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TRANSFORMERS BEYOND
LEGENDARIUM
Chapter XIV
The Great War
Part I
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After ano-cycles of military buildup, recruitment, and accumulation, all that war needs is one single spark to ignite it into an undying inferno. And with the failed assassination attempt on Sentinel Prime and the New Senate, the Third Cybertronian Civil War (which would be forever known in the annals of history as simply the Great War) begins.
Approx. 9.0 million stellar cycles ago
Megatron holds Declaration Day at the abandoned Nova Point Mine at his home city Tarn, declaring open warfare on the Autobots. The Decepticons easily secure control of their territory as they route out the small force of Autobots who had been stationed alongside the Badlands' borders to monitor their activity. The New Senate is riven by indecision and conflict at this turn of events, preventing them from coming to a reasonable response as the Decepticons begin to their expansion.
With Kaon, Tarn, Vos, Helex, and Tesarus already under their control, the Decepticons begin annexing the remaining city-states in the Badlands under their banner, with some of them willingly defect to Megatron's cause like Kolkular, Arken, Lef, Blaster City, and Slaughter City. Those that do not bend the knee find themselves devastated by the swelling ranks of the Decepticon armies.
Many Titans are killed during the Great War's opening salvo: destroyed in pre-emptive strikes by both sides to prevent their strength being utilized by their respective enemies, making them among the war's earliest casualties. This results in the destruction of all known Titans on Cybertron.
Approx. 8.9 million stellar cycles ago
The final generation of Cybertronians created by the AllSpark suddenly emerge from the Well of All Sparks in an unusual burst of activity, most of whom join the ranks of the Autobots, after which the Well falls largely silent. Only a handful of new sparks will emerge in the eons between this mass emergence and the loss of the AllSpark. Among the final generation of Transformers who join the Autobots is a young scout from Iacon under the mentorship of Goldbug designated B-127, who later goes by the name Bumblebee.
Following his forging, Bumblebee enrolls in the Autobot Academy and, with the help of his fellow cadets including energon farmer Bulkhead, makes a name for himself as he uncovers a Decepticon spy named Wheel Rampager in their midst. This leads to him and his friends gain the attention of Orion Pax, who allows them to join his personal military squadron, the Autobot 84th Battle Squadron (codenamed "Team Pax").
Peptex, Carpessa, and Triax fall to the Decepticons, securing their control of all major population centers south of the Sonic Canyons in the southwestern quadrant.
The Battle of the Yuss Straits: The first major battle of the Great War occurs when a Decepticon attack battalion led by Megatron and Gelgastorm themselves attack the Maxilla, seven inter-connected, heavily-armed military fortresses-Fort Scyk, Fort Zreb, Fort Xern, Fort Wenx, Fort Briv, Fort Myvh, and Fort Qalt-near the minor city-state of Yuss, in the hopes of gaining control of the Yuss Naval Batteries, which will allow them an easy advance into Autobot territory. However, they have some trouble getting through the base's defensive barriers. Thanks to an aerial bombing run led by Starscream that destroys the barriers, the Decepticons easily storm in and take control of all seven forts, absolutely annihilating the Autobot garrison stationed there. General Orion Pax didn't participate in the battle as he was busy organizing his existing forces and converting neutral bots. He would learn from his old friend Dion after the Maxilla's capture that he would have to learn to not mourn every soldier.
The Siege of Hydrax: Both sides fight control for the Hydrax Plateau as it holds the planet's primary spaceport, making it a key importance in the war effort as each faction gives it their all. Magnum participates in the battle, his Elite Guard forces holding back Decepticon advances from the east, while Orion Pax held off the southern advance in his first true battle. During this, Orion takes his first Decepticon kill in the Great War: a former manual worker named Drixco. Despite the Autobots seemingly having the upper hand in the battle's initial stages, they have limited support as Hydrax is surrounded by the hazardous Sea of Rust with storms of plasma bolts and metallic storms devastating their reinforcements. Eventually, they are forced to retreat and ultimately, the Decepticons won.
The Software Wars: The Decepticons make several attempts to infiltrate Polyhex, attempting to gain control over the datanet network control hub, but they're repeatedly repelled by the Autobot Defense Forces and the militia forces of the city's local governor, General Straxus of the Cybertronian Defense Forces.
Approx. 8.8 million stellar cycles ago
Altihex sides with the Autobots against its fellow ex-Destron States Kaon, Tarn, and Vos, allowing the Autobots to gain control of the supply lines between Iacon, Kalis, and the Sonic Canyons.
Disobeying the orders of the Decepticon High Council and Megatron himself, the insane Decepticon warlord Megadeath triggers a series of neutron bombs in Stanix to cleanse the city and its satellite states of Autobot sympathizers and Neutralists, turning the entire region into the depopulated and storm-ravaged Acid Wastes and dies in the process.
In response to Megadeath's actions, Megatron constitutes a squad of Decepticon assassins led by Damus, now going by the name Tarn, to enforce loyalty among his generals and troops and to hunt down rebels, rogues and turncoats on his behalf. The rest of the squad's membership consists of Crucible (Helex), Amp (Kaon), Scissorsaw (Tesarus), and Forestock (Vos), taking their names from the First Five Cities to be annexed under the Decepticon banner. He names the death-squad, the Decepticon Justice Division (or DJD for short).
Approx. 8.7 million stellar cycles ago
The neutral city-state of Arcanex is destroyed after being caught up in the war. When the Autobots attempt to convince the polity leaders of Arcanex to side with Sentinel Prime's forces, the Decepticons retaliate and in the resulting conflict the plateau atop which the city stands in the Great Abyss is bombarded so heavily that it collapses into the abyss, killing almost the entire population of Arcanex.
Under Megatron's and Gelgastorm's orders, Soundwave succeeds in infiltrating the planetary datanets and brings them crashing down, destroying planet-wide communications and hampering the Autobot war effort. For many Cybertronians, this day becomes known as the Day Silence Fell as for the first time in many of their lives the buzz of information that had been a constant presence on their internal com systems for millions of years goes quiet.
Approx. 8.6 million stellar cycles ago
The Decepticons assault the major northern city-state of Polyhex with inside help from the treacherous General Straxus. Sentinel Prime leads an elite strikeforce of Autobots to attempt to prevent them securing the crucial city-state, but is forced to retreat after being defeated in one-on-one battle against Megatron himself. Sentinel was forever shaken by the carnage in Polyhex as he firsthand witnessed the deaths of countless civilians who wanted no part in the war.
In return for his assistance during Polyhex's annexation, Straxus is given a high-ranking position in the Decepticon High Council by Megatron himself. He is given the title of Lord High Governor of Polyhex, assuming control over both the city and Darkmount, old fortress of the ancient warlord Galvatron, quickly establishing himself as a military force to be reckoned with as he dumps all of his Autobot and Neutralist prisoners into the fortress's smelting pool.
Approx. 8.5 million stellar cycles ago
With the assistance of Alpha Trion, the Autobot Science Guild led by Wheeljack and Perceptor are able to unlock the secrets of the Enigma of Combination, finally allowing them to create their own combiners. The first Autobots to have their combiner genes unlocked by the Enigma are the Aerialbots, a group of newly-constructed Autobots with flight-capable alt-modes. Consisting of Silverbolt, Air Raid, Fireflight, Skydive, Slingshot, Alpha Bravo, Powerglide, Barrel Roll, and Breakaway, the Aerialbots combine to form the mighty warrior Superion.
The Siege of Kaon: Tired of all of these senseless defeats and pyrrhic victories, Sentinel Prime plots with Orion Pax to launch an attack on Kaon in a brazen attempt to assassinate the members of the Decepticon High Council, Megatron and Gelgastorm included, and bring the war to a swift end. The Autobot strike team that participated in the assault consisted of Orion Pax, Ariel, Dion, Sentinel Major, Jazz, Ironhide, Chromia, Goldbug, Hound, Overload, Sparkfire, and Warpath. At first, Orion's team seemed to gained the upper hand, but they're quickly overwhelmed by endless hordes of Decepticons and Eradicons. Megatron and Gelgastorm have the Autobot strike team captured for public execution, but they're rescued by the Aerialbots in the last minute.
Despite their failures to eliminate the Decepticon High Council, Sentinel Prime is impressed by the Aerialbots' valor and abilities in battle. He then commissions Project Aerialbot, which sees several ground-based Autobots to be upgraded with aerial alt-modes in order to counter the Decepticons' air dominance.
Approx. 8.4 million stellar cycles ago
The Battle of Kalis: The Autobots finally gain their first major victory in the Great War, which was all the more a relief, as the city's subsurface fusion reactor would power the city throughout the Decepticon siege. This was due in part to the Aerialbots' assistance in their combined form of Superion, which allowed them to defeat Bruticus Maximus.
The Fall of Crystal City: When Crystal City refused to swear their allegiance to the Decepticons, Megatron sends the Constructicons in their combined form of Devastator to smash into the city and destroy every trace of its once dazzling beauty. The Autobots are unable to send aid as they focus on the protection of Kalis which was ongoing at this time. The first city built on Cybertron, the original planetary capital, and the former home of the original Thirteen Primes is almost immediately destroyed. Alpha Trion laments the loss of his old home from afar, though he also calls its destruction the most beautiful thing he has ever seen as the entire city collapses in a rainbow of lights. Many Neutralists, including a large majority of Omega Sentinels, are destroyed during the devastation. A handful of civilians and scientists are able to escape the carnage through the city's underground tunnel system.
Horrified at what his comrades have done to their former home, one of the Constructicons named Road Hauler defects to the Autobots as a renowned engineer in their ranks. His place in the Constructions is then taken by a newly-constructed Decepticon named Buckethead.
Following the destruction of Crystal City, the surviving Omega Sentinels led by Omega Supreme firmly declare themselves neutral as they quietly retreat into seclusion at the remote Grav-Haraan glacier in the planet's south pole.
In response to the Omega Sentinels' neutrality, Sentinel Prime commissions his own unit of loyal Omega Sentinel drones called Omega Destructors to stamp out any and all threats to the Autobot city-states. However, they are used sparingly due to them requiring large amounts of energy to function, which was already an issue since energon was in short supply around this time.