Alita glared at him sharply for a moment, then relaxed and leaned
against him. He placed his hands protectively over her belly,
feeling the changes in the figure he knew so intimately.
It was a miracle, and he was awed by it. Alita placed her hands
on top of his own. Smiling slightly, they shut out the rest of
the world, filling their senses with each other and the powerful
love between them.
Chapter Eight
Optimus Prime sat quietly in his cell, deep in contemplation.
Several weeks had now passed since their capture, but he could
not say exactly how long it had been. He felt profound guilt over
the fate of his Autobots. He had made another crucial mistake
by leaving only a skeleton crew behind at Autobot City. He had
known that he was taking a risk, but he was unwilling to station
a permanent garrison until Metroplex's personality program had
been completely installed. He had hoped that the Decepticons would
be preoccupied by the Autobots who remained on Cybertron, but
their capture had removed that obstacle. The Autobots that had
been stationed on Earth now sat slumped in defeat, crammed into
what little room had remained in the cells. They had fought valiantly
against impossible odds, but in the end they had been defeated.
And with their capture ended any real hope that Prime had held
of survival.
He wondered why Megatron had not asked for any information key
to the defeat of those in Autobot City. Perhaps his foe had felt
confident that a direct assault would be successful, or perhaps
he had sensed that Prime would not surrender such precious information,
since it would essentially mean the end of the Autobots. And he
would be correct. Prime could not have sacrificed their future,
even if it meant that Alita and her baby would have had to die.
But now all that was moot -- the Decepticons had done quite well
in their defeat without his help.
So far Megatron had only asked for information on bases long
deserted. This was information that Prime had no qualms about
sharing. He just couldn't figure it out -- did Megatron actually
have a use for the information, or was he only trying to trick
him into lowering his guard? And why had Alita been placed in
the cell with him? Was it so Prime could watch over her, or only
so he could become attached to the unborn child? Prime had no
illusions; he was quite sure that the latter was true. And they
were right -- he loved the baby more each day, and became more
protective towards both mother and child. In a way, it was actually
good that the Autobots had been defeated, or he would have been
hard pressed to choose between the safety of Alita and the security
of his warriors.
Prime had been releasing his information slowly, making sure
that Megatron would uphold his end of the bargain. So far the
Decepticon leader had stuck to it by the letter -- Alita had received
extra energon rations for her child, despite the venomous gaze
of Soundwave, who must view such consumption as a waste of good
rations. And while the male 'Cons, particularly Rumble, Frenzy,
and Skywarp, had heckled the femmes daily, none of them
dared to take their harassment any further. So far, so good.
But what was next? Optimus was becoming increasingly bored. There
was absolutely nothing to do, and while he spent many moments
wondering what would become of them, even that was beginning to
wear thin. He needed something to do.
He soon got his wish, but not quite in the way he desired. Each
day a Decepticon would deliver something, a console to be wired
or a simple program to debug. His curious inquiries were met with
no response. At first he tossed them in the corner, but eventually
he gave in and began to do what he had been told, simply to keep
himself from going stir crazy.
Soon the 'Cons began to take a few Autobots out of the cell each
day in small groups, shackling them and herding them outside.
Prime's outrage was met by a sneer from Megatron and nothing more.
The Autobots were being kept alive, and for that they had to prove
themselves useful. Prime didn't like it one bit, but he didn't
know what else he could do. At the end of each day, his warriors
were returned to the cells. Prime questioned them closely about
what had transpired, but they had little to tell him. Their vision
had been obscured by blindfolds as they had been taken to another
location. Once there, their vision was partially restored, but
only enough to complete their tasks. Prime was particularly confused
about their activities -- they had been put to work molding metal,
welding it together, or setting up computer programs. Sometimes
one or two of the Autobots had returned to the cells with scorch
marks, the punishment for a job poorly done or sabotaged, but
most of them performed their tasks well. They were at the Decepticons'
mercy, and they knew it.
'What are you planning, Megatron?' Prime thought to himself.
'Are you trying to squeeze some usefulness out of us by doing
your dirty work before you kill us? Or is there something even
more ominous at work here?' He dreaded the day he would learn
the answer.
It was not long until that day arrived. As usual, a small group
of 'Cons arrived, heavily armed, to remove a few Autobots from
the cells. What was not usual was that Megatron accompanied them.
As he opened the cell door and beckoned his enemy to come out,
Prime felt a sinking feeling. Whatever these few weeks had been
building towards, it was here. Megatron's plan had borne fruit.
"Come with me, Autobots," he said pleasantly when the
first group had been shackled and blindfolded. Prime took some
solace from Alita's presence beside him. While she was with him,
he could be sure that she was safe. But Megatron's tone troubled
him -- the Decepticon leader was gracious only when he had something
up his sleeve, as the Earthling saying went.
Prime tried to keep track of their route by counting his steps
and noting the placement of each turn, but he soon realized that
they were being led in circles to confuse their sense of direction.
Prime soon found himself completely disoriented. He breathed a
sigh of relief when they were finally signalled to stop. He heard
the approaching hum of a transport, and the pressure of a weapon
barrel as it was pressed into his back. After a moment's hesitation,
he climbed in. Alita's arm rubbed against him, reassuring him
of her presence. With a hiss of air, the transport began its journey.
Prime spent the time worrying about the Autobots trapped with
him and where they were going. The only comfort that he had was
Alita's hand, gripping his securely. Somehow she had managed to
reach out for his grasp, despite the restraints and blindfolds.
His anxiety returned when he sensed their slowing momentum.
He felt one of the guards tugging on his arm to get him to disembark.
He stood and stepped out of the transport, but managed to bang
his shin on the seat. His fists clenched as he heard one of the
'Cons laugh, but he forced himself to relax. Causing a scene would
help no one.
Once again they were forced to walk, but this time they were
being led straight to their destination. Prime began to wonder
if there actually was a destination in mind, or if this was just
to give them exercise while having the fun of confusing them,
when Megatron commanded them to stop. After a heartbeat, the blindfolds
were removed.
Prime's jaw dropped open, shock plainly written on his naked
face. "I don't believe it!" he gasped.
Chapter Nine
The Autobots gasped when they saw what had become of Iacon, their
home and base of operations for the past nine million years.
"What happened?" Firestar breathed.
Prowl looked shocked. "How could they do such a thing?"
"How can this be?" Bumblebee exclaimed.
They all seemed shocked and confused, but none of them could
find the proper words to express what they were feeling.
Alita came the closest. "It... it's beautiful!"
Before them lay the city they knew so well, but it very different
from the way they remembered. Gone were the collapsed ruins, the
shattered glass, the dark shadows cast in the corners. Iacon was
once again the jewel in Cybertron's crown. Buildings stood tall,
and the streets gleamed. It was not quite a golden age, but it
was close. Farther out, they could see that Polyhex had been similarly
resurrected.
"But... but... I don't understand," Prime said weakly.
The purpose for such a restoration was beyond him. It was not
quite a golden age, but it was close. And it was certainly more
than he had ever thought the Decepticons capable of.
Megatron laughed at Prime's confusion. The Autobot could be so
blind sometimes. Prime could not seem to comprehend that the Decepticons
could create as well as destroy. "You see, Prime, we have
our own plans for Cybertron. I wanted you to live until you could
see the first stage completed, and know that there is nothing
beyond our abilities. Our rebuilt planet will serve as a staging
ground for our attacks on other worlds. Soon we will be unstoppable,
and the Decepticons will be heralded as the rightful rulers of
the galaxy."
Those words were what Prime had feared would happen since the
beginning of the war. But he did not dwell on that right now.
If he squinted just right, he could just about see the old nightclub
where two young robots known as Ariel and Orion Pax had spent
much of their time off together. Somehow it reassured him that
it was still standing.
While he was enjoying the Autobots' confusion, Megatron did not
want them out in the open for too long. Although they were securely
restrained, he was not willing to take chances. He ushered the
group, eerily silent in their confusion, back to the transport.
The rest of the day was spent in gathering small groups of Autobots
and taking them to the surface, where the whole scene was played
out again. The shock and confusion of the Autobots never ceased
to amuse Megatron. Still, it had to end eventually when they ran
out of Autobots.
Megatron escorted the guards and their prisoners back to the
cells. He took great pleasure in watching the silent prisoners
being herded back into their confinement. Suddenly something --
or, rather, *someone* caught his eye. His head turned at the flash
of red and blue. She was trying to hide behind some of her female
friends, but he had seen her nonetheless.
Megatron's amusement faded into a gut-wrenching fury. "You!"
he roared.
Crystal shrieked in alarm and tried to hide behind her friends.
Megatron ruthlessly shoved them aside and grasped her by the throat.
"You -- Autobot!" he choked in anger. It was the worst
curse he could think of. "So that was why you asked me so
many questions about my job when we were in bed together. I thought
you were just curious about me. I should have known! The cheap
pleasurebot is an Autobot spy!"
Megatron's grip tightened on her throat, then he abruptly let
go. Her life would end shortly; there was no need to waste his
energy now. "I have something *special* in store for you,"
he hissed menacingly. "But that can wait."
He opened a comlink to all of his warriors. "Decepticons,
attention," he commanded. "This is Megatron, your *leader*,
speaking. We must make preparations. Tomorrow the Autobots will
be executed." He smiled viciously at the cheers his announcement
caused.
end of Chapters 7-9
go to Chapters 10-12
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