. "You remember. Good, I can now give something back to you that should serve you well."

Arcee was skeptical of what she gave the Allspark to begin with until its energy shifted. Swirling in front of both of them, a bluish white funnel merged into an orb before shattering and Arcee stared in awe as she was presented with the one and only Dagger Prima. It floated down to her, and she carefully gripped it, running the tips of her fingers against the top of the blade.

"You're seriously giving this to me? Your weapon?"

"I believe it should be yours. After all, it was you who saved me and Earth from complete destruction. I have no need of it, and Solus wants you to have it anyway."

"Solus. You've been communicating with her in the Well."

"She is proud of you, Arcee, as am I. Now, I have to-"

A scream rang out somewhere in the galaxy and the Allspark was quick to break the illusion of the spatial realm to return to Crystal City. There, they both searched for the origin of the noise when gunfire erupted.

A Molten Megastrike, far from its territory in the Underground, hissed at everyone and lunged at a younger mech as another bot shot at it. When it came close to the youngling, a sudden kick to its jaw was given by The Matriarch. Joined by Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons bared her claws in warning if it dared to approach anyone else. The Megastrike shook in its rage as clouds started crackling with electricity. Megatron aimed his purple arm cannon at it, growling and daring it to try. Arcee ran towards them, but The Matriarch was quick to shout, "Watch it!"

Lightning rained down from the sky and hit the Megastrike, its backside lighting up as energy coursed through it. Furious, its yellow optics stared down the two Cons while Arcee stood behind it, covering her optics from the bright flash with a frown. Just then, Dagger Prima glowed in her grasp, and she knew it recognized her determination, acting on her will like it had before.

"Just like old times. Let's go!"

Against her better option of waiting for the creature to power down, Arcee ran at it and briefly dragged the dagger to the ground creating sparks before jumping and doing a spin. Coming down, she severed the tail of the beast where she could avoid being electrocuted. It roared in agony before whipping around only to make it an open target for Megatron's aim. Megatron fired and pierced its side, but it refused to give up or die. Instead, it was prompted to lunge at her.

Arcee dodged the Megastrike's claws, and it stumbled trying to keep up with her speed. A ray of lightning shot from its mouth from the saved-up energy, missing Arcee by inches and instead went flying towards the Allspark. The entity deflected the blast, forcing it back towards the sky.

The Matriarch charged it as Arcee kept it homing on her. The Decepticon leader grabbed a nearby bench and flung it at the Megastrike's head, earning a grunt and a hiss.

"Don't you growl at me! You started this!"

As the energy accumulated died, the Megastrike flickered its glossa to taste the air and perceive its next move. Summoning another storm to build up power, it slowed down but stalked towards Arcee.

Arcee narrowed her optics watching it bide its time so it could get another boost from the storm. But she had to wonder if lightning could be used against it. Dagger Prima whispered, she could hear it and knew the blade desired the same thing as her. She thought hard until an idea came to her. What would happen if the blade itself was hit by lightning? Dagger Prima was indestructible, so maybe it would absorb it instead. She smirked as the Megastrike was still drawn to her. The lightning festered above. Seeing it becoming unstable in the clouds, she threw Dagger Prima right above the creature. The lightning came crashing down.

The Megastrike gave an unusual cry as its body absorbed the blast, but Arcee never saw Dagger Prima go anywhere…but down. The force of the lightning sent it rocketing directly into the backside of the creature, evident by when the light died and there sat the blade buried partially through the spine. With the electric charge, it fried the vulnerable inner flesh directly causing it to twitch before it exploded from the pressure. The dagger was sent skyward doing a few flips before embedding in the ground.

Arcee took it out and examined it for any damage. Sure enough, the blade was untouched. "Megastrikes may be lightning proof on the outside, but not everything is entirely immune to their own element."

Megatron laughed, "Taken a lesson from Bolt, have you?"

The Matriarch was less kind about it. "Sometimes everything needs to learn to keep to themselves. Of course, why a Megastrike managed to get all the way out here though is odd."

Arcee shot a quick side glance to the Allspark who immediately responded, "I didn't teleport it if that's what you're implying."

"Well, it chose to get angry, and the result was death. It's no different than the other monsters we've slayed, eh, Megatron?"

The warlord nodded in agreement before abruptly interrupting. "Oh, I almost forgot to tell you after this distraction. Haywire found a way to turn on the Nexus, but we need to do a few things first. We'll meet him outside of Iacon in the northern sector in a crater used to house the old system. We're one step closer to getting out of here, don't worry."

"As if I ever?"

AN: Kind of the tutorial part of a game, you know. Don't worry, only one more chapter on Cybertron for the basics and then you'll see a brand new world.

For those of you curious, I added the songs because I just wanted to share which ones kind of inspired certain themes of chapters and others just were playing in my mind while I wrote them. So, if you never heard of the songs, I suggest listening to them at least once. They aren't bad for sure.

Also, I don't think I ever explained this in the previous fic but the reason Grimlock can talk normal instead of the alternate "Me, Grimlock" talk is because I have a headcanon Shockwave altered his voice so it was altered back at some point. The only thing that couldn't be altered of course is his previous mode. The damage was permanent on that...*swats Shockwave with a newspaper* bad Shockwave.