TEN: THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS
Moments ago…
“I can’t believe we’re doing this. This is crazy.”
“Well, sometimes, Rattrap, crazy works.” Primal Major regarded the massive monolith that loomed over the gathered Maximals and Dinobots. He then looked over at Rhinox. “What do you think? Is it doable?”
“I’m sure it is, but ‘doable’ is much different from ‘recommended.’” Rhinox shook his head. “But I suppose we don’t have much choice, do we?”
Much time had passed ever since the Battle of the Savage Land had left them all stranded on an unfamiliar Earth, possibly stranded far in the past or far in the future. With Tigerhawk hunting them down, they had managed to flee the planet aboard the space-capable Sky Lynx and made it as far as they could on whatever fuel the massive Autobot had left. This brought them to a remote asteroid which, as luck would have it, a triangular monolith which Rhinox recognized as a prototype space bridge. Upon further analysis, he deduced that the prototype also had quantum capabilities which, theoretically, could bring them back to their time… or destroy them all. Whichever came first.
It was a risk, Primal knew. But it was a risk they would have to take.
A few minutes, Rhinox shut the hatch under which he had been doing his work, and a green portal materialized within the monolith’s archway. “Well, moment of truth I guess. In case anything goes wrong, it’s been an honor serving with you all.”
“Ah, don’t get mushy on us,” Rattrap muttered. “I still think we’re all gonna—”
Cheetor whacked him on the head. “Shut up already.”
Primal glanced at the Dinobot leader Grimlock, who watched on with his arms crossed. “Ready?”
“Always,” Grimlock grunted back.
As one, Maximals and Dinobots drew their weapons and stepped into the portal, ready for whatever awaited them on the other side.
Functionist Cybertron, now
“Huh,” Sari said, once Primal and Grimlock had finished telling their tale. “I can’t tell if that is more or less convoluted and convenient than ours.”
“We can decide on that later,” growled Grimlock. “Right now, let’s use this machine thing to get back home.”
“Wait! We still need to get Prowl and the others!”
“And where are they?” asked Primal.
“Back in Kalis. They’re being besieged by the Functionists’ forces.”
Nine-of-Twelve groaned as he got up from where Six-of-Twelve had blasted him. “There is… a way to relocate the Cog. We would have to access the control center, but only Six-of-Twelve has the access code.”
“Well, good thing we have him right here.” Sari looked over at the blue and gold councilor, who was still unconscious after Primal had blasted him. “We would need to wake him up, though.”
“Is that the Matrix?” Grimlock asked, pointing at the councilor’s oddly shaped head.
“Yes,” Nine-of-Twelve said. “We claimed it following the death of Sentinel Prime in our universe.”
“It’s fake then.”
Nine-of-Twelve blinked. “What?”
“Real Matrix was lost long before Sentinel Prime came around. Wasn’t found until Optimus Prime discovered it after Sentinel’s death.” Grimlock nudged the unconscious Six-of-Twelve with his foot. “It’s fake.”
Nine-of-Twelve held his head in his hands, reeling from the exposure of yet another lie. Sari looked from him to his blue and gold counterpart. “Well, in any case, we need him to get to the control center. Bug Bite, can you mind-control him or something?”
Bug Bite sighed. “I could… but I don’t need. I already know the access code… and I know what’s waiting for us in the control center. Or rather, who.”
Nine-of-Twelve slowly looked up. “What do you mean ‘who?’”
“It don’t matter.” Grimlock hefted his sword over his shoulder. “Take us there now so we can get this over with.”
“Fine,” Bug Bite said. “But it will be your funeral….”
* * *
“Look, I’m just gonna say it,” Maverick said. “It’s really unfair to bring a combiner to a fight.”
“Fascists don’t care about fairness,” Knightride muttered.
“Point taken.” Maverick transformed to his jet mode and took off, firing missiles at Grand Convoy’s massive gestalt form. Bad Boy and other aerial members of the Anti-Vocationist League joined in as well, although none of their attacks had any effect on the combiner. On the ground below, Knightride, Prowl, and the others held the line as they defended the statue of Adaptus from the Primal Vanguard. However, as Prowl analyzed all of the moving parts, he quickly saw that it was going to be a losing battle.
“He has a point,” he said to Reverse Convoy. “At this rate, Grand Convoy will be on us in no time and we’ll all be scrap.”
Reverse Convoy fired his shoulder cannon before glancing down at Prowl. “They’re not the only ones with a combiner. Motorvators, form up!”
Three members of the AVL—Flame, Gripper, and Lightspeed—broke away from the others and joined up, converting their bodies as they did so. Flame and Lightspeed formed two large legs while Gripper… stayed exactly as he was. With his proportionally small arms hanging uselessly to the side.
Prowl frowned. “That’s our combiner, huh?”
Reverse Convoy shrugged. “It’s better than nothing, I’d say.”
Drawing a large sword, the Motorvator combiner marched towards Grand Convoy. Prowl could see Gripper’s strained expression as he tried to swing the sword at his opponent, only to miss and drop the sword. In response, Grand Convoy clapped two large hands over Gripper’s head and crushed it instantly. Flame and Lightspeed disconnected from their fallen comrade before being stomped on by Grand Convoy.
Prowl looked back up at Reverse Convoy. “Any other bright ideas?”
Reverse Convoy sighed. “It always was a long shot. We do have one last weapon… but it will only be used as a last resort—when the battle is all but lost.”
“Let me guess: the statue is rigged to explode.”
“Exactly. When I give the order, all survivors will clear out while I detonate the trigger—it’s wired into me. If I die before then, then the bomb will go off anyway after sixty seconds.”
“Will it accomplish much?”
“Not as much as I would like… but more than if we surrender now.”
Prowl nodded. “Then let us make the best of what time we have left... however much that is.”
* * *
“Hey, I don’t think you’re authorized to—”
Sludge punched a hole through the Functionary’s chest and the security officer crumpled lifelessly to the ground. Bug Bite then approached the door to the control room and input the access code. The door slid open to reveal the spiraling staircase.
“Eh, I don’t think we can all fit through that,” Rattrap remarked, glancing at Grimlock and the Dinobots.
“No matter,” said Primal. “I’ll go in with Gigawatt, Sari, Cheetor, and Bug Bite. The rest of you stand guard here and take care of any opposition that comes along the way.”
“Oh yeah.” Slag pounded his fists. “We’ve got that covered.”
“I will join you as well,” said Nine-of-Twelve, dragging Six-of-Twelve who was starting to wake. “I want to see who it is that my colleague has been hiding from the rest of us.”
“Very well.” Primal converted to his gorilla form and began to climb down the stairs. “Let’s go.”
Sari followed the others as they made their descent down the spiraling staircase. Before long, they came out into a wide open room which seemed to encompass the entire bottom level of the Cog. At the center of the room was a mechanical figure encased in some sort of metal cloak, hanging from the ceiling on some sort of cable or control arm. As Primal and his group made their approach, the figure turned and led out a cold laugh that caused Sari’s blood to chill.
“No,” she whispered. “It can’t be….”
“Ah, Miss Sumdac,” the mechanical figure said. “You are as predictable as they come.”
Gigawatt glanced at Sari. “Do you know this guy?”
Sari could not find her voice to answer him. Primal then stepped forward and transformed to his robot mode, brandishing his swords. “Megatron! This all your doing?”
“To some degree, yes.” Megatron lowered himself closer to the ground, closer to Primal and the others. “However, this universe’s history had already played out long before I showed up. I merely… repurposed it for my own design.”
“This is the universe you told me about earlier,” Sari said. “Where you said you had made another Timemaze.”
“Indeed.” Megatron gestured to Primal and Cheetor. “And I see that you have found out about that other ‘Timemaze.’”
“But… I thought you said that the thing you sent me through was the ‘other Timemaze….’”
“It is the rule of threes, my dear,” Megatron chuckled. “The one on Brigadoon was already there when I found it—no doubt an invention of the Omega Guardians who once resided there. I merely… copied their homework for the one here, and passed the knowledge along to Tarantulas so he could create his.”
“What is the meaning behind this madness, Megatron?” Primal demanded. “What are you trying to accomplish here?”
“Trying to?” Megatron laughed, the sound echoing all around them. “I have already accomplished it! I am merely waiting for history to take its course, just as I have foreseen it. I have already taken command of one Cybertron. With the trio of Timemazes—my Time Labyrinth—I shall rule them all!”
“You’re insane….”
“Am I?” The metal cloak around Megatron unfolded and he dropped down to the floor, spreading the massive wings of his crimson draconic form. “The way I see it, I am the one who has already won, Primal. It is not insanity if what I am doing has already succeeded.”
Nine-of-Twelve shook his head and he shoved Six-of-Twelve forward. “Unbelievable,” he muttered. “This is who you have been answering to, Six-of-Twelve? This… madman?”
“He… he is the herald of Primus,” Six-of-Twelve murmured, falling to his knees. “Sent down from the heavens… as he did in the Age of Wrath. The last of the Thirteen… Megatronus Prime.”
“Megatronus?” Nine-of-Twelve exclaimed. “The Fallen Prime? You pledge yourself to a spawn of Unicron!”
“It has been written in the Covenant of Primus! The Great Dragon… a mighty warrior….”
“Poetic words, indeed,” Megatron said. “But they were ultimately a means to an end. Besides, I never did like the name Megatronus. It is almost as bad as Gnashteeth….”
Six-of-Twelve looked at him. “But… you spoke to me. Through the Matrix… you said to me—”
“I am afraid that the bauble you wear on your head is nothing more than that: a bauble. Besides….” A wicked grin crossed Megatron’s face as his chest panels began to split and slide open, revealing the true Matrix of Leadership resting deep within his chest. “The real one is right here.”
“Heretic!” Nine-of-Twelve’s optic began to burn. “You shall pay for your blasphemous acts!”
He fired a beam of energy from his optic. Megatron deflected it with one of his wings before lunging forward. With his left arm, which ended with the head of his dragon mode, he grabbed Nine-of-Twelve by the head and closed the dragon’s mouth, crushing the Functionist’s cranium. He then kicked Six-of-Twelve down and planted his foot on the other councilor’s chest. With his right hand, he grabbed one of the false Matrix’s handles which hung from the side of Six-of-Twelve’s head, and pulled hard. The blue and gold Functionist’s head came clean off and Megatron tossed it to the side.
“Now then….” He transformed to his dragon mode and turned to face the others. “Where were we?”
Primal Major let out a battle cry as he charged at Megatron, swinging his blades at the dragon. The Predacon wrapped his wings around himself as his Maximal counterpart bashed them against their blades form. From behind Primal, Gigawatt and Cheetor raised their blasters and opened fire. The laser bolts bounced off of Megatron’s crimson armor and he spread out his wings to knock Primal aside before charging at the two of them. He swung his tail around and bashed Cheetor aside while Gigawatt managed to duck and roll under the dragon’s large body. Landing beneath the beast, he fired at a weak spot in Megatron’s armor and the dragon bellowed out in pain as he reared back.
Sari made her move next. Deploying her energy blades, she flew at Megatron and began slashing at his dragon mode’s head. Growling in annoyance, Megatron transformed back to his robot mode and reached out with his right arm to grab her, only for her to move away in time to avoid his grasp. Primal then seized the opportunity to jump up onto the Predacon leader, wrapping his arms around his neck.
“This ends now, Megatron!” Primal declared.
“It will end when I say it ends!” Megatron reached with his dragon arm and grabbed the Maximal leader, pulling him off and throwing him to the ground. “You have already lost! THIS IS MY FUTURE!”
A small, nail-shaped object zipped through the air and pinged harmlessly off his head. Narrowing his optics, Megatron slowly turned to see Bug Bite standing there, having fired one of his cerebro-shells.
“Oh, Bug Bite.” The Predacon leader shook his head. “You could have avoided this all had you simply kept your wild ideas to yourself.”
Bug Bite stared up at the dragon, fear evident in his wide optics. “I just… I just wanted to go home….”
“Don’t we all?” Moving faster than anyone else could comprehend, Megatron grabbed Bug Bite and hoisted him up in the air, holding him by his head and legs. He pulled on either end and ripped the Renegade in half, dropping his remains to the floor.
As he watched the carnage unfold, Gigawatt got up to his feet and looked around the room. He saw no other machinery other than Megatron’s now-unoccupied harness. If this was the control center, and thus the only means of relocating the Cog, then he figured it had to do with the harness. With Megatron still momentarily distracted, he rushed over to Primal and helped the Maximal leader up.
“Keep him preoccupied,” he whispered. “I’m going to try and connect myself with the harness. It might be the only way to take control of the Cog.”
Primal grunted as he gripped his swords. “We’ll do what we can. Just try to be quick, because I don’t know how much longer we can—”
A stream of fire came in their direction and the two bots quickly dove to avoid it. Not wasting any more time, Gigawatt made his way for the harness while Primal, Cheetor, and Sari fended off Megatron. Grabbing onto it by its unfolded wing, he managed to pull it down and place the helmet over his head. Instantly, a readout appeared before his optics as the harness linked up with his brain module. Using his processor, he managed to access all of the controls to the Cog, from its communication all the way to its physical transportation.
Not only did he see how to move the Cog, but he also found an override command for all orders of the Functionist Council, which included the deployment of the Primal Vanguard. With a single command, he was able to send an order for withdrawal to the Vanguard unit that had been deployed to Kalis. He only hoped it would be enough to save Prowl and the others.
Then, he worked on relocating the Cog. Engaging its thrusters, he began to move it over the city of Iacon, projecting a course over Proximax and Kaon as it made its way towards Kalis. He had no idea how fast it was moving or how long it would take, but hopefully it would be—
He suddenly felt himself ripped out of the Cog’s mainframe as Megatron tore the harness off of him. He tore the entire assembly off of the control arm and tossed it to the side before storming towards Gigawatt.
“I have had enough of your interference.” Megatron raised his dragon arm and opened its maw. “Say hello to your friends in the AllSpark!”
Gigawatt saw a ball of energy began to form in the dragon’s mouth, and he thought for sure his life was flashing before his eyes. Just as Megatron was about to fire, Primal jumped over Gigawatt’s head and landed straight onto Megatron’s chest. The energy beam fired from the Predacon’s arm but it missed Gigawatt’s head by mere inches.
With both hands, Primal grabbed the panels of Megatron’s chest and, with all of his might, pried it open. Megatron tried to pull the Maximal leader off of him but Primal managed to grab a hold of the Matrix within the Predacon’s chest, and he pulled it free as he fell off of the dragon’s body.
“No!” Megatron fell onto one knee as he stumbled towards Primal. “I will not let you take this away from me!”
Primal held the Matrix high above his head, and for a moment Gigawatt felt as if everything had come to a standstill. The Matrix bathed the room in light as he, Cheetor, and Sari all looked on in awe. Megatron’s face twisted in rage as he lunged forward, only to be knocked back by a flash of light.
Slowly, the panels of Primal’s chest open and the Matrix fell safely into place within its chamber. The Maximal leader’s body then began to evolve before everyone’s eyes; his body expanded and grew, parts shifting in ways they had never shifted before. Black armor plating turned into a shade of blue, accompanied by larger outer shells colored in orange.
Mighty fists came down onto the ground as Primal’s transformation completed itself. He rose to his full height and he towered over everyone, including the weakened Megatron.
“No….” Megatron was shaking his head, incredulity permanently etched onto his face. “This wasn’t what the future showed me….”
“It did show you this, Megatron.” Primal’s voice echoed with a gravitas it had never carried before. “It just left this part out.”
He grabbed Megatron by the wings and hurled him at the wall. The Predacon’s body tore through the metal and he plummeted towards the planet below as it moved at high speeds across Cybertron’s surface.
“Huh.” Cheetor stared on in awe. “Now that, I would say, is just Prime.”
* * *
Grand Convoy stopped midstride as he made his way towards the statue of Adaptus. Just moments ago, he received a message straight from the Cog—headquarters of the Functionist Council—ordering him to stand down. At first he had thought this to have been some sort of glitch, until he noticed that the Cog itself was making its way towards the city-state of Kalis, coming in from just over the horizon.
Confusion ran through his processor as he attempted to contact his superiors directly. “Six-of-Twelve, this is Grand Convoy. I am requesting confirmation for the order of withdrawal.”
No response came. His suspicion that something was wrong only grew stronger. Narrowing his optics, he returned his attention to the statue and pressed ahead with the assault.
Only there was one problem. He could not move. He looked down at the legs of his combiner form; no matter what he willed his components to do, they refused to budge.
“Rook? Streetwise? I order you to—”
Without warning, his arms suddenly fell off as Groove and Alpha Bravo disconnected from him, converting to their robot modes. Seconds later, Rook and Streetwise did the same, and Grand Convoy fell to the ground. As he struggled to get back up, he looked up at his four guardsmen with an incredulous expression.
“What are you doing? I command you to—”
“It’s over, Commander,” said Streetwise. “You heard it from the Council yourself.”
“That wasn’t from the Council! Until I hear word from Six-of-Twelve or any of the others, we—”
“It really doesn’t make a difference,” said Rook. “To be honest, we were just waiting for an excuse to stand down.”
“Yeah, man,” said Groove. “Make love, not war.”
Grand Convoy growled as he pounded the ground with his fists. He turned to the rest of his army, ready to order them to execute the traitors as well as the AVL… only to see his worse nightmare unfold. The rest of the Vanguard were laying down their arms as well, while the Functionaries were shutting down into stasis… something which could only be done by the Council themselves.
Streetwise was right. The battle was over. Life as he knew it was over.
Grand Convoy fell onto his back and simply stared at the sky as the Cog eclipsed the sun.
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