ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS: MEGALO CONVOY'S TALE
Cycle 9314 (~1514 CE in Earth years)
“Oi! Careful with that beam, Moledive! Only so much of those to go around.”
The massive teal-and-tan mech grumbled in response as he thundered past Megalo Convoy, hefting a large metal beam on his shoulders. Moledive looked rather awkward carrying the beam given his arms terminated in a drill and pincers rather than standard hands, but he had been at this for long enough to handle them without much issue. That didn’t stop Megalo and the others from issuing words of caution, of course, especially when they did actually need to be careful with whatever resources they had left.
Planting his hands on his hips, Megalo Convoy directed his gaze to the massive skyscrapers that overshadowed the entire planet of Gigantion. Ever since Nova Prime had established this colony world thousands of years ago, the people of Gigantion had been hard at work, creating a giant city that covered the entire surface. Nova Prime had envisioned Gigantion serving as an all-encompassing hub for the space bridge network, where Transformers from all of the other colonies could come and interact with one another.
That had been the plan, at least. After Nova Prime and his crew vanished, his successor Nominus Prime had gradually diverted resources away from the Expansion project, and it had been all but abandoned by the time of his death. It was only after the First Great War, when Sentinel Prime had taken command, that the project was revitalized, albeit at a much more limited capacity (and a fixed amount of resources). And with the war that was currently being waged, it was no closer to completion now than it had been a millennium ago.
Still, they would keep on working. For all anyone knew, the war could end tomorrow and Cybertron would be ready to enter the Golden Age that had been promised so long ago. But Megalo Convoy knew better than to put his faith in Primes. He had learned his lesson long ago…
~5,000 years ago (Cycle 4315)
“Five hundred years ago, on this day, the once magnificent Crystal City was destroyed by the horrid monstrosity we know as Monstructor.”
All eyes were on Nominus Prime as he addressed the masses of Cybertron. It was the first time in a long time—perhaps since the departure of the Ark—that so many Cybertronians were gathered in a single place. Even those from the colony worlds, such as Caminus, Velocitron, and Gigantion had come to bear witness to this event, with the leaders of the invited colony worlds standing in a row behind the Prime as he delivered his speech.
“Crystal City was a historical and sacred landmark,” Nominus Prime went on, his blue and gold armor plating gleaming in the sunlight. “It was where the Primes of old came together and formed an alliance that would shape Cybertronian society as we know it today. Some even say that Prima himself was birthed from the very soil that Crystal City was built upon. The fact that it was desecrated by such wanton destruction is a tragedy that haunts my memory to this day.”
Standing among the other colony representatives, Megaloplex tried not to scoff. He knew a rehearsed speech when he heard one; nothing the Prime was saying came from the spark. He probably could not care less about what had befallen Crystal City. Otherwise, he would have given the speech the day after the incident rather than five hundred years later. The crowd seemed to be eating it up however, as they looked on with expressions of grief and sorrow.
“On that day, we lost a symbol,” Nominus went on. “It was not long after we lost our glorious leader Nova Prime as well. Since then, we have stagnated as a people, stuck in one place, never moving forward. But that changes today!”
The Prime’s expression brightened as he kicked on his leg thrusters and lifted up in the air, flying to a viewscreen that was now showing a bulky femme in silver armor plating. Behind her were six mechs with construction alternate modes, all bearing a uniform yellow color scheme. They stood on a mobile platform that was now being raised above the crowd, all seven of its occupants waving to the applause erupting from the audience.
“Under the guidance of Termagax of Kaon and her team, a new Crystal City shall be erected on top of where the old one stood. It shall signal a rebirth of our people, a rebirth for Cybertron, as we enter the Golden Age our glorious leader promised!”
The crowd erupted in cheers but it all became white noise to Megaloplex. He didn’t even bother paying attention to the rest of the Prime’s speech as he knew it was all fluff and grandstanding at this point. The prospect of a new Crystal City sounded promising, but in the last five hundred years Nominus Prime had yet to fulfill any of the promises he had made since he had assumed the mantle.
It was several hours after the ceremony, and after most of the crowd had dispersed, that Megaloplex managed to speak with Nominus one-on-one. The Prime was finishing a conversation with Termagax and he looked as if he was about ready to take off. When he noticed Megaloplex’s approach, his expression seemed to sour but he quickly masked it with a showy grin.
“Ah, Megaloplex! What a surprise! I, uh, I thought you had already departed with the rest of the representatives.”
“Aye, I simply wanted to wish you and Termagax good fortune in this project o’ yours,” Megaloplex said. He then narrowed his red optics as he affixed Nominus with a stern look. “And to see if you had given any thought yet to me own proposal.”
“Your own propo—? Ah.” Nominus cleared his vocal processor. “You’re referring to the Axiom Nexus project, I take it?”
“What else would it be? It is Nova Prime’s legacy, after all.”
“Right, right, of course it is. No doubt about that.” Nominus shifted uncomfortably, the wings on his back twitching. “It’s just that, you know, there are only so many resources we can spare at any given time, and it’s taken quite a while to gather the right amount for the Crystal City project. Something like Axiom Nexus is on a completely different scale.”
“One that I am sure we will move on to once Crystal City is a success, yes?” Termagax said pointedly. Megaloplex couldn’t help but smile; he always knew he shared a kindred spark with the lass.
“Oh, sure! No doubt, no doubt.” Nominus Prime made an exasperated sound before glancing furtively to his chronometer. “Well, would you look at the time! I’ve got at appointment back at the High Council Pavilions. Being a Prime is busy work, you know!”
Before either Megaloplex or Termagax could stop him, Nominus converted to his jet mode and took off, flying faster than Megaloplex had seen anyone fly before. The leader of Gigantion watched him go before letting out a sigh.
“Just about the answer I was expectin’.”
Termagax glanced up at him. “I take it you are not a fan of the current Prime?”
“I am not one to get into politics, lass, beyond my current station. I was simply hopin’ that perhaps we could finally pick up where Nova Prime had left off before he departed. But after five centuries, it truly feels as if we are simply going backwards rather than forward.”
“Rebuilding Crystal City is a step in the right direction though, is it not?”
“Aye, perhaps. But Crystal City stood long before Nova or Nominus came along. If anything, it represents more of a return to the status quo rather than a new change.”
“I can see what you mean,” Termagax murmured. “To be honest, a new Crystal City wasn’t my first idea, but the Prime told me that he needed a proof of concept from me and my team before he would go through with my original plan.”
“Oh? And pray tell would that be?”
Termagax shifted her feet, suddenly looking nervous from the attention he was giving her. “I… I call it the Winged Moon.” She raised her right arm and pressed a control panel near her wrist. A blue light emitted from her servo and displayed a small holographic image of a spherical object with panels extending from it. “It’s supposed to be a new satellite for Cybertron that will draw energy from nearby stars and distill it back into Cybertron in the form of energon.”
Megaloplex’s optics went wide. “Well, now, that is quite the undertaking. That could solve Cybertron’s own energy crisis. Are you confident such a thing would work?”
“Well, Councilor Shockwave seems to think so, and I have his backing. He thinks that if Crystal City is a success, then enough of the other Councilors will join him in forming a majority, meaning the Prime will have to at least consider it. And I can’t imagine he would say no…”
“Aye, he would be a fool to do so. Time will tell if he is one or not.” Megaloplex beamed down at her. “Ye’ have a bright future ahead of you, lass. Ye’ would’ve made Nova Prime proud.”
Termagax grinned at that. “You think so? I had only just been forged when he left Cybertron. I had always wanted to meet him….”
“Well, perhaps someday he will finally return and knock some sense into ol’ Nominus. And I guarantee you he would have a place for you in his inner circle. You would be right up there with the likes of ol’ Jhiaxus.”
“You honor me with your words, Megaloplex. You have no idea how please I am to hear you say them.”
Megaloplex chuckled. “Aye, just don’t let it get to your head, lass. Wouldn’t want to turn out like ol’ Nominus now, would you?”
Termagax laughed. “I don’t think anyone would.”
Now
“Chief? Er, Chief?”
Megalo Convoy stirred out of his memory and cast his gaze down… all the way down to the Mini-Con standing at his feet. The small gray and blue bot was standing there with a concerned expression on his face.
“Eh? Oi, my apologies, lad.” The giant leader sighed. “Ye’ve caught me daydreamin’ again. What is it?”
Drillbit cocked his head to the side, studying his leader with a skeptical look. He then said, “Safeguard just radioed me. She says that there’s something you need to check out.”
“Ah, very well. Tell her I’ll be on my way.”
As Drillbit returned to his duties, Megalo Convoy converted into his alternate mode - a treaded vehicle armed with a scoop and giant saw - and started to roll in the direction of the Security Base. Because of his large size, Megalo was not exactly any quicker in his vehicle mode than he was in his robot mode, but it was fastest means of transportation he had at his disposal. He couldn’t help but envy some of the Mini-Cons that had come to call Gigantion home, such as Safeguard herself and the young trio she often hung around with.
It was perhaps because of his slow journey that Megalo Convoy found himself daydreaming again, his mind reaching back into the depths of his memory banks once more…
600 years ago (Cycle 8714)
“Ye’ are asking to much of me, lad. I am no soldier.”
The young Autobot Optronix stood in Megaloplex’s shadow, his arms folded over his red and black chest as he affixed the Gigantion leader with a defiant stare.
“I am not asking you to be a soldier. I am asking you to be a defender.”
Megaloplex tilted his head, returning Optronix’s stare with a skeptical look. “And you are convinced these… Destructons, you call ‘em? You think they’re comin’ for Cybertron and her worlds?”
“They have already laid waste to planets within the Vestial Imperium and the Nebulon Republic. It won’t be long before they are encroaching on our territory.”
“Surely then this would be a job for the Elite Guard, no?”
“It is, and Sentinel Prime has already prepared Cybertron’s defenses. But it won’t be enough, especially not for the colony worlds. That’s why I’m coming to you, as I have the others.”
“Ye’ mean Nitro and the others have already agreed to this plan of yours?”
“Nitro, Atlas, pretty much everyone. I’ve even recruited some other bots to bolster our defenses.” Optronix waved a hand to the massive cityscape surrounding them. “Gigantion is too vital to lose to these destructive freaks. All of the work you and your people have done over the last millennia will be for naught if the Destructons make their way here.”
Megaloplex sniffed dismissively. “Aye, rather convenient that now ye care about our work when it is in danger, but not when things are at peace. Do you any idea how I’ve needed to pull screw and nail to get the funding and resources for this project? If any of the Primes since Nova have had their way, this project would have been abandoned ages ago.”
“Well, I can assure you that when I am Prime, Gigantion and the Axiom Nexus project will be my first priority—”
Megaloplex laughed bitterly. “When you are Prime, eh? I didn’t realize Sentinel had already picked out a successor.”
Optronix shifted awkwardly. “I, uh, misspoke. If I ever become Prime, then I will make sure Nova Prime’s vision is seen through to completion.”
“Hmph. I’ve heard those words before, lad. More times than I can count. I have yet to see anyone come through with their promises.”
“Well, in any case, there still needs to be a Gigantion left to finish if there is any hope of seeing those promises fulfilled.” The young Autobot extended a hand. “So are you with me or not?”
Megaloplex narrowed his optics as he looked down at the proffered hand. Surprising even himself, it did not take him long to give an answer.
Now
Megalo Convoy pulled himself out of the memory as he rolled into the command center for the security base. Like most interiors on Gigantion, the room was incredibly large and spacious to accommodate the native Gigantians and their massive size, which made the Mini-Cons that staffed it look even more comically small than they did in “normal” sized rooms like those on Cybertron.
Regardless of size, the Mini-Cons’ chief of security Safeguard maintained a commanding presence as she hovered across the room, checking in on others’ stations and making sure the Recon Team trio were not getting into any trouble. When Megalo Convoy rolled in and transformed to robot mode, the small white Mini-Con immediately switched her attention to him and flew over to hover in front of him.
“Chief, we’ve detected a strange anomaly at the edge of the system. It appears to be giving off energon signatures.”
“Aye, let’s give it a look then.” Megalo Convoy followed her to the primary console, which currently displayed a visualization of the Gigalonia system on the screen. Most of the planets besides Gigantion were either uninhabitable rocks or gas giants, and Megalo knew that there were only nine planets total within the system. But, as he studied the visuals on the screen, he saw that there were instead ten planets… and one of them was changing positions rapidly.
“Is it… mobile?” he asked.
“It appears so,” Safeguard replied. “It originally started out on the dark side of Gigalonia-9, but it’s already shifted position to intersect Gigalonia-3 and 2’s orbits. I’m not sure how it’s managing to do that.”
“And you say it’s givin’ off energon readings?”
“Yes. We’ve already tried making contract but no one is picking up. Not a good sign, if you ask me.”
“Aye, I’d be inclined to agree.” He rubbed his chin as he continued to study the screen. “Have you prepared any of our defenses?”
“I’ve already raised the silent alarm. If it comes within our orbit and still does not answer any of our calls, then will be the time to panic.”
“Oi, there will be no panicking. We will stand strong and defend our world from whatever they throw at us. We are giants, big or small.”
An alert chimed at the console. Before their optics, the visuals on the screen changed.
“It’s moving within our orbit,” Safeguard murmured. “Now might be the time to—”
Without warning, the lights in the room suddenly went out. At the same time, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently. Several Mini-Con staffers were knocked off their feet and even Megalo Convoy had difficulty maintaining his balance. He shifted his arms and legs into their laborer configuration, using their extra bulk to ground himself as he stomped towards the door. Safeguard flew behind him, drawing a pair of tiny swords.
Upon stepping outside, Megalo Convoy found the city plagued in darkness, with not a single star in sight—not even the planet’s own sun. Instead, the surface of an entire planet encompassed the sky, looming over the city like the head of a massive giant. The mysterious planet appeared to be entirely metallic, with twin gold bands stretching around the surface to create a large X-shaped symbol.
As citizens, both large and small, started to panic around him, Megalo Convoy saw two vehicles—a teal drill tank and an orange mixer—drive up to him. Both converted to robot mode, taking on the forms of his two primary advisers Moledive and Blender. Their respective Mini-Con partners sat on their shoulders.
Moledive waved a giant arm in the direction of the looming X Planet. “Care to explain this, ‘chief?’”
Megalo Convoy frowned. “Aye, wish I could, lad. But—”
“Don’t ‘lad’ me! How in the Pit are we in any way, shape or form prepared to handle something like… this?!”
“Relax, Moledive,” said Blender. “Stripmine tells me that the defenses have already been raised. We’ll handle this, just like we did the Destructons.”
“Will we? Because back then, we at least had Cybertron on our side.” Moledive gestured widely around them. “Do you see any Autobots anywhere? Because I sure don’t!”
“I do.” Megalo Convoy patted the Autobot insignia on his shoulder. “We are all Autobots here, Moledive.”
Moledive narrowed his optics. “You might be, but I’d hardly say we all are. I never took on the Autobrand… and I’m starting to think I had the right idea.”
“Oi, can this wait?” Blender said. “Because I think we have bigger problems at hand.”
He pointed to the sky and Megalo Convoy followed his gaze back towards the sky. A massive cloud had suddenly formed and was quickly descending towards the surface. As it drew closer, Megalo Convoy realized it was no ordinary cloud made of particles or anything of the sort.
It was a swarm. A swarm comprised of hundreds upon thousands of identical silver and gold bots, armed with blades and arm-mounted cannons. Their “faces” were nothing more than a featureless blue visor, crowned by a horned crest that called to mind images and caricatures of the fabled Chaos-Bringer.
Moledive was right; this was different from the Destructon conflict. But that didn’t mean they were going to just give up.
This was their city.
Drawing his massive saw-blade axe, Megalo Convoy adjusted it into its battle position. “Take arms, lads. It’s time to address these big problems… with even bigger solutions!”
* * *
“I will give credit where it is due, Jhiaxus. This plan of yours just may very well pay off.”
Jhiaxus allowed himself a smile as he watched the hordes of Terrorbots pour out of Planet X’s factories and descend upon the unsuspecting populace of Gigantion. The people of Gigantion may have been large in size, but they were few in number, which made their world ideal to conquer in such a fashion.
“To give credit of my own,” Jhiaxus said, “I owe this all to Liege Maximo. He had told me of his secret colony world shortly before his exile, and it was a secret I had kept even from Nova Prime. When we established the Nega-Cores, I remembered his plans for an expansive hub connecting Cybertron and all her territories together. I figured it would only make sense to bring that dream to fruition in order to accelerate the Chaos-Bringer’s liberation.”
“Indeed.” Galvatron’s holographic form shimmered beside Jhiaxus as it moved and cast its gaze in his direction. “And this body of yours… you called it a proxy?”
“For lack of a better term.” Jhiaxus raised his right arm, admiring its pearly white sheen, covered in wires that curled up to his shoulder and around his torso. “Liege Maximo called it the next step of our race’s evolution. It does not require a spark or laser core to function—simply pure energy. The Second Generation, he called it.”
“Hmph. And I take it these… Terrorbots are also part of this ‘Second Generation’?”
“These specific ones, yes. He took inspiration from the mindless drones that obeyed our former enslavers during the Age of Wrath and perfected the concept. These Noisemaze-types may not be triple changers like their Overcharge precursors, but they are even more versatile.”
“We shall see.” Galvatron folded his arms. “This will be their ultimate test. Nothing short of complete success will impress me.”
Jhiaxus grinned. “Not to worry, my lord. I will provide you with nothing but.”
* * *
“There’s too many of them! We’re being overwhelmed—!”
“Stand tall, Moledive!” Megalo Convoy cried as he brought his giant axe down onto three of the silver drones, crushing all of them at once. “We shall defend our city or die trying! Surrender is not an option!”
“Maybe so.” Moledive grabbed one of the drones with his clawed arm and drove a drill into its cranium with the other. “But death might be one.”
“Ever the morale booster, aren’t you, Moledive?” Blender lifted his right arm, which terminated in a giant mixing drum, and it split down the middle, revealing a cannon. He fired a blast at an oncoming wave of invaders and decimated their numbers, although it did little to stall the rest of the swarm. The remaining drones bypassed him and attempted to grab Stripmine off his shoulder only for another blast from his cannon to stop them.
“We should do something for the Mini-Cons though,” Blender then said. “Shall we send them to the escape pods?”
“Aye, that be a good idea, lad.” Megalo Convoy raised a hand to his helm. “Safeguard! If you can read me, get yerself and the other little ones to the pods! Get clear of here as quickly as ye’ can!”
“Are you sure, chief? I don’t want to abandon—”
“Ye’ won’t be abandoning us, lass, just saving yerselves. We’ll hold them off as long as we can.”
“Very well, sir. I’ll see to it.”
Megalo Convoy allowed himself to smile. “That’s good to hear.” He then turned to Moledive and Blender and raised his arm to the sky. “Keep fightin’, lads! They will not take us down so easily! For Gigantion!”
* * *
“Oh, sweet Primus, I never thought this day would come! I knew we were at war, but I never thought it’d come to Gigantion!”
“Relax, Jolt.” Safeguard placed a hand on the red Mini-Con’s shoulder. “I understand this is hard for you and your brothers to process. Just get yourselves into one of the pods; I’ll make sure you have a safe launch.”
“Where are we even going to go?” asked Six-Speed. “Cybertron’s too dangerous and I hear the Decepticons are striking at all sorts of worlds in the Commonwealth and beyond!”
“I have the pods primed to take you to an uninhabited system that’s remote and safe. From there you can send out a distress signal and one of the routine Autobot patrols will likely pick you up.”
“And if the ‘Cons find us instead?” asked Reverb.
Safeguard sighed. “Don’t think about that. Please, just go. We don’t have much time.”
There was a loud thundering sound from outside, which gave Jolt and his brothers all the signs they needed. After giving a heartfelt farewell to Safeguard, Jolt led the other two towards one of the remaining pods. Some of the others had already taken off, including one carrying Long Arm and his brothers. Safeguard hadn’t had time to prep that one with a predetermined location; she only hoped that trio ended up somewhere safe.
After seeing to the rest of the pods, Safeguard turned her attention to the last one remaining. Drillbit, Stripmine, and Heavyload were already loading themselves into the pod. As Drillbit raised a hand to lower the hatch, he caught Safeguard’s eye and frowned.
“I’m sorry, Safeguard, but…”
“There’s only room for three. I know.” She waved a hand. “Just get out of here. Now.”
“Maybe I can stay behind. Convoy might—”
“No. I made peace with my fate long ago. Now get out of here before—”
A ripping sound came from above as one of the silver drones began to tear through the roof of the launch bay. Before Drillbit could close the hatch to the pod, the Terrorbot grabbed the small vessel and pulled it free from its launch pad, reaching in to grab the Mini-Cons within.
“No!” Safeguard jumped up into the air and converted into her spacecraft mode, priming the two cannons that were mounted at her bow. “Let go of them, you freak!”
She fired and struck the drone in the hand. It dropped the pod and it crashed to the ground, causing its three occupants to fall out. The Terrorbot then set its sights on Safeguard and it raised its right arm, charging up the cannon mounted atop it.
Safeguard stared straight down the barrel, bracing herself for the end…
Just as she thought darkness was about to envelop her, there was a bright light as a large figure suddenly materialized behind the Terrorbot. It drove a sword straight into the drone’s back, the sparkling blue tip of its blade jutting out from the machine’s chest. The mysterious mech then pulled out the blade and let the Terrorbot’s body fall lifelessly to the ground.
Switching back to her robot mode, Safeguard got a good look at her savior. He was not quite as large as Megalo Convoy or any of the other Gigantians, being about the standard size of a Cybertronian. His armor plating was white and dark red, with specks of gold here and there. His dull blue metal of his face looked worn with age, and his red optics had a dim tint to them.
Whoever this bot was, he was old. Incredibly old. Perhaps even as old as the stars themselves.
As he lowered his sword, the ancient bot held up a small object, which almost looked like a key of some kind. It was shaped like a gear, with archaic symbols and runes printed onto it. The pistons in the mech’s arm groaned as he moved it, as if he had not moved in quite some time. With that movement, he inserted the key into a slot within his chest.
Then, instead of darkness, Safeguard found herself enveloped by light.
* * *
Jhiaxus screamed as the whole world was torn away from him.
He was back on Gorlam Prime, back in his old, inferior body. He was laying prone on the ground, surrounded by Galvatron—in his physical form—and the other Heralds of Unicron.
Galvatron bent down, grabbed Jhiaxus by the wing, and pulled him back up, bringing him close to his scowling face.
“What happened?” the leader of the Heralds demanded.
“I… I don’t know!” Jhiaxus exclaimed. “S-something severed the connection!”
“Severed the connection? What the blazes does that mean?”
“It means I can no longer reach my proxy body on Planet X. I… I have no idea what happened to it—”
Growling, Galvatron threw Jhiaxus back onto the ground before whirling on his lieutenant Scourge.
“Take your Sweeps to the Gigalonia system and find out what happened!”
Scourge frowned. “But, my lord, we must maintain our cover here or else—”
“Our cover means nothing if Planet X and Jhiaxus’s little army are unaccounted for in Autobot space! Now do as I command!”
Recognizing there was no room for him to argue, Scourge summoned three of his Sweeps and the four of them converted into their identical spacecraft modes, taking off into the sky.
* * *
“What… what did you do?”
Safeguard marveled at the sight that had been presented to her outside. The skies were clear, the mysterious planet of the invaders having seemingly vanished. The only drones now were the ones that had already been deactivated, their bodies littering the ground. Megalo Convoy and the other Gigantians clearly looked confused as they tried to process what had just happened.
The ancient robot said nothing at first as he removed the key from his chest slot. He somehow looked even more tired and old than he did before, something Safeguard did not think was possible. When he finally spoke, his vocal processor crackled as if it had not been used in eons.
“I broke my vow in order to save your world from catastrophe.”
“Vow?” Safeguard asked. “What do you mean?”
The ancient bot continued speaking with answering her question. “I have shifted your world into chronal phase. To the outside observer, it can no longer be seen or touched, shielding it from further harm.”
Safeguard shook her head. “I… I don’t understand. Are you saying we’re invisible?”
“For lack of a better term, yes. It was not something I did lightly, but it was the only way to prevent the Chaos-Bringer’s return. All other possible futures that I observed showed only Armageddon.”
“The Chaos-Bringer…?” Safeguard stared up at the old bot as if he had gone senile. “Are… are you saying he’s real? That he’s not just some myth or…?”
The ancient robot sighed heavily. “I have already said too much. I cannot in good conscience allow you to return to your people with the knowledge you now carry… including that of my existence.”
“So, what, you’re going to kill me?”
He looked down at her with a curious expression. “No,” he said, as if the thought had never crossed his mind. “I am going to bring you with me, to my realm, where you will be joined by my other… companions.”
“Your realm? I’m sorry but, what exactly kind of mech are you?”
She could have sworn she saw the tiniest hint of a smile cross his face. But when she blinked, it was gone.
“I am the kind of mech that the world has not seen in quite some time,” he said. “And if you ask me, there is good reason for that.”
He then raised his sword and sliced it through the air, cutting through reality to open a portal before Safeguard’s bewildered eyes.
“My name is Vector Prime. I am the guardian of time and space, keeper of the past, and protector of the future. And if you come with me, you will be able to help me prevent further possible catastrophes from happening.”
He extended an arm towards her.
“So, then, are you with me?”
Surprising even herself, it did not take long for her to answer.
Postscript
“There’s nothing here.”
“I can see that,” Scourge snapped back at one of the Sweeps. The four of them hovered in space, facing the orbital position which Gigantion was supposed to occupy, but there was no sign of it. Nor was there any sign of Planet X. It was as if both planets had been shunted out of reality.
The only sign of the struggle that had taken place here was a lone Noisemaze-type Terrorbot floating in the void of space. It was different from the others, having a black and silver color scheme rather than silver and gold, its visor tinted orange rather than blue.
One of the Sweeps reached out to touch the lone Noisemaze only for the Terrorbot to abruptly shift and move. Before Scourge’s very optics, the Noisemaze’s body began to shift and convert… but what it morphed into was not a vehicular alternate mode, but rather a completely different robot mode.
Now, instead of a sleek black spacecraft, the Terrorbot now looked as if it transformed into a purple and yellow motorcycle. A few seconds later, it morphed back into its original state.
As the Sweeps all exchanged confused looks with themselves, Scourge found himself smiling at this newfound discovery.
“Well, then,” he murmured to himself. “Perhaps there is something to be salvaged from this operation after all.”
