a heros final moments. the death of a legend
a hero's final moments
When he finally returned to the launcher room, the place was in ruins and the launcher wrecked. But someone had moved Wheeljack and Windcharger to the far side of the room and their bodies had escaped any further damage. Sideswipe knelt by Red Alert's torn and broken body, pain finally getting the better of him. He touched the fallen chief of security's shattered chest plate as if to confirm that this had really happened and he wasn't just dreaming all of it up. "I'm sorry Red Alert", he said softly. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you and the others better. I'm sorry I failed. I hope somehow you will be able to forgive me". Then for the first time in millions of years, Sideswipe bowed his head and wept, not heeding the sounds of battle outside, The arriving shuttle had been the excalibur. Once it had landed Prime had gone off to battle Megatron for the final time, Sunstreaker transformed and sped off in search of his twin. He could almost hear Sideswipe screaming inside his head. Prime could very well be dying right now. It didn't matter. Nothing else did. Autobots lay everywhere, strewn amidst the rubble, dead and dying, injured and in need of assistance, some beyond repair. The air lurching through his ventilation system quickened as his optics scanned the destruction for a familiar flash of red, a white shoulder cannon, a face so similar to his own. He searched for his twin brother, fuel pump constricting painfully in his chest. "Sideswipe!" he finally cried, finding his voice as he stumbled, finding his footing only after a rock gauged a deep dent in his shinguard. He paid it no mind. "Sideswipe! Bro! Answer me!"
He knew what he was afraid of. He was afraid that among the dead and dying would be his twin brother. It was a thought Sunstreaker couldn't bear to allow to remain, but he couldn't quite push it out of his processor. He was afraid of losing Sideswipe... afraid of losing his only reason for staying alive. finally he found who he was looking for. Instantly, Sunstreaker felt his fuel pump constrict tightly again. He remembered how angry he had been when Prime had given orders for Sideswipe to stay on Earth while Sunstreaker went to Moonbase 1 with the more seasoned soldiers, there to train the new recruits. Sideswipe's job, of course, was to help the newcomers adjust to Earth life... but it had deeply stricken the brothers to be separated for any length of time. Neither of them had any real friends among the Autobots and being apart just meant longer stretches of loneliness even when they did get to communicate. after driving around half of Autobot City, heedless of the battles around him, and stopping only to take out any Decepticons who were stupid enough to get in his way, Sunstreaker found his brother in the ruins of the launcher room, kneeling beside the bodies of Wheeljack and Windcharger - and crying. One of his doors and a tire had all but been ripped off, his chestplate was mangled and torn. The only sign of life from him was the rapid flow of air from his intakes, ventilating and cooling his systems. "Sideswipe ?" Sunstreaker ran to him, dropped to his knees beside him, put his arms around him and hugged him tight. "Sideswipe ?" Panicked, Sunstreaker carefully lifted his brother's unconscious form in his arms, giving him a gentle shake.
After a minute or two, Sideswipe registered that there was someone else in the room with him - someone who wasn't dead. He raised his head, optics filled with tears he had yet to shed, and looked up into a golden face. Vision blurred by optic fluid, he wondered for a moment if this was what the humans called an angel. Then the tears spilled over and he recognized the face of his brother. "streak, sunstreeker ?" he asked, a bit fearfully, as if the sound of his voice would scare the vision away. Sideswipe twitched at the sound of his brother's voice, his optics flickering to life. He stared at Sunstreaker in disbelief for a moment before a slow smile appeared on his face and his voice came, crackling and soft, as if he was having trouble activating his vocalizer at first. "S--Streaker... bro... you're back..." "Yeah its me swipe. I'm here now, I'm not leaving you. Who did this?" "Triple-changers. Too late. I... I tried to go after them. Got away. Couldn't catch them". Sideswipe began to cry harder and Sunstreaker rocked him gently in his arms. "I... I failed. Wheeljack and Windcharger. I was supposed to protect them. I failed bro... I failed!" "No you didn't Sideswipe", Sunstreaker assured him. "Its not your fault. It was a surprise attack. You didn't know. Nobody knew. Its not your fault". Sideswipe was about to speak when Sunstreaker held him up and looked him right in the optics. "Its not your fault Sideswipe". The red mech rested his head on his brother's shoulder. "Okay". "Good. Now shut down. Save your energy. I've got to get you to a medic". "Don't let them take you away again Sunny". "Nobody's taking me away Sides. I'm not leaving you". , Then the yellow mech lifted his brother in his arms and carried him out. "Everything's going to be alright. I'm here bro". "Oh Primus! streaker!" Sideswipe clung to his brother as a fresh batch of tears broke free. Sunstreaker held him closer, careful not to aggravate his injuries. I'm right here, bro, don't worry... I'm back." Sunstreaker's optics narrowed. Now more than ever he hated this war. When things like this happened, his brother hurt... and when his brother hurt, he wanted to hurt the ones that did it, but this time, the ones that did it weren't there and he had to fume in silence, cradling his brother's broken body as gently as he could. "How bad are you hurt?" Slowly, Sideswipe shook his head. "Nothin' serious... I'll live..." The yellow warrior frowned deeply, his optics scanning his brother's injuries. He was probably right, but that didn't change the fact that he hadn't been there to protect him... like he should have been.
"Sideswipe... you are to stay here and help Hot Rod, Springer, and Arcee get accustomed to their new stations. Sunstreaker, you're coming to the moon base with Ironhide, Prowl, Ratchet, and myself." Sunstreaker looked as if he'd just swallowed his vocalizer. "What?! Prime, you can't be serious! Sideswipe and I--..." Prime sighed slightly, interrupting with, "Will function fine apart. It won't be for long... you have my word. We simply need someone with melee combat training to handle some of the new recruits on the moon base. Your experience is more extensive than Sideswipe's." The twins looked at each other with very apprehensive expressions for a moment. Finally, Sideswipe broke the gaze with a forced grin, reaching out one hand, which his brother took without hesitation. "Hey... behave yourself up there, 'Streaker, or I'll have to come up there and kick your skidplate all across the moonbase... got it?" Sunstreaker blinked, then mirrored his brother's smile, giving his twin's hand a tight squeeze. "Likewise, bro. Stay safe, a'ight?" After a moment, Sunstreaker sighed and pulled on his brother's hand, drawing the other close to catch him around the neck with one arm. Resting their foreheads together for a moment, he gave a little bit of a smile when Sideswipe regarded him curiously. "Bro...?" "--If you die, Sideswipe, I will find a way to kick your ass... okay?--" Sunstreaker growled, the language he used one only the twins understood. "--Don't get yourself killed... Don't worry, bro,--" Sideswipe assured, not even trying to pull away from his other half's grip. "--Together to the end... right?" Finally, Sunstreaker gave a weary smile, clapping his brother once gently on the back before releasing him and drawing back his hand. The twins stared for a moment longer before Sunstreaker turned his back at last, heading towards the quarters they shared to get some of his best weapons from storage. The last time they saw one another was on the bridge as Sunstreaker boarded the ship bound for Cybertron. One last look, and the twins were separated. But they were sure they wouldn't be parted for long... They were sure...
Sunstreaker's mouth drew into a thin line as he thought back on that occasion, standing with his brother held carefully in his arms. He was barely managing to keep from shaking with rage, angry at what had happened, Sideswipe finally went into stasis lock. Slowly and purposefully, he started making his way back to the base Flshbck He had seen the shuttle from Cybertron arrive just as dawn broke, and Springer saw fresh determination in the faces of his comrades as the shuttle landed. Optimus was on that shuttle, and everything would be alright now; the greatest leader the Autobots had ever known was in their midst, fighting on their side, and every sapphire optic in the city gleamed with righteous rage as they beat Megatron's army back from their Earth side home. Then Springer had been more or less occupied with Skywarp, "DIE, AUTOBOT SCRAP!" Skywarp loosed a barrage of laser blasts at his opponent, a young neon-green triple changer wearing a mindless grin. Though a horrific battle was raging on all sides around them, Skywarp felt a chill up his central neural pathway at the mirthless, crazed expression on Springer's face as the Autobot tossed away his spent laser pistol, but he charged ahead anyway. "You first," Springer snarled in his opponent's face, and suddenly the big Decepticon realized that a hot, searing pain was stinging his midsection. Ruby optics inches from sapphire blue ones, the two swayed for a moment more, Skywarp's life-energon spilling over Springer's hand, which held the hilt of his sabre against Skywarp's gut. "Eat slag, Decepticreep." He then jerked the blade out of Skywarp, and energon dripped from the polished steel sabre to collect in a small puddle as the Autobot reset his battle stance. Disbelief mixing with the pain on his face, Skywarp put a hand to his wound, fingers coming away slick with the viscous, sparkling fluid that sustained his life. "Uhhhnnnhhh," he moaned softly, falling to his knees after what seemed like an eternity hanging in mid-air. Springer pushed him flat on his face with a boot between his wings, cleaning his gleaming blade on the side of Skywarp's helmet before sheathing it and running towards the main conflict raging through Autobot City. "Mm--must---f-find---Mm-Megatron," Skywarp stammered to himself, clutching his belly wound with one hand and somehow fighting his way to his feet. Springer's blow was the final sroke, and Skywarp's battered body could take no more. "'Cracker," he tried to yell to his flight partner, but the sound only came out as a feeble rasp, and he knew that no matter what, within a few cycles, he would be dead. He ran blindly toward the City after Springer, hoping to find his comrades--to die among his fellow Decepticons would be better than out here, like some turbo-rat--Springer's grin still before his bleary optics. and as the triple-changer sped toward Autobot City, he noticed that the laser tracers had stopped arcing over the scarred towers of Metroplex.
"What's the matter lad", asked Kup as he came up an adjacent stairwell "Are you trying to sca-Optimus!" Kup quickly went to the side of the Autobot leader. He took out a small device from a compartment in his chest. "This is not good at all. "Optimus can you hear me?" Optimus opened his eyes and responded, "Kup, I am very weak and my vision is blurred. he spoke his voice barely a horse rasp of what it once was. "Has Megatron been stopped?" "Yes, Prime," answered Hot Rod. The Decepticons retreated on Astrotrain." "How many Autobot casulities?" "18", replied Kup as he bowed his head. "Including Wheeljack, Ratchet, Ironhide, Prowl, Brawn, and Windcharger." "I am sorry, Optimus". Kup then stood up and called Ultra Magnus. "Magnus, he screamed into the communicator. We need you." Over the comm, Ultra Magnus replied, "I was about to search for survivors with Blaster. What's wrong?" "Optimus has been damaged pretty badly we need you to help us move him into the infirmary." "Prime? I'm on my way, Ultra Magnus shouted into the radio!" Five minutes passed before Ultra Magnus arrived. With the help of Kup and Hot Rod, Prime was placed on Magnus's trailer and was immediately transported to the infirmary. There was a scramble of activity on the plaza, the rescue crews taking away the dead, dying and wounded to emergency repair stations, and Springer was overjoyed to see Astrotrain taking off into the sun as he transformed at the edge of the square. "Yeah, alright, we did it!" he exclaimed, but with a sudden start, he realized no one else was enthused at all. In fact, now that he looked closer, everyone's face was haunted, as if they had just seen a ghost. "Hey, 'Magnus!" he grinned, clapping the lieutenant commander on the shoulder as he ran past at full speed like a bull on the charge. "Looks like we got 'em good this time, huh?" 'Magnus stopped and looked at Springer like he was some creature from Venus with five heads, then shook his own head and hurried past. "No time....." he murmured to himself, going down the road and somehow managed to transform in midstep to vehicle mode which for a transformer of his considerable size, weight, and vehicle mode was a feat nothing short of incredible to say the least as he touched down on all wheels and continued to charge ahead engine on the verge of redlining. Springer frowned, wondering what could be wrong. _Here comes Arcee, she'll tell me._he thought to himself "What's going on?" he asked her, blocking her way when she would have followed 'Magnus. "Is someone injured?" Wordlessly, Arcee nodded, trying to push past Springer, but he caught her wrists. "Prime," she whispered, then choked and shoved her way around her bewildered friend. "Prime?" HotRod was coming down the hall next, nearly at a full run. The young red racer almost knocked Springer over as he flew past, but Springer caught him. "What's wrong with Prime?" he demanded, but HotRod was in no mood to answer questions. "I---can't. Please, Springer, let me go." "Just tell me what the--" "I said, let me go!" HotRod yelled at his friend as he wrenched his way out of Springer's strong grip, stumbling down the hall and into the door of the Repair Bay as the others had, leaving his best friend scared and confused in his wake.
Last to make the trek up the hall was old Kup, the aged Autobot walking like a transformer over-energized--banging into walls, knees and shoulders sagging, but not really seeming to care. When the ancient robot saw Springer, he nearly collapsed into the young one's arms, and Springer began to be afraid. If whatever had happend to Prime was bad enough to bring the toughest soldier he knew to tears, he knew it had to be very, very bad. "Kup, just talk to me. How bad is he hurt?" Kup raised a tear-slick face to Springer, the trails of lubricant triggered by great emotion contrasting with the way he tried to keep the sobs in check. "It happened so fast," Kup murmured, clinging to his young friend. "It just happened so fast....Megatron...." Springer felt his hand tighten around the hilt of his sabre, his energon running cold. "Megatron....I'll kill that bastard myself, once and for all." The steel of the sword rang a bright SHHCHING! as he drew it from its scabbard, but Kup wrenched the blade out of his surprised hands and threw it down the hall. It landed with a metallic CLANG! and left a scratch in the wall where the tip came to rest, and Springer looked at Kup with wide-eyed shock. "Kup, what in Vector Sigma is wrong with you? What did you do that for?" "Just shut up and listen, okay?" Kup couldn't believe he just told one of his closest friends to shut up, but it had the desired effect as Springer opened his mouth, then shut it again. "Megatron's dead. Prime killed him. It's over." Then he shook his head, the tears threatening to start all over again. "But at what a cost...Primus take my spark right now, if I ever once thought that it would actually end this way..." Kup trailed off, gripping Springer in a tight embrace.
About the moment that Springer had convinced himself that everyone was totally crazy, HotRod appeared from the doorway of Repair Bay, his face so devoid of emotion it frightened Springer. "Kup, Springer, you'd better come in here." The two Autobots in the hallway did as they were bade, Kup reassuming the part of stalwart warrior as they crossed the threshold. Springer watched as the old Autobot busied himself with helping to attach a myriad of sensors to Prime's battered frame, but Springer's breath caught in his chest when he looked at that same scarred, scratched hull. Dents, welts, scratches, burn marks--every blemish known to sentient machines appeared somewhere on Prime, telling in graphic, wordless detail of the battle he and Megatron had fought. However, what made Springer want to gasp in horror was the huge puncture wound in Prime's side, first made by a sword-like metal shard, then widened with a laser blast from a contraband pistol. Circuitry sizzled in the open air, the metal casing warped and twisted beyond repair, Prime's familiar colors burned away to reveal bare, machined metal, and Springer had to quell a sudden, violent wave of nausea. _You are NOT going to be sick!_ he forcefully told himself, flicking his optics off, then back on again after a second or two. Springer's mind was so full of the horror of Prime's injury that he barely noticed Blurr slip silently into Repair Bay among his other friends, the normally hyper robot taking careful, measured steps toward the group. It was then, while Arcee and 'Magnus filled Blurr in on what had happened, . Blurr, at a loss for words, simply stood looking at Prime. Prime caught sight of Springer and motioned him to come closer with a barely perceptible curl of his fingers. Springer felt himself go numb, and he felt as if it were someone else's legs that carried him to Prime's side, but he stood obediently as Prime gathered his strength to speak. "Promise me, young Springer...that you will remember what I said....the first time we met. About Elita...and Chassis." Prime had to concentrate to keep from seeing two neon-green triple changers, but he felt it was important to remind Springer of their conversation. With a small gasp, Springer remembered the day when he and Prime sat and talked briefly about their tragic tales of love and loss, and in some small way, helped each other to heal a little more.
Chassis' name brought back a flood of memories of the beautiful, blue-black armored femme, and a bittersweet echo of the love that they had shared before she was brutally murdered before his eyes. Optimus had wanted Springer,then a new arrival to Autobot City, to know that he was not alone in his misery, and that unspoken bond had stayed between them in the years that followed. The bond was still there, bringing back the nausea as Springer looked down into his commander's waning optics. "I will," he choked out, unable to say anything else. "Lemme go!!" A shrill, young voice split the heavy silence like a blade, and Springer turned in time to see HotRod standing in the doorway, trying to bar Daniel Witwicky from the room. He walked over to where Daniel was straining to find a way past HotRod's forcefield generator, then the boy gave up and just let himself be scooped up into the red racer's powerful arms. "I wanna be with Prime," Daniel said, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Springer, tell HotRod to let me go." Springer shook his head, the human child's tears shaking him to his energy core with sadness. "No, Dano, maybe you should just stay with HotRod and me for right now, okay?" Daniel refused to be comforted, and he squirmed to free himself from Springer's gentle, but escape-proof grip. "NO! Lemme go! Prime's my friend, too!" By this time, Arcee had heard the commotion, and she put a hand on Springer's elbow. "Just let him go, Springer. Prime's always been Daniel's hero. It's alright." Her clear blue optics were filled with sorrow, and Springer's chest plate threatened to burst with tightly packed emotion as Perceptor rushed past them into Repair Bay. Daniel immediately ran up to Prime's bedside with tears in his eyes. Preceptor was preparing a bed for him just as they arrived. "Carefully place him on the bed", Preceptor said as he was adjusting some medical equipment. magnus's trailer suddenly split from the top ramp down and the sides folded out and to the floor as hot rod and kup gently moved prime from the trailer to the examination table. I will begin the examination immediately, said Preceptor as he transformed into his microscope mode. Kup would you please monitor his vitals." Arcee turned to join the small knot of silent Autobots grouped around Prime.
There was a heavy silence in the Repair Bay as the small group of war-weary Autobots gathered around Optimus Prime's battered body. Their beloved leader lay motionless on the cold examining table as Kup monitored Prime's systems on a viewscreen, The scanners emit bleeps and show oscilloscopic patterns. But the sounds and wave patterns are steadily growing weaker and weaker. Kup looked over a diagnostic monitor, grimacing at the faint signs of life. if only rachet were here, he thought to himself as he turned to look at Optimus, who lays on the operating table if ever there were a surgeon that could pull a bot back through death's door it was rachet he always was the best tool or die man on cybertron. Autobot survivors gathered around him in sorrow as Perceptor scanned his leader slowly, then transformed from his microscope form into robot mode and hung his head.but Springer stayed behind near the door, watching as Daniel ran to Prime's side while perceptor finished examining the battered, broken leader. _Daniel's not the only one who's looked up to Prime,_ he thought bitterly, as HotRod slowly walked to where Prime lay motionless under Perceptor's diagnostic gaze. _What's gonna happen to us if Prime dies? Megatron might be dead, but if I know Starscream, he'll waste no time in coming back and grinding us to a pulp. Or if not Starscream, then Soundwave, or any other Deceptigoon who gets a wild hair up their tailpipes._ Thoughts came randomly into the triple-changers reeling processor, and suddenly the room dipped and tilted before his optics. A discordant scree filled his audiosensors, and a stronger wave of nausea tackled him like a linebacker. Springer put his palms flat on the wall in front of him, bowing his head between his outstretched arms to try and clear the dizziness, and an image of Chass choking her life out in Bludgeon's clutches sprang unbidden into his mind. _NO! Not now, not again...Too late to stop it, Springer was swept into memory, a glitch in his databanks triggered by his battlestress and grief playing before his unblinking optics. Again he saw Chass, Bludgeon's fingers ripping into the breaks in her helmet, finding the pressure points and causing her body to cramp so violently, she snapped her own exoskeleton in pieces. Again he saw her, lying discarded like a pile of trash, in so much pain she couldn't speak, her crystalline optics begging Springer to end her suffering. Tears slipped down Springer's cheeks as he remembered how he dragged his own laser pistol to the side of her head, so weak from his own wounds he couldn't even pick it up, and pulled the trigger--once, twice, three times--until the radio bond between them was silent. perceptor finished his examination and he was shaken by what he discovered. The damage that Prime took from the final blasts was even more devastating than what was first thought. Prime's internal power circuits and wiring were completely burned out causeing his energon pump to fluctuate as it tried to relay the lifeblood through back up lines. He also took note that the servo motor's in primes neuron trunk leading in to Prime's legs was shot. But, what really shocked Perceptor was the fact that the link from Prime's spark chamber to his neuro-circuitry was deteriorating. the energon pump circulates a mix of air and energon through out the transformers body. much like the human heart circulates blood and oxygen throught the human body. a living transformer needs oxygen though to combust the ingested energon into fuel much like how a human needs oxygen, food and water to live. in human terminolagy prime had suffered severe trauma to his spinal cord colume and existing nervouse system causing him to be paralysed from the waist down and was slipping into cardiac arrest due to his kidneys having been destroyed inducing blood poisoning. his heart was straining to delivere the vital oxygen but his blood was too toxic to absorb it causing his brain to die from oxygen starvation There was no time for repairs. Perceptor then transformed and spoke the diagnosis that he thought he would never have to say,Perceptor's voice, heavy with emotion, cut through the pain of Chass' memory like Springer's own steel sabre
"I fear the wounds are ...his voice strained and cracking with emotion as he can't finish what he's going to say but presses on,...fatal." he said turning his face away, feeling helpless. When Perceptor spoke those words, it confirmed the rest of the Autobots' worst fear. Optimus Prime was dying. There was nothing any of them could do now, except watch Prime die.. Suddenly, something inside Springer convulsed, and he stumbled from the room, arms wrapped around his midsection. He managed to make it outside before his holding tanks gave up their contents, and he fervently hoped that no one was watching as dry heaves wracked him again and again. Ultra Magnus would wonder why he wasn't present, being one of the top-ranking officers at Autobot City, but hopefully someday he could explain it to 'Magnus. Right now, there was only darkness as Springer blacked out, succumbing to a blessedly numb nothingness as his systems righted themselves again. The last thought he had before the world went blank was of Chass and Prime, looking down on him with compassion. _I love you, Spring,_ he thought he heard a feminine voice say, then the darkness descended The Matrix is pulsing for a new bearer, it knows. An odd phrase comes to mind.thought Optimus "My time...in the light...is short." I feel my vocorder filling with energon. It won't last much longer. But it doesn't matter, because I won't either. As the humans say,What a long, strange trip it's been.' I'm young again. Once more, I stand before Alpha Trion, about to make the biggest decision of my life. His chest compartment stands open, revealing the Matrix of Leadership. "One day, you, too, will pass the power on, until it reaches the Chosen One." "I don't understand. You said I was chosen." The old one hedges a bit. "Yes and no. The Matrix will find the one to light our darkest hour." I see an out. "Then why not give it to him?" "I haven't been able to find the Chosen in thousands of vorn of searching. You are the first to whom the Matrix has reacted." A prophetic gleam comes into his optics. "You must be the next bearer." I am more than a little scared. "But what do I do?" "Keep our people safe. This new war threatens the very existence of Cybertron."
The existence of Cybertron! Now I'm really scared. "Alpha Trion, I can't. I'm no warrior, just a dockworker. I only want to take Arial and get to someplace safe." He grasps my shoulder. An old 'bot shouldn't be this strong. "Listen to me! The Matrix bearer is always called out of our ranks. He also ALWAYS rises to the occasion. Seek out experienced warriors to aid you. Remember the names of Kup and Ironhide. Find them and follow their advice." Within his chest, the Matrix pulses at these words. "I suppose I have no choice." "You would not have been chosen if you were not capable." I open up my new chest plating. It feels strange to have plates of glass there, but then, this whole body is new and strange. "I am ready." He places the Matrix in my chest, and I feel myself grow stronger still, while he seems to weaken. "Lead well ... Optimus Prime. Until all are one." An explosion shakes the lab. "Hurry! Our forces are at the walls. You can join them there." I turn to leave, but am still uncertain. But...you said it spoke to you. How can I lead an army if it won't talk to me?!" "It only speaks when it has something important to say. Find Kup and Ironhide. They'll tell you what to do." The ancient robot practically shoved me out the door. If I hadn't known better, I'd say he was guilty about something.1 When I met up with Ironhide at the wall around Iacon, he didn't know what to do with me. Primes were almost a legend then, and he hadn't heard of one since Sentinel. The Matrix didn't speak to me until after Alpha Trion became one with Vector Sigma, barely ten Earth years ago. Daniel, who had grown up in Prime's shadow and looked up to the heroic Autobot since he was old enough to remember, slipped his small arms around Prime's mammoth one and held on tightly. Daniel's teary eyes widened in fear and grief. "Prime," he said, "you can't die!" the boy sobbed, and Arcee put her hand around Daniel's shoulders in a vain attempt to comfort him.
A shout of anguish breaks my chain of thought...Prime's optics narrowed, Daniel's touch and voice bringing him back from floating in a twilight state filled with memories. Daniel shouldn't be here. He's too young to deal with death. The Matrix speaks. Prime looked at them grouped around him, taking in their familiar forms for what he knew would be the last time, then resigned himself to his final task. The Chosen is here. But who is it? I glance around my bed. Perceptor? He's brave, the bravest scientist I've ever known. But there's just something missing. Blurr is a good soldier, but he's a follower, not a leader. Better to leave him where he's happiest, as courier. Kup was alive when I received the Matrix. If he were the Chosen, Alpha Trion would have known. Arcee? She has enough power of her own. With Aleta and the others gone, she would lead the Femmes, if there were any left. She could be co-leader, if she wanted to. My Aleta. An image came to mind. Of himself, long before the war, a carefree young mechanoid called Orion. Of Elita-1, then named Ariel, graceful and lithe, a seemingly endless spring of happiness. He had been so proud of himself then --Cybertronian females were relatively rare, and to have one for a companion was a good reason to boast. But his initial, selfish feelings soon disappeared, as he discovered that beneath Ariel's jaunty exterior lurked a sharp mind and an empathic soul. Pride turned to surprise, then to awe, and then to respect; she was no longer a mere trophy, but a devoted friend through good times and bad. And his feelings for her were mutual. Each saw reflections of themselves in the other, and out of that came understanding and caring and closeness. It was, of course, the war that finally separated them. The event was Operation Deadbolt, a massive Autobot attack on a secret munitions plant. Nine strike teams were involved, all coordinated by Elita-1 and her squad back at the command center. But the Decepticons struck first with a decapitating blow -- a missile barrage leveled the base as the mission started, and those within were presumed dead. Prime did not learn otherwise until five million years later. In reality, the females were saved by Alpha Trion, the enigmatic Autobot inventor. He rebuilt them, trained them, and equipped them with new powers. Then, using their abilities and the inherent agility of their female forms, they became an elite commando team, a secret kept from enemies and allies, fighting the Decepticons from the shadows. Elita and Optimus were finally reunited a few years ago, when a crisis forced Alpha Trion to reveal his gambit to the Autobots. elita and her team , in a desperate attempt to replenish their dangerously low energon supply had attacked shockwave's command citadel, shockwave had allowed them to escape in order to track them to their hidden base, he then used reinforcements from earth and captured alita one. megatron playing true to form used her as a bargaining chip to force prime into surrenderring. prime called his bluff and megatron was only too pleased to show him the truth. prime did a double take as his facial features went from shock to relief at seeing her alive to out right horror at seeing his beloved held prisoner by shockwave. in a fit of rage prime went on a solo mission to save her but was captured himself by shockwave. To save her lover from death alita one had used her special power to freeze time temporarily but doing so had put her in death's doorway in prime's place. To save her life prime searched for alpha trion as he was the only one who could possibly save her now. But their reunion, , was far too brief. And afterwards, Alpha Trion, for his own reasons, continued to keep the females isolated from the Autobots. Unable to reach her, Prime had bided his time, patiently waiting for a better moment to rebuild their former relationship. This realization burned him with a flood of questions. Why had I decided to wait? Why did I let the females remain hidden? Why didn't I question or challenge Alpha Trion's actions? Why did I so easily accept the status quo? Why, with the resources and authority at my command, didn't I do more? Perhaps, Prime considered ruefully, I was too used to believing she was dead.
He had grieved for Elita in the wake of Operation Deadbolt, and for a long time, was not certain if he would ever accept her death. But the burdens of war refused to relent, and they had finally forced him to lay her memories to rest. He realized then that she must have had a similar experience. In ironic parallel, the crash of the Ark and the disappearance of its crew must have convinced Elita-1 that Prime was dead. And her response must have mirrored his own: driven by duty, she would have had to accept his death and continued with her own life. Thus their mutual silence. After an absence of four million years, neither one was truly ready for the other. Instead, they both decided to wait -- for a better time, a quieter time -- before trying to find each other again. But that day would never be a reality. Roughly five years ago something happened to Optimus that hit him so hard in such a way that he would never be able to forget this event which would be burned into his mind, into his very soul as well. this was something that would change him forever Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots, was alone in his private quarters, receiving a personal transmission from Cybertron. The message was delivered without any preamble. "Elita-1 is dead." Prime gaped. Hesitantly, he echoed, "...dead?" there was barely any breath for him to form the words. It was as if someone had just took a full swing of the baseball bat and swung it right into his gut. The image on the display, a frail-looking robot in red and violet, soberly nodded. "But ... how?" Alpha Trion glanced away before answering. "She was leading a team on a mission to raid the Decepticon citadel in Effore. The Decepticons there have invented a new magnetic plasma cannon, and we needed the plans, both to discover its weaknesses and to build our own. "They were spotted on the way out. Elita ordered the others to escape while she stayed to distract the Decepticons. But Megatron had greater numbers, and they finally had her injured and cornered. Rather than risk being captured and ... 'interrogated,' she threw herself into a smelting pool." Prime's optics widened. "A smel-- ...so there's ... there is no body?" "No. We learned all of this by intercepting Megatron's final report. I see no reason not to believe it." A stifling silence filled the room. Eventually, in a husky whisper, Prime said, "Thank you." "There's one more thing," Alpha Trion quickly added. "We found a sealed box among Elita's personal possessions. It had a note attached to it, instructing us to deliver it to you upon her death." Prime hissed softly. "I see." A pause. "I shall send someone to retrieve it." "Good. Tell your courier to go to the ruins of my first shop. I'll meet him there." With a nod, Prime said again, "Thank you." Alpha Trion hesitated then, as if searching for more to say. But he did not find it, and an instant later, the screen blinked to black.
Prime slumped into his chair, unable and unwilling to do anything but absorb the news. He remained still for several minutes, making neither sound nor movement, a hauntingly immobile golem of red and blue then for the first time in 4 million years optimus grieved for the death of his beloved , the tears came and he could do nothing but cover his face and cry, he cried till he could grieve no more. and then he got up and screamed a deafening scream that came from the very grief ridden depths of his spark as it shook the very room itself to its foundations this time their was no way for him to come to terms with her death. prime gave in to his anger at himself for failing to protect her, at megatron for being so underhanded and low and at him self again for believing that megatron could have ever had any sense of honor in life after all they hade been through over the years working together time and again when circumstances made it neccesary for them to work as a team to preserve their mutual coexistance in life. they had learned to trust each other's actions. they had trusted each other with their very lives even. for megatron to have gone that low right now. he might as well have cut prime off at the knees and ripped out his spark while doing so. prime wanted nothing mor then to end his own life with a well placed laser blast to his very spark. he reached for his rifle as he willed his chest cavity open exposing the matrix annex that covered his lasercore he willed that to fold out and then steadying his hands he aimed his rifle at his spark his hands tensed around the trigger trembling as he attempted to kill himself , and he could not. his honor would not allow such a thing. to die by ones own hand would be a damning act indeed one great enough to damn him to an eternity in the inferno. it would end his suffering in life but it would not reunite him with his beloved though. instead he took out his anger on the walls. he started pounding them relentlessly with his fists. as he forced his chest to close up seamlessly. he poured out his rage, his hate, his anger into pummeling the walls with his fists until they bled energon through the variouse wounds prime had inflicted on himself prime in his grieving did not notice as the door to his chamber chimed open. "optimus." said ironhide "i've completed my rounds of the base sir" spoke primes right hand man as he walked in to report to his leader. "were secure so far as the base and outlying defense perimeter are- prime what happened? asked the large grey and red transformer as he ran over to his commander placeing his right hand on primes shoulder, " optimus talk to me how bad is it? a look of dread on his face said it all. "she's..... gone ironhide" prime chocked out as the tears and the shakes began all over for him. "she's gone, and there was nothing i could do to save her. i.."i should have been there to protect her, to keep her safe i should have taken her and her team back to earth where they would have had a better chance in this war. "oh primus" said ironhide as he took in the cracks and holes and dents in the walls realising that his friend had tried to replace his emotional pain with physical pain insted.He already knew what happened last time this had come to pass. "prime are you going to be okay?, should i call in rachet and first aid? "no my friend this pain goes far deeper then anything physically possible, this terible pain is in my spark as well as my mind and body. "please ironhide just... give me some time alone. send cosmos to cybertron. alpah trion has a package from her, have him deliver it to me my friend. ironhide looked into his optics scared of what he might do to himself. i cant talk him out of it theres just no way i could thought ironhide to himself but with teletran 1 monitoring him he should be safe for the time being."All right prime i'll leave you be for now but im taking your laser cannon with me just in case" said ironhide as he picked up primes weapon and walked out throught the door way. "Primus help us all if he cant shake this man" thought ironhide to himself. In a way megatron had won, the death of Alita 1 would do the one thing to pime he never could do to him. it destroyed him as a man. only time would tell if prime would ever recover from this incident. life went on as usual in the base. wheeljack making the new discovery in his lab, the lambo twins taking verbal potshots at eachother and rachet checking over his comrades for repairs through out the day. time passed and surprisingly there was no news of a decepticon attack at all perhaps it was coincidense or perhaps the decepticon commander had a heart in a way who's to say? evening came and with it the coming night as wellCosmos had returned from Cybertron just fifteen minutes ago. He had not asked any embarrassing questions about the package or its contents, for which Prime was grateful. Leadership left almost no room for privacy, and he had learned to cherish what little he had. He had made sure he would not be disturbed tonight. Metal fingers ran slowly over the box, delicately tracing the edges of the caldonite seal, still intact. The half moon gave a ruddy amber glow to the woods, which seemed appropriate somehow. Prime studied the box with a false indifference, examining it haphazardly as he memorized every detail. There was little to note -- aside from a coat of red paint, the box was featureless -- but he took his time. Finally, he stopped. Prime pressed his thumb firmly on the seal. It dissolved almost immediately, leaving only a thin crust around the border to indicate where it had been. The lid popped with an almost-inaudible click.With a steadiness that surprised himself, Prime opened the box and gingerly reached inside. The tiara glittered innocently in the darkness. Small and unassertive, its beauty came not from overloaded gaudiness, but from the subtle whispering of its arrangement, a confident ordering of crystals and diamonds. It drew the dull moonlight into its multifaceted beauty, then released it in a purifying glimmer. Prime recognized it immediately. It was his first gift to Elita, her favorite piece of jewelry, from a time now long gone. Reluctantly, he placed it on the ground, then looked inside the box again. A small, dull sheet of foil was all that remained. He took it gently, surprised when it proved stronger than it looked. On it was a message: Optimus, If you're reading this, I must be gone. I cannot describe how much I missed you, but I had wanted so much for a chance to try. Even so, I believe that you already know how I feel, and I will take that joy with me to whatever lies beyond. Remember me, Elita The note and the tiara were tenderly returned to the box. Holding it in one hand, Optimus Prime, warrior and veteran, protector and sage, Leader of the Autobots, turned his gaze to the stars above... ...and remembered.
How I have hated Megatron not just for hurting us both so long ago but know for this as well. The fact that I am dying now is as nothing to the pain I felt at knowing that I had lost the one being that I would ever love in life. My Aleta at last I can be with you. Arcee doesn't have half the leadership qualities you did. The Matrix pulses, bringing my thoughts back. Must find the Chosen. Daniel is human. He couldn't use the Matrix if he wanted to. Ultra Magnus must be the one. He proved himself a good leader of the Cybertronian forces. And he doesn't hold a very high rank. Almost all the original Earth forces are higher up then he is. They all look so sad. I can't bear to see them like this. Prime Grimaced , "Do not grieve," he comforted the human child hoping that the words would reach through their pain and give them peace, and help them forgive him for leaving like this.."Soon, I shall be one with the Matrix." "Prime!" Hot Rod whispered softly in disbelief, unable to consider a future without Optimus leading them against Megatron. Would all they had fought for die with Prime, going to his grave with him? The future, which hours before had been a toy in his hands, suddenly became a huge, screaming black hole from which there was no escape, no Prime to safely lead them through to the other side, and despair consumed him as Prime continued. His face haunted with self accusation. It's one of the new recruits from Cybertron. Daniel's friend, Hot something. My neural pathways must be breaking down. I should remember his name. Not much time. Reaching out an unsteady hand, Optimus singled out the Autobot he thought could dispel the hopeless future HotRod was imagining even then. "Ultra Magnus, Optimus continued it is to you, old friend, I shall pass the Matrix of Leadership, as it was...passed to me." Ultra Magnus stared at Prime in shock.. "But Prime...I'm...I'm just a soldier... I'm not worthy." He clasped Optimus's outstretched hand and held it tight in both of his, wishing he could hold on to his friend's life as well. Optimus's optics softened. He needs the reassurance I had. With our darkest hour almost here, he'll never get it. I'm sorry, Ultra Magnus, im sorry my brother "Nor was I, Optimus gasped, the words becoming more difficult to force out as his energy reserves dwindled. At his humble admission, Kup's memory flew back to the day when Optimus ascended to the Prime, accepting the Matrix from his battered predecessor in a scene much like this one, except there had been no time for goodbyes in the furious heat of battle. After assimilating the Matrix, Optimus had been a conduit of raw power, invincible in those first few moments and able to inspire his weary troops to rise up and turn the tide against Megatron. It was only now that Kup realized that Prime had given his life doing the very same thing, turning a personal battle into a rallying point for his army, and the shock and sorrow washed over Kup as his leader prepared to start the cycle over again. Why did Megatron's defeat have to come at such a high price? Kup wondered, but he knew--as did everyone--that Prime's convictions made even the ultimate price one he would pay without question. Slipping his hand out of 'Magnus', Prime continued, but one day, an Autobot shall rise from our ranks..." Just a little more, then I can rest."... and use the power of the matrix...to light our darkest hour." I will my chest compartment open.
Optimus pulled his hand away from Magnus and opened up his chest plate, revealing an armored casing within. The casing flipped open, revealing the Matrix. It was a hollow golden sphere, bound by shining handgrips, with a shimmering blue jewel in the center. A forcefield composed of all the virtues of all the great Autobot leaders gone before, the Matrix had powers that were beyond legend. Aside from vector sigma it was the only thing in the universe that could give life to a new Autobot. The matrix could sustain it's bearer for many, many millennia at the height of his prosperity and ability. It empowered its vessel with their own natural abilities magnified many times over. One who was chosen by the matrix to lead was given the power to help him. The longevity and power it gave was awesome. but without it once the matrix had been passed on to the next chosen its previous protector would become ancient in age and his systems would not be able to function much longer. Optimus wished with all his being that he could stop this, but to leave the matrix within his body when he died could pose a danger to the matrix itself. when a transformer dies their mind and their spark or soul as it were rejoins the allspark within the matrix. The allspark is itself the lifeforce of the god like creator Primus. Their memories would go into a dormant state while the matrix would feed on the negative emotions of the lifeless transformer it remained in and merge it with the departed ones memories to create a new mind for the being while it would imbue the dead body with residual matrix energy and would give it unnatural life as one of the living dead, a vampire in a way. it would result in the physical recreation of that transformers dark side given life as a separate individual, all that the matrix bearer was in life this dark born one would be his opposite, everything that he believed and fought for in life this Scourge would be against, this black convoy. A shadow twin. A dark prime doppelganger, A decepticon prime so to speak. It was this shimmering, captive power that Prime removed from where it had lay for so long inside of him. All of the Autobots involuntarily took a step back as its radiance filled the room. This was the relic that had passed from Autobot leader to Autobot leader ever since their shadowy beginnings, millions of years ago. This was the flame that would light their darkest hour, whenever that day should come. Optimus grasped the Matrix with faltering hands as he remove his silent companion of over 45,000 vorn and reached for Magnus.
They stand transfixed. No one moves forward to take it. I am getting weaker. Please, someone move. Don't be afraid. I feel my strength going. With the last of my vocorder's ability, I get out the words once spoken to me. "Until that day" he whispered "till all are one." The words exiting him like a gentle sigh, and then his strength was gone. As Magnus watched Optimus seemed to almost wither and age before him. His grasp failed, and the talisman slipped from his hands. It's too late. I dropped it. Should have been concentrating on Magnus... as one, 'Magnus and HotRod lunged for it and tried to break its fall. Time seemed to slow as Magnus reached for the falling Matrix. The golden relic slipped through his fingers, only to be caught by Hot Rod, who reached the Matrix in a split second, the group watching in awe as it fell into the young Autobot's hands mere micro-inches above the cold steel floor and raised it up. but no one saw what HotRod experienced deep within himself as the Matrix landed in the protective cradle of his powerful hands. Light seemed to explode in HotRod's mind, surging along every synapse and through every circuit of his body, and the rush that coursed through him was like flying along a deserted road at 190 miles per hour. Other images passed in front of his optics, too; a Cybertron of ages past, glowing with power before the civil war, battles without number, and faces that he had never met but were somehow familiar, and he never wanted the feeling to end. However, HotRod knew he had a duty to perform, so he duly broke the contact with the Matrix and It's radiance filled the room as Hot Rod handed it over to Ultra Magnus, who reverently placed it in his own chest. HotRod watched his older friend closely as he opened his chestplate and stowed the Matrix inside, but if he had experienced anything like HotRod had, he showed no trace of it. The Matrix didn't even fit very well inside of 'Magnus, like it wasn't supposed to go there in the first place, but HotRod would not dream of questioning Prime's decision.
wait, someone caught it. The light surges, but I am on the brink of endless dark. The light shocks me into sudden lucidity. Great Primus, no! I gave it to the wrong one! Hot Rod! You are the Chosen! I try to scream, but my vocorder is gone. He's given it to Magnus. At last, I've found the Chosen One, and I've failed to give him the Matrix. It pulls me in. I've failed. How will my Autobots face their darkest hour? At that moment the world turned upside down. Once the Matrix of Leadership was passed, all life had left Optimus and the last thing that he saw was a bright blue light, acknowledgement of the Matrix that it was time for the passing of leadership. Then he felt light-headed as everything he knew and loved turned to blackness. "I'm ready", thought Optimus Prime as his spark left the world of the living and became as one with the sparks that exist within the matrix. Kup turned back to the monitor and gasped as all the readings played out across the screen dancing for one eternal moment before flatlining. The light from Optimus' eyes flickered brightly, as though tapped from hidden power cells, but slowly faded away as his optics flickered once, then twice, and the Autobots were stunned at the swift, cruel finalty of their leader's death. To their horror, all they could do was watch as Prime's blue optics glimmered and faded,as his eyes flickered once , then twice then thrice, and dimmed to a soft gray as they dimmed to blackness. the hands that hours before had delivered Megatron's death blow gently falling slack to his sides and his head sagged to the side. Arcee buried her face in her own hands, unable to bear the sight any longer. Finally, Prime's bright red and blue colors--colors so familiar to them all,colors he had worn all of his life--faded to ashen grey and black as Prime's life-force slipped away. The color of his armor darkened to match his dead eyes, his life-force gone As the light that had burned for so long and so strong with courage died out. Arcee gasped in horror, and Daniel sobbed over the inert chassis of the fallen Autobot. Hot Rod watched as well, anguish welling up within him. It's my fault, What have I done? Great Cybertron, what have I done??? I killed him. It was my fault. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it! I just wanted to help! How many more will die... because of me? he thought. Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots for nine million years, passed away. Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots, was dead. Numb with grief despite Prime's comforting words and his own brush with the heady power of the Matrix, HotRod watched helplessly as Daniel's tears streamed down his face. The boy was still holding tightly to his hero's now-lifeless arm, his human sobs punctuating the most final of goodbyes in a way that transcended the differences between flesh and steel.