All right, let's try this again....
PROLOGUE
Elpasos
With the galaxy becoming increasingly more prejudiced against machines with every passing year, one had to count themselves lucky when they found a planet that was friendly to such machines if they were one themselves. Elpasos was one such planet, located within the territory of the Vestial Imperium. Here, mechanoids of all types could be found from across the galaxy, ranging from Catharsians to Lithonians to Stentarians. There was also the odd Cybertronian as well, but even here they were often shunned due to the damage that their war had caused to many worlds within the Imperium, even if it had been officially ended close to three years now.
Still, despite such prejudice, no one gave Bug Bite any trouble as he made his way through the streets of Elpasos. It helped that many of the denizens had already spotted him with the rest of the Mercenaries earlier and seen how big the guns they carried were. Even if he was alone this time, none dared bother him lest he called in for his bigger and larger friends. This was for the best as Bug Bite could not afford to have any of the others present at this time, for it would jeopardize everything.
Doubledealer’s meeting with the so-called “freelance peacekeeping agent” Death’s Head had not gone as planned. Apparently Doubledealer’s idea of a “fair deal” was very different from how Death’s Head perceived the term and the two parties had parted ways on less-than-friendly terms. Frankly, Bug Bite could not have cared less how the deal had went; he just needed an opportunity to have a private conversation with Death’s Head himself. As soon as he and the others had gotten back to the Fool’s Errand, he had made an excuse about having “forgotten” something back at the meeting place and he had left before any of the others could grumble and protest. It wouldn’t matter to him if they ended up leaving the planet without him; he had plenty of experience with improvising means of travel.
As he stepped into the saloon, Bug Bite found Death’s Head right where the Mercenaries had left him. The large mechanoid had a devilish appearance, with two red horns sticking out from a chrome skull and steam emitting from a grill-like mouthpiece. Covered in blue and yellow armor plating and armed to the teeth with guns, swords, axes, and maces, it made sense that Doubledealer would have wanted someone like Death’s Head on his side. Unfortunately, Doubledealer was simply not as good at making deals as his name may have suggested.
As Bug Bite approached Death’s Head’s table, the freelance peacekeeping agent briefly glanced at him before returning to the can of fuel he was drinking from. “Already told you. No deal. Now get lost, yes?”
“I’m not here for that,” Bug Bite replied. “You know why I’m here, Death’s Head. We agreed upon it.”
“You’ll have to refresh my memory, little one. You Cybertronians all kind of blend together in my head after a while that I forget which ones I’m dealing with on the side.”
Bug Bite sighed exasperatedly as he took a seat opposite from Death’s Head, feeling somewhat dwarfed by the other mechanoid’s size. “I know your secret, Death’s Head. I know you’re not from this reality.”
“What gave it away?” Death’s Head grunted. “The fact that I killed my counterpart so I wouldn’t have to deal with copyright infringement suits? Lawyers are a headache no matter what universe you’re in.” He took another swig from his fuel can before slamming it down. “Point is, it’s not much of a secret, no? Most people who know it either don’t care or don’t believe it. And those that do are smart enough not to do anything about it.”
Bug Bite could tell that those last words were pointed at him, but he didn’t care. He wanted to get straight to the point. “Look, what I want to know is whether or not you can travel back to your home reality.”
“I can,” Death’s Head replied. “But I know what you’re about to say next, and I hate to break it to you but it’s a two-way street. I can travel from my reality to this one and back, and that’s it. No other cross-dimensional shenanigans. The T.V.A. doesn’t want me messing around too much, and it was a pain in the arse just to get them to let me travel at all in the first place.”
Bug Bite narrowed his optical sensors. “Fine, whatever. Fortunately, I have already made my calculations and I have narrowed down that what I’m after just so happens to be in your home reality… which means you’re the perfect person to go and get it.”
“Hnn. Flattering. So, how much are we talking in terms of pay? I trust you won’t lowball me like your boss….”
Bug Bite grinned. “Oh, hardly. How does ten million credits sound to you?”
Death’s Head stared blankly at him, an unconvinced look in his eyes. “Do you even have that kind of money?”
“You can amass a lot when you keep a low head for nearly a thousand years. Do we have a deal?”
Death’s Head continued to stare at him for a moment before shrugging and leaning back in his seat. “Sure. Might as well. Especially since I’ve already agreed to it.”
Bug Bite frowned in confusion. “What do you mean by that?”
“Because we’ve already had this conversation. Your timeline just got reset. Overwritten. Of course, you can’t perceive it because you’re a native, not an outsider. Perks of being a dimension hopper, yes?”
This time, it was Bug Bite’s turn to stare silently, a nonplussed expression on his faceplate. Disregarding the former Decepticon’s confusion, Death’s Head took one last swig of his drink before setting it down and getting up from his seat.
“Ten million credits, eh? Hope it’s worth it for you.”
“Wait,” Bug Bite said. “Don’t you want to know what it is you’re looking for?”
“Like I said, we’ve already had this conversation. I already know what my quarry is. Or, rather, who.”
Raising his arm, Death’s Head activated a device on his wrist and Bug Bite could only watch as the mechanoid’s body began to glow.
“Gotta admit, it might be nice to visit home again after all these years,” Death’s Head remarked. “See how much has changed, yes?”
Suddenly, a bright blue light enveloped Death’s Head’s body, and just like that the alien bounty hunter was gone. As Bug Bite stared in awe at where Death’s Head had just been, a spindly robot at the saloon’s bar tapped a digit impatiently as he leaned forward with his other hand on his hip.
“So,” the barkeep said in an annoyed tone. “I take it you’re gonna pay his tab?”
CROSSING OVER
Part 1: A Marvelous World
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