ENTRY 6: PARADOXES
Hnn. This is off the record, yes? You folks will be getting my running monologue now as well as what I recall from the following conversations as I try to piece all of this together.
After I turned in my little homework, Mr. Paradox called me in to his office. Here at the TVA (or at least this particular iteration of it, more on that some other time), Paradox is in charge of tracking disturbances across timelines and universes, dispatching people like me to investigate and address them. Now, I understand that you guys on Earth-1218 had some sort of big blockbuster film released two years ago that depicted Paradox as a, well, not a heroic chap, yes? That’s not this Paradox. I don’t think so, anyway. That one and that particular version of the TVA is in its own corner. It’s canon corner, if you will, yes? This one is different. A bit more… fanatical, if you catch my drift, yes?
Anyways, lately Paradox has become rather, ah, invested with studying realities that center around the Transformers. Maybe it has to do with the events in Earth-9814. Couldn’t tell you. When I came into his office, he seemed rather eager to tell me all about what he had learned. Suppose no one else would listen, no?
He skipped all of the pleasantries and formalities, which I was perfectly fine with, and got straight to the point. “How much do you know about the history of your home reality?” he asked me. “About Earth-9284?”
I told him everything I knew was in those datalogs I just submitted to him. He seemed to have expected that answer as he gave a rather knowing smile.
“I thought as much. The history of that reality has certainly ebbed and flowed over the years, even after we cordoned off the events following the Heroes Reborn crisis in order to make room for elements from Earth-982 as part of our merging process. With the state things are in now after we’ve merged the divergent branches together to create a more streamlined universe, we have run into some… unforeseen complications.”
I asked him to elaborate and reminded him I didn’t much care for “vague-speak.” Thankfully, he obliged.
“One of the branches that we’re still having trouble with was created by the arrival of an interloper from Earth-9884. While seemingly Cybertronian in appearance, he is in fact a resident of Gobotron, the counterpart to Cybertron in that reality. Goes by the name of Bug Bite.”
My audio receptors perked up at that name. I recognized it as the guy who first hired me for the Expanse job. I thought about saying as much to Paradox but thought it best to let him continue, yes?
“Apparently, he and his fellow GoBots had left their home reality to fix a cataclysm that had threatened their world. Bug Bite was under the belief that the Megatron of Earth-9284 was somehow responsible and set about to kill him. His arrival in your home reality at the Battle of Klo created a divergent branch which we had tentatively called Earth-6277. Because some of the divergences were too drastic to reconcile, we had allowed it to remain in a pocket universe within Earth-9284… at least until it was destroyed by an incursion from Earth-4248.”
That number also rang a bell and this time I spoke up about it. Again, Paradox gave me that smug little smirk of his.
“We have since determined the Earth-4248 you were familiar with to be a separate reality altogether, one that is more of a mirror to Earth-9814 to Earth-9284.” (I will forgive you if you are being driven insane by all these numbers, all these 9s, 4s, and 8s. Drove me up the wall as well, yes?) “The one you’re thinking of has since been relabeled as Earth-4108.”
Figures. I kindly asked him to hurry along to the point, yes?
“The point,” Paradox said, “is that these temporal incursions and anomalies caused by both our efforts as well as factors outside of control are creating reverberations that are beginning to reach Earth-9814. In other words, history is about to repeat itself, even if might take on a different form. We have already seen such reverberations from Earth-19505, a reality which appears to be a heavy inspiration for 9814, no doubt caused by that reality’s Shockwave and his machinations.”
I thought back to what Paradox had told me just now, remembering Bug Bite and my encounters with Expanse and his ilk. I then looked at Paradox. “You believe this Earth-4108 might be on an incursion path with Earth-9814, yes?”
Paradox smiled, a bit too cheerful about a threat to a reality’s existence, yes? “Precisely. Even as we speak, certain events are unfolding that mirror those that led up to the incursion between Earths-6277 and 4248.”
“And you want me to stop it, yes?”
“No.” Paradox leaned back in his seat. “I want you to make sure it happens.”
I stared at him. He had to be joking, no?
“Believe me, I was actually about to have you do just that. But a recent missive from He Who Remains has directed us to ensure that this incursion unfold as it may. He believes it may be the only way to determine Earth-9814’s future, given that it has already had its fair share of time incidents as you well know.”
I knew he was alluding to that whole deal with that Sari lass and the Warren. Also, I believe the Shockwave of that reality is also a nuisance when it comes to time travel, yes?
I asked him what I was supposed to do then, to which Paradox said, “We will call you in should anyone from either of these two realities attempt to prevent what is to come. In the meantime, there is one matter we would like you to address.”
“And that would be…?”
“Another native of Earth-9814, a Decepticon named Spacewarp, has been transported to a divergent branch of Earth-1138, a reality which is… particularly interesting but does not need Cybertronian involvement. There also appears to be another Cybertronian from Earth-9814 whom was sent there by Shockwave’s Sigma Project. Both need to be either brought back home or eliminated. Whichever is easiest for you.”
Well, I know which one I prefer, but Paradox’s tone made it sound like the former was preferable to the latter. Figures, yes?
Anyway. That’s where we’re at now, yes? Will return to you with another report after I’ve addressed this situation.
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