CHAPTER FIVE
--Necroworld--
"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Brainstorm held up his hands in defense. "It was stupid, I know. I was just trying to save the person I loved -- and everyone else. Surely even you, a Prime who's a hundred times older than me, would understand."
Vector Prime smirked as he raised an optic ridge. "Pardon? Oh, the Megatron business." He let out a chuckle, which only made Brainstorm more fearful of his life. "Luckily for you, all of that was preordained. You would have never been able to accomplish your goal. It's impossible to rewrite history like that."
"Oh." Brainstorm tentatively lowered his hands. "Then why...?"
"It's all of this other scrap you've caused. With Dion and Star Command."
"Oh. Right. That." Brainstorm rubbed the back of his head. "You do know I didn't intent any of that to happen?"
"But it did," Vector said. "And it was all thanks to you, for creating that briefcase."
"So, what, you're going to punish me?"
"No, I'm here to pat you on the back. Of course I'm here to punish you!" Vector rolled his eyes. "For spark's sake, what do you even think is my job?"
"Okay, but... if you're going to punish me, then what about Shockwave?" Brainstorm asked. "He's the reason Dion ended up in the future in the first place."
"Only because you wiped his memories," Vector said. "But don't worry, I'll get to him. Right now, however, you take priority."
With that, the ancient Prime reached behind his back and drew a massive blue sword. Brainstorm's optics went wide in horror.
"Oh, god, you're seriously going to kill me. Please, just make it quick. Don't draw it out. I'm too smart to--"
"Relax, I'm only opening a dimension gate." With his sword, Vector Prime sliced the air, tearing a rift through time and space. Through the resulting portal, Brainstorm saw nothing but empty blackness.
"In you go," Vector said.
Brainstorm frowned. "How... how long do you plan on keeping me in there?"
"I haven't decided yet. Get in."
"Like, can I at least take a book to read or--"
"No." With one push of his hand, Vector Prime sent Brainstorm plunging into the endless void, closing the portal behind him.
* * *
"Whoa."
Krok glanced at Spinister as he headed up the ramp of the Alchemor. "What is it?"
"I just saw an Autobot disappear."
Krok followed the helicopter's gaze. He saw a lot of Autobots, but none of them looked like they or anyone they knew had just disappeared. Rolling his optics, he continued onto the ship.
"Come on, you lug. Let's go."
"Are you sure we should leave so soon?" Fulcrum asked, waiting for him on the ship. "Wouldn't that look suspicious?"
"Let them be suspicious," Krok grunted. "It's by time we returned to our regular affairs."
"So long, my love!" Misfire cried out from behind the raising ramp. "May your sensuous flame never flicker or fade!"
Fulcrum glanced at Krok. "I take it Flamewar's staying behind?"
"Of course she is. She's found her beloved Megatron. Why would she stick around with us?"
Fulcrum merely shrugged as the ramp slammed shut and the Alchemor began to lift off from the ground.
* * *
"The Axiom is gone."
"So I've noticed," Ratchet muttered, standing outside the Necrobot's fortress with Optimus Prime.
"So is Dion."
"That I hadn't." Ratchet glanced at the Autobot leader. "Think the two are connected?"
"They must be," Optimus said. "But, seeing as I'm hardly an expert on time travel, I can't even begin to speculate where they've gone to."
"Brainstorm might know a thing or two." Ratchet scanned the crowd for the bot in question. "I wonder where he's gone to...."
"Prime?" Both Autobots turned to see the scientist Que rush up to them. "I've just called Prowl. The Secret Service should be on their way."
Optimus nodded. "Good thinking. That would help us a lot in sorting this out -- not just the Axiom business, but the Secret Order's remnants as well." He stopped to think for a moment before saying, "Does Prowl know about Megatron?"
"Yeah, he was there for all that," Ratchet said. "Which reminds me, I should probably go check on him."
While the medic headed back into the fortress, Que returned his gaze to Optimus. "By the way, you haven't seen Skids by any chance? I had just been speaking with him when he suddenly got up and left."
Optimus shook his head. "I don't recall seeing him."
"That's unfortunate. I'm sure Prowl will want to speak with him and Getaway."
"I'm sure you'll find them. They couldn't have gotten far," Optimus said. "Right now, however, I need to find Brainstorm."
"That's strange," Que murmured, scratching his head. "I had been just talking with him...."
* * *
"Just breathe, pal. Just breathe."
"We're robots, Getaway," Skids replied, holding his head in his hands as he sat slumped against the wall. "We don't breathe."
"You know what I meant. Look, just calm down." Getaway grabbed his friend by the shoulders. "You're shaking and overheating. Whatever it is that's got you like this, just stop thinking about it, okay?"
"I killed them, Getaway." Skids' voice came out so soft, Getaway could barely hear him. "I killed them all. He tricked me. I trusted him."
"Look, I'm sure we've all made terrible mistakes," Getaway said. "Primus know I've made plenty. Where do you think I got my name? First thing I did upon coming online was make a break for it. I'm sure that cost a few lives."
Skids remained silent, his trembling only somewhat lessening. Getaway wished he could call Rung over, but the psychiatrist was outside with everyone else, and Getaway didn't have his comm frequency. He knew it wouldn't do his friend any good to drag him out and show everyone how much of a wreck he was.
"Domey? Are you in here?"
Getaway looked up to see Rewind coming around the corner. Upon seeing the two, the archivist stopped dead in his tracks.
"Oh. Sorry, never mind. I thought--"
"Wait, don't go!" Getaway said, rising to his feet. "Can you go fetch Rung for me?"
"Why?" Rewind asked. "Can't you go get him yourself?"
Getaway shook his head. "He's outside with everyone. I don't want to drag Skids out there while he's like this."
Rewind tilted his head to the side. "Skids?"
"Yeah, Skids. Come on, you know Skids! Why are you giving me that look?"
"I don't see him."
"What do you mean you don't--" Getaway turned around only to see that Skids was, in fact, no longer there. "What the--? He was just there! You didn't see him leave, did you?"
"I didn't see him to begin with," Rewind said. "And since we're on the subject of missing friends... have you seen Chromedome by any chance?"
* * *
"Hey. Fancy seeing you here."
Skids twisted around in the void's zero-gravity, eventually spinning around to come face to face with a familiar teal mech.
"Brainstorm?" he exclaimed.
"Know any other geniuses who've invented a time machine?" Brainstorm asked. "Because I sure don't, so I have no clue why you're here."
"Some Vector guy told me off for traveling to the future," Skids muttered. "I mean, as far as I know, it was all for the better. I saved Earth, didn't I?"
"True heroism is never recognized."
Skids spun himself around again... and saw a face he never expected to ever see again in his life.
"Of anyone," Viral said, "I would be the first to tell you that...."
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