UNSEEN IN ACTION
--Tesarus, First Great War (Cycle 7784)--
"Ripcord, where's Impactor?"
From his spot in the trench which the Wreckers had dug out on Tesarus' battlefield, the silver and blue Autobot turned to his commander Crest and shrugged.
"No idea, sir. I paired him up with Piston; haven't seen either of 'em since."
Crest scowled as he dodged enemy fire. "That kid's gonna get us killed if no one keeps a leash on him."
"Wait, sir! I see him!" Valve called from the watchtower. "He's... he's taken on Eradicon."
Crest's optics dilated. "What?! Is Piston with him?"
"Yeah, he's... one of the two corpses by Impactor."
"One of--? Who's the other?"
"Eradicon."
--Iacon (Cycle 7784)--
"Crest, my suspension of disbelief can only go so far," Sentinel Prime said to the Wrecker commander as the former paced in his office. "Do you mean to tell me this rookie-- Impactor-- killed one of Trannis' top generals with his bare hands?"
"That's what I said," Crest said sharply.
Sentinel gave him a skeptical look. "Why should I believe you? Did you even witness him?"
"Well, no--"
"Then we have nothing more to discuss," the Prime said gruffly. "Regardless of the truth, Eradicon is dead."
"But, Prime, he killed a mech--"
"What else would you expect in war? I said we have nothing more to discuss, commander. Please leave."
With a huff, Crest did as ordered.
--Uraya, First Great War (Cycle 7814)--
"Medic! We need a medic!"
Three vehicles drove up to the two Autobots' position. One of them, a white and blue rocket launcher, transformed and rushed over to them, carrying a first aid kit. The others morphed as well, grimacing at the gaping hole in Crest's chest.
Cradling his leader's body in his arms, Impactor looked up at Fastfix imploringly. "Fix him."
The medic frowned. "I'm sorry, Impactor, but... his spark's been extinguished. There's nothing I can do."
The violet and gold Autobot lowered his head in sorrow. Hyperion, the late Crest's second-in-command, walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Who did this?" he asked.
"Clench," Impactor said through gritted metal teeth.
"Where is he now?"
"He got away. His friends weren't so lucky."
Hyperion frowned as he looked up, finally noticing the corpses that littered the battlefield of Uraya. "You... caused all of this?"
Impactor said nothing.
Hyperion sighed. "No matter. Let's get back to Iacon."
"The transports are all filled with refugees," Ripcord said. "We'll have to leave Crest here."
The other Wreckers expected Impactor to protest, but instead the violet mech simply got up from Crest's body and walked with them to the last transport.
--Toxic Sludge Swamps, Second Great War (Cycle 8823)--
"Take that, you cybernetic freak!" Springer shouted as he shot down a Slicer whilst in midair.
Tomahawk rolled his optics at his comrade's bravado. It almost seemed like a requirement that all Heliobots be reckless thrill-seekers. It was a wonder that they had suffered little to no casualties yet.
Suddenly, one of the abominable Slicers that lurked the Sludge Swamps was upon him, pinning him to the ground. He wrestled with the creature's grip, trying to get a missile launcher aimed at it, but his attempts were in vain.
Just as Tomahawk was ready to accept his fat, a silver blade descended, cutting through the Slicer's neck. A couple blast shots finished it for good. The old Autobot pushed the creature's smoldering corpse off of him and looked up to see Springer's smug visage.
As much as he wanted to slap the expression off of the rookie's faceplate, Tomahawk couldn't help but smile back. "Nice one, kid. I thought for sure I was a goner."
"Don't mention it," Springer said. "Really you should be thanking Sensei Yoketron; if it weren't for him, I'd be slicing my own head off."
Tomahawk chuckled. At least he can be humble at times.
He suddenly stopped when he saw a figure approaching through the fog. Thinking it to be another Slicer, he scrambled to his feet and aimed his blasters.
"Easy, old friend," a voice came. "It's me."
Tomahawk lowered his weapons. "Impactor."
A battle-worn purple and gold Autobot emerged from the fog, his hands planted on his hips. Looking at Springer, he said, "That was some nice work you did there, kid."
Springer blinked, clearly awed by being complimented by a veteran such as Impactor. "Uh, thank you, sir."
Impactor smirked. "Don't call me 'sir.' We're teammates, you and I."
"We are?"
"Yup. I saw your name on the reservist list. I am here to welcome you into the Wreckers."
--Pova, Second Great War (Cycle 9664)
Consciousness gradually came to Springer as his systems began to reboot. Immediately feeling the aching pain in his midsection, he remembered what had just happened.
The Wreckers had been cornered by their life-long rivals, Squadron X. He had been trapped under rubble. Impactor had been there, but instead of coming to his lieutenant's rescue, he had used his body as a shield and fired a gun straight through his abdomen. Then darkness consumed him.
His optics finally coming back online, Springer saw Impactor and the others standing over him, most likely unaware that he was still functioning.
"--Squadron X uncomfortable," Roadbuster was saying. "Got inhibitor claws and mode locks on them just to crank up the humiliation."
Grunting in satisfaction, Impactor brought out a communication device; the holographic visage of Prowl appeared.
"We've got 'em, Prowl. Macabre, Fang, Triton; they're all rounded up and ready to go to Garrus-9."
"What is your location?"
"Pova, in the Redan Quadrant."
Prowl frowned. "Then we have a problem. Pova has been declared neutral territory by both factions. Release them immediately before the Decepticons use this to turn the Povians against us."
Impactor scowled. "Over my dead body."
Prowl glared at him. "This is non-negotiable. Let them go now; that's an order. Prowl, out."
The connection ended and Impactor immediately held a hand out to Roadbuster. "Gun. Now."
The orange Autobot complied. As Impactor stormed over to the facility where the Squadron X members were being held, Springer knew right away what the Wrecker leader was planning to do.
"Impactor! Wait!" he cried as he got to his feet and staggered after him. But the Autobot he had long idolized and looked up to did not listen. He strode into the cell and locked the door behind him.
Bang.
Springer threw himself against the door.
Bang.
Whirl and Roadbuster looked away in shame.
Bang.
Sandstorm and Broadside turned a blind eye.
Bang.
Rack'n'Ruin was unreadable as ever.
Bang.
The door gave way and Springer fell through. He looked up and saw, in horror, that he was already too late.
Standing there was Impactor. And at his feet were five murdered prisoners of war.
-
The last scene is based on a flashback from IDW's Last Stand of the Wreckers comic series.
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