Chapter Four: Unnerving Dreams
She felt hazy and uncentred as she watched the scene play out before her.
It had been almost a month since Zelda had been within what she termed her dreamscape—visions of places she had never seen, places that defied every rule of existence as she understood it. She saw such beautiful things but also horrendous death and destruction too.
Yet, nothing quite like this.
Zelda pondered the sheer absurdity of seeing a sizeable robotic cat. The otherworldly panther lacked nothing in form; there were no shadows to mask its frame, which so often made up the Cybertronians that plagued her normal dreamscape.
The panther—Ravage, some deep innate part of her mind supplied, which was odd as often designations eluded her—was a sleek being of twelve feet from nose to tail tip, every inch of her form serving a deadly purpose from the dagger-like teeth and talons for claws to the curve of her plating to allow for speed unlike anything Zelda had seen.
She watched with poorly contained awe as the panther coiled her body and leapt the ten-foot high fence without an inch of effort.
Zelda quickly realised, as her ghostly presence moved without her input to follow Ravage, that she was linked with this deadly panther. Had she been there in person, Zelda knew intimately the fear she would feel, yet none of that was present, merely awe.
"What are you here for?" she asked the air, her voice soft in growing confusion. Zelda recognised this not as Cybertron but Earth. A dawning realisation came just as quickly.
This wasn't a dream.
This was happening right now.
Panic replaced her awe. This had never happened before. Zelda had never seen anything at present before.
Ravage moved with purpose, akin to a choreographed dancer. She ran across the field towards the man-made bunker. Upon reaching a ventilation pipe, she drew to a stop and swiped the topper off where it rolled helplessly across the sand.
Zelda could only watch in growing horror as Ravage elevated herself above the vent and opened a compartment on her chassis. Something on a wire dropped into the vent. Suddenly, for several stomach-churning moments, Zelda plumped beneath the earth, glimpsing what lay below—bombs, warheads and more weapons of mass destruction than she could ever begin to comprehend.
Finally, on sublevel two, Zelda stared at the object on the edge of the wire. A—cassette tape?
No, Zelda watched as the tape unfolded and expanded into a minicon. His armour was deep blueish purple and silver. His name came to her: Rumble.
But what hit Zelda next was the deep agony that Rumble was in. Zelda can't stop the jolt of shared pain, reaching out to understand why.
He was a twin.
Frenzy's twin.
For a beat, Zelda saw visions of the form Frenzy once held before coming to Earth and replacing it with his compressed form. Suddenly, it made much more sense—the pain, the twitchiness. Had Rumble not been bonded to others, the loss of Frenzy would have offlined him.
But Zelda wasn't here to sympathise with Decepticons. She watched as Rumble approached the glass cylinder and, for a dumbfounding moment, couldn't comprehend what she was seeing.
Then it hit her at once.
"Fuck!"
Instincts dedicated her fruitless attempt at grabbing Rumble to stop him as he skilfully sliced the glass. But incorporeal as she was, Zelda could do nought as Rumble reached in, not bothering with avoiding the sensors and plucked the AllSpark shard from its stand with a pleased grin.
The alarm began blaring and red lights flashed.
Zelda swiped her hand as if to snatch the shard from him, but all she felt was a trickle of ancient power along her senses—an awareness of the rudimentary link she harboured with the lone shard.
Rumble shuddered, and Zelda froze, hand mid-attempt at grabbing again. She watched as he clutched the shard closely. "Boss? Shard acquired."
"=Understood,=" a monotone but rumbling deep voice responded. Zelda knew that she would not be hearing that voice under normal circumstances. "=Phase One complete. Rumble and Ravage: return to base.="
Zelda floated uselessly as Rumble attached himself back to the wire, collapsing into his cassette form for Ravage to bring him up.
The alarm continued to blare in her ears for a moment longer, but they soon faded as she was drawn back up to the surface and dragged along as Ravage began her escape. Zelda averted her gaze from the panther, desperately ignoring the intense desire to form a connection boiling deep inside.
She was left with a swelling sense of dread as she watched the duo escape and can't help but wonder: if phase one was complete, what was phase two?
Fuck, she needed to speak with Optimus.
In such a public setting, academia was something Zelda still wasn't sure what to make of yet. Having been privately tutored all her life because she and the rest of the D.A.A couldn't exactly go to regular schools, Zelda had never known what an elementary or high school was like.
It was something of an acquired taste—something Zelda was determined to get used to because she was here for a reason. Zelda can't recall the last time she had been surrounded by so many civilians like this for such a long period of time. A mission maybe? Probably the New Zealand, Auckland MECH mission, and that spanned five months in o'five. So, awhile.
Coming up for a month and two weeks this Saturday, Zelda still wasn't sure what to make of it.
There were lots on her mind.
Leo was under the impression that college was the best thing to happen to him but primarily because of the women. He had already managed to go through two girls, but Zelda knew it was only because he promised to do their assignments in exchange, which no comment from Zelda, but…
Leo could do better. Seriously. Zelda would be the first to admit that sex meant very little to her—she'd only had it once, and even then, despite it being with Adan, they were mostly curious about it rather than eager and Zelda found she cared little for it—but Zelda knew the girls were taking advantage of Leo.
This new one, the third, had been around for close to a week now. Whether she was stringing him along or not, Zelda had no idea, but for Leo's sake, she hoped not. Zelda had no desire to meet this new girl. Alicia? Alice?
But besides Leo's turbulent love life, Leo and his posse often stayed in the rooms, and so Zelda found her peace and quiet in the library. It was a nice place to study and soothe her cluster headaches when they decided to make themselves known.
Thankfully, she hadn't had any attacks since the Witwicky household, and Zelda had never been more thankful. If the headaches were a trade-off, then so be it. Zelda would nurse some migraines so long as she wasn't freaking the fuck out in places civilians could find her.
Kneading her temple, Zelda glanced at her watch and noted she had ten or so minutes until Bumblebee arrived to pick her up for a meeting with Optimus. The Autobots had a mission on this side of the states, and Optimus wanted to use the chance to speak with her about something. He had been vague, and Zelda could already guess it had to do with the stolen AllSpark shard.
The dream had haunted her for a week straight now, and all Zelda felt was a sense of dawning dread, especially since she was still dreaming of nonsensical present-day things, which seemed to take the place of the vicious flashing of symbols.
Her fingers itched to call Mikaela and ask about the other shard Zelda had found. It was dead, empty and useless. If the Decepticons did, Primus forbid, get their servos on it, then it would just be a piece of scrap which was a relief but meant Mikaela would be in harm's way.
With a sigh, Zelda made a note to call Mikaela after she met with Optimus. She didn't like knowing Mikaela was valuable like that. If something happened…
Packing her bag, Zelda stood and made her exit from the library, nodding to the librarian in passing.
It was easy to spot Bumblebee, and Zelda smiled when she saw his holoform in the driver's seat, grinning excitedly.
Bumblebee made it seem like they hadn't seen each other in weeks when Zelda literally saw him two days ago for a night drive. She felt guilty knowing he wasn't getting much in the way of personal interactions besides over the comms with the bots because he was acting as her Guardian.
Slipping into the passenger seat, Zelda offered a warm smile. "Hi, sweetpea."
"Zelda." Bumblebee reached over for a hug. Who is Zelda to deny her brother?
With a kiss to his temple, Zelda drew back. "Ready when you are, Bee."
He laughed and drove off.
Bumblebee doesn't take her far, only half an hour out to an old graveyard.
Pulling herself from Bumblebee's interior, Zelda climbed the embankment towards Optimus, who knelt upon her approach.
"Hey, boss-bot," she greeted warmly. "Not that I don't want to see you, but what's with the sudden meeting? Is it something that couldn't be done over the phone?"
Optimus cycled his vents. "No, not securely. Theodore Galloway has proven he is ill-fitted for the duties of his position. There is much animosity between him and us, and he is doing all that he can to pry a rift. We believe he is at fault for the Decepticons learning the location of the shard via his first introduction with General Morshower where he revealed both the shard and Megatron's location."
"Fuck," she hissed, pressing the heels of her palms into her eyes in frustration. Zelda knew immediately where Optimus was taking this and wanted to scream in frustration. "Optimus—"
"He is pulling funding out of NEST and has already disbanded many of the human teams." His words lacked inflexion, but Zelda could feel the irritation, maybe even distaste—she was hesitant to call it hate because this was Optimus—through their shared bond. "He believes there is no imminent danger to mankind, despite the influx of Decepticon activity as of late and the now stolen shard."
Zelda slumped against his leg, fingers finding crevices to clutch. They both knew she knew what Optimus was asking.
This course was important for her future, but what good would it be if Galloway got his way of shutting down N.E.S.T? Fuck. Okay. The Autobots are more important.
"Give me—give me a week," she breathed.
Optimus curled his servo around her, secure and reassuring.
"I know you wish to remain—"
"But this is important, and my wants aren't paramount if your lives are in danger." Zelda lifted her head, instinctively leaning her weight onto Optimus's servo, where he gently scooped her up just like he had thousands of times before.
"Your desires are important, dear one," Optimus rumbled, voice and spark both stressing his words, and Zelda chuckled a tad bit wetly. These bastards knew how to pry Zelda's barriers she had skilfully erected down like it was nothing. After so long of promising never to get attached, to never get emotionally involved, it was thrown out the window the moment Zelda had met them.
"But not when their significance pales in comparison to yours," Zelda countered, her eyes blazing as she stood her ground. She refused to let Optimus prevail in this verbal duel. Zelda projected the weight of her conviction to ensure Optimus truly knew the extent of her resolve.
Optimus, ever the stoic leader, paused for a moment, considering her words. He cycled his vents with a soft hiss, the sound a mechanical sigh that reflected both recognition and respect. He lowered his chin slightly, a subtle gesture that conveyed his acknowledgement.
"I'll get my things together, and message me a date. I've gotta deal with administration." Zelda continued, sliding off Optimus's servo when he lowered it enough. Her thoughts were already running through everything she needed to do and prepare for.
"I am sorry, Zelda," he rumbled.
It was Zelda's turn to sigh as she gave him a pointed glance. "Seriously, Optimus."
As Zelda walked toward Bumblebee, a wave of emotions washed over her. The sun was beginning to set, casting a warm glow over the graveyard as she approached the sleek, yellow Autobot. With a mechanical whir, Bumblebee opened the passenger door, inviting her inside. Zelda hesitated for a moment, turning back to take one last look at Optimus behind her.
Optimus Prime continued to kneel among the tombstones, his towering figure shrouded in the fading light. He remained silent, the weight of the moment heavy on his shoulders. Inside, a storm of thoughts churned within him as he reflected on the loss—not just of Zelda's education, which she had eagerly anticipated, but of her autonomy, her dreams, and the human future that seemed to slip further away with each passing day.
As Bumblebee drove off, the sound of his engine fading into the distance, Optimus could only gaze after them, a sense of sorrow enveloping him. The graveyard, with its silent stones, echoed his thoughts, reminding him that sometimes dreams were buried far too early.
Ravage was counting down the nano-kliks until they arrived at their desired location. Silent and ever watchful of the organics that worked upon this freight carrier, Ravage also made sure to watch the riffraff Constructicons to make sure they didn't act out.
Why her pride-master deemed these Decepticons worthy of accompanying Ravage is beyond her, but she says nought, for pride-master knows best.
He chose these combiners for a reason, whatever it may be, she thought loftily, wanting to get Lord Megatron's revival over with already so that she may return to her pride. Or what was left after so long of fighting. After losing Buzzsaw and Ratbat, losing Frenzy…
Rumble was barely holding on after losing his spark-twin.
Ravage hoped pride-master managed to locate Frenzy's frame so that they may bring him back too. Lord Megatron would never deny pride-master that request, not after so long as friends. Not after all that pride-master had done for Lord Megatron.
The feline can't help but let her thoughts wander—would this shard of the old AllSpark casing retain enough power after Lord Megatron's revival, or would they need to acquire the organic named Zelda Larsson, new host to their beloved AllSpark?
Her spark churns in its casing. Ravage wished to pace with her straying thoughts.
Focus, Ravage reminded herself, you can worry about such later.
With a ping from pride-master, Ravage finally transformed, shaking off the stiffness in her joints as she allowed her pride-master's voice to echo from her speakers. "Decepticons, disembark."
In the ambience of the freight carrier, the noise of once innocently parked construction vehicles transforming went unnoticed by the organics that manned the vessel.
Ravage was last to leap over the ship's edge, diving into the depths below.
The Mariana Trench, the deepest place on this planet, was just over eleven thousand meters. The deepest part of the trench, the Challenger Deep, was beyond human capabilities. They wouldn't dare even to attempt such, not when it descended to dangerous pressure, staggering depths where there was no sound nor light, only darkness so encompassing it would drive even the sanest to insanity.
And they descended into that inky void in search of their Lord.
Ravage prowled along the sea floor towards the immobile frame coated in organic matter and life. A single glance at the Constructicons prompted them to use their beams, lighting up the area once scouting had been completed.
Ejecting Scalpel from her frame, the tiny spider-like Cybertronian scuttled across Megatron's frame. He examined, crawling inside their leader's prone body to understand the damage done.
Finally, he reappeared and commanded cruelly: "Need parts! Kill the little one!"
The three larger Constructicons turned on their smallest comrade and ripped him apart, the smaller's cries of agony going unheard by all except those present.
Ravage turned her nose up at such disloyalty. Honestly, Decepticons these stellar cycles!
Scalpel turned to Ravage. "The shard! Give me the shard!"
Despite snorting at such a demanding tone, Ravage ejected the shard she had been asked to guard. Scalpel snatched it up, dancing merrily towards the gaping hole in their Lord's chassis.
The doctor crooned at the shard, caressing it gently in reverent worship. "You will help us, won't you, little one?"
Though he spoke to the shard, all present knew it was not what those words were aimed at. The shard was merely a vessel through which to conduct the AllSpark, drawing power from Its new host, the Autobots' precious human.
Scalpel jammed the AllSpark into the depths of Megatron's chest, using his rudimentary connection with the AllSpark—something all Cybertronians had—to encourage the power to unleash and resurrect the frame of their deceased leader.
It sparked, an ethereal blue erupting from Megatron's chassis and lighting up the encompassing darkness in a way it had never seen before and never would again. A clawed servo twitched, clenched, and Megatron lurched to life, gaping wound sealing itself shut, plates adjusting and repairing and blazing bloody red optics onlined once more.
Processor clear in ways Megatron hadn't felt in several earthen millenniums, his last moments before deactivation flashed through him in an astrosecond.
He grinned.
It ripped and pulled violently through her, dragging Zelda from her fitful sleep. It was like someone had shoved their hand inside her chest and held her heart in hand, squeezing slowly as she convulsed silently, leaving her roommate mere feet away undisturbed.
A deep, all-knowing part of her, as much as she didn't wish it to be true, knew what had just taken place and feared so heavily that she couldn't do anything but pass out in pain, his designation on the tip of her tongue but goes unspoken.
Megatron.