CHAPTER ONE
--Over 800 years in the future--
"Captain? For you."
The captain of the Axiom made a sound akin to a sigh, turning to face the crew member. "Is it Blix again? Please tell me it's not Blix. I can only take so much from him."
"No, captain. It's Pox."
"Oh, even better," the captain said dryly. "I wonder what it is this time. Another anti-virus package? More visual modules? I already rejected their request for a French maid outfit."
The crew member stifled a laugh. "Um, no, captain, nothing of the sort. Shall I put them on?"
"Go on. They're still better company than Blix."
The officer complied and in minutes Pox was projecting before the captain. The holographic avatar bore the appearance of what was known as a "surfer dude", complete with long sandy hair, sunglasses, swim trunks, and an overly long and completely unnecessary surfboard.
"Dude!" Pox said in greeting. "How's it hanging?"
"I'm having an unspectacular day right now, Pox," the captain replied. "Please make this worth my time."
"Not to worry, dude! I've just got a rockin' call from our good friend Dion!"
"Dion? Wasn't he sent back to retrieve Megatron?"
"Correct-o-mundo!" Pox pumped their fist in the air. "He's finally gotten back to us! And he's found Megs!"
"Finally. I was starting to worry he had made himself comfortable in the past again. Never send someone back home if you expect them to come straight back to you."
"Um... right," Pox murmured, adjusting their shades.
There was a moment of silence. The captain shifted slightly, studying Pox.
"So... when is he coming back?"
"Uh, that's the problem," Pox said. "He can't. He needs someone to pick him up."
"And what do you expect me to do about it?"
"The Axiom has a Transwarp drive, doesn't it?"
"Do you seriously expect me to bring the Axiom and its crew of thousands all they way back through time without causing a -- what do you call it? -- a butterfly effect?"
"Relax, we won't have to stay long. We'll just pick up Dion and Megs and be on our way."
"And if we encounter resistance?"
Pox frowned. "I'm... I'm sure Dion will have isolated him away from any potential trouble."
The captain let out another sigh. It still needed some work. "I don't know, Pox. It's extremely risky."
"Let me put it this way: Dion is friends with WALL-E and EVE."
"I know."
Pox pulled down their shades, revealing pearl blue eyes. "Really good friends."
"I am aware--"
"Like, they literally made him their kid's godfather."
"I get it, Pox." The captain spun around to the viewport and made another disgruntled sound. This one sounded more genuine. "What year?"
Pox raised an eyebrow. "Eh?"
"What year is Dion in?"
"Oh." The avatar grinned. "2015."
"Activate the Transwarp drive," the captain ordered. "We have a tyrant to arrest."
--Now--
"How many?"
"Captain?" the bridge officer responded.
"How many Cybertronians are down there?"
The officer looked over the scanner. "Uh... a lot."
"Give me a number. Words do nothing for me."
"Over two hundred, at least. Might be closer to three hundred. It's hard to tell."
The captain glanced at Pox, who had their eyes behind their shades. "So much for isolating him."
"This is bogus, man," Pox murmured. "Surely Dion would know better. This screws everything up."
"Well, so long as we keep physical contact to a minimum, we shouldn't be too badly off." The captain turned to another crew member. "Patch us through to Dion."
In moments, the viewscreen was covered with Dion's face. The Autobot offered the captain a very weak smile.
"Um, hey, AUTO. Glad you could make it."
"Dion." The captain of the Axiom rotated his wheeled frame as he affixed his scarlet gaze on the Cybertronian. "We have a lot to discuss. But first: Megatron."
Dion rubbed the back of his head. "Um, yeah, about that...."
"Don't tell me you don't have him...."
"No, no, he's here. He's just... in stasis right now."
"No matter. We can simply beam the both of you on board."
"It's... not quite that simple," Dion murmured.
"What do you mean?" AUTO asked. "Is there something you're not telling us?"
"Do... do you mind if I put someone else on? I feel that I can't properly explain this without him."
Before AUTO could answer, Pox said, "Go ahead."
The autopilot glared at the A.I. and was about to reprimand them until he saw a new face join Dion's on the viewscreen. It was one AUTO had been made familiar with thanks to the history records; one that was just as well-known and remembered as Megatron's.
"Optimus Prime." AUTO's single optic dimmed as he regarded the famous Autobot leader. "Very well, Dion. You have my attention. Please, explain."
* * *
"He actually took my advice."
Ratchet glanced at Nightbeat as he stood over the pod containing Roller. "Pardon?"
"Before we left Necroworld the last time we were here, I gave Censere the briefcase, telling him to put it to good use." Nightbeat gestured at the numerous stasis pods containing bots that had been thought dead or lost. "Evidently, he did as I asked."
"Did he now?" Ratchet raised an optical ridge. "Because I'm seeing a lot of bots who honestly should have stayed MIA."
Nightbeat shrugged. "I'll admit I should have been less broad in my request. At least we know he wasn't discriminatory."
"In any case, they're all going to be locked up here for a while," Ratchet said. "It seems the bots Censere rescued suffered side-effects from the temporal displacement. That's why he placed them in these stasis pods."
"Any idea as to when they'll be back online?"
Ratchet shook his head. "Could be anywhere from a few days to a month. It might even vary from bot to bot." He raised a hand to cut off Nightbeat from speaking. "And before you ask: no, we can't remove the pods from here. They're all part of the fortress' structure."
"So what do we do with them once they wake up?" Nightbeat asked. "I mean, the Autobots will be simple enough, but the 'Cons and even some neutrals? I mean, I guess we could use Megatron...."
"I'll take to Prime about it. In the meantime...." Ratchet glanced at him. "I know you can't ask him yourself now... but have you been able to get the answers you were after? About the Primes?"
Nightbeat grinned. "Rewind's going through his database as we speak. He says he'll compile everything he can find and give it to me on a data slug."
Ratchet nodded. "All right. I mean, it's not like I care about that kind of stuff, but as long as you get what you were--"
"Nightbeat! Nightbeat!"
Both bots turned to see Rewind run up to them, waving a data slug in his hand. Scooting to a halt, he handed it to Nightbeat, practically bounding on his feet.
"I did it! I found everything I could. A lot of it doesn't go into much detail, but even on the surface, it's... it's...."
"What?" Nightbeat asked, taking the slug. "What is it?"
"It's beyond words. It reveals that everything we've known for the past seven thousand years has been one giant lie. Everything you know... is wrong."
THE GREATER GOOD
Part 3: The Stains of Time
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