Precious Things

by Phantom

Chapter Ten

Alita followed the crush of robots, which inevitably headed for the shuttle bay and the escape pods. She couldn't have broken free even if she had wanted to, for the crowd was very close to stampeding. She gasped, aghast, as small groups broke out in fist-fights over the pitifully small cluster of escape pods. 'So many of them won't make it out alive!' She stood transfixed in horror for a moment until someone stumbled into her, breaking the spell. She stumbled over to her small craft and pounded on the control panel, but to no avail. A security seal had been placed on the door, locking her out. She slumped against the craft in defeat, feeling resignation swamp over her. She was going to die. She had tried to prepare herself for this eventuality, but now that the moment was here she felt a sort of peacefulness drift over her. Soon she would be reunited with her long-dead friends. Soon she would become one with the Matrix.

Suddenly her body was filled with a tingling sensation, like a limb that had fallen asleep and was now being shaken awake. Something whispered in her mind, too soft to hear, but its message galvanized her. "I can't die now!" she cried aloud. "Optimus -- the others -- they need me! I have a --" The word 'destiny' froze on her lips. She was babbling, spouting out utter rubbish. Still, perhaps it had some kind of benefit, for it forced her to get moving, searching for an escape pod with room for one more. It was utter foolishness, she knew, to try to escape while leaving others to die, but the need to survive refused to loosen its grip. But how on Cybertron would she ever get out alive?

"Alita!" a voice cried. She whipped around, her mind preparing to summon her blaster. She'd been recognized!

"There you are! I've been so worried!" She went limp, almost collapsing with relief as Sport hurried over to her. "I was afraid you wouldn't make it! Good thing you suggested meeting here. Come on, I've got two spaces on an escape pod. The company might not be top notch, but it's better than getting blown to bits."

Alita barely listened, his voice itself sounding like an angel's music. In a strange way, she loved the young Decepticon, affection borne of gratitude.

"Well, looky what we've got here, boys! A real piece 'a work!"

Alita cringed as one of the escape pod's occupants ogled her curves. Gods, it was the Stunticons! Maybe death wasn't suck a bad alternative after all....

"Oh, give it a rest, Motormaster," Dead End said, unimpressed. "If we don't launch right now we'll all suffer a painful, lingering death. Not that that won't happen anyway."

No one stopped Wildrider from taking the controls, since the others figured he'd get them out of there the fastest. Alita tried to make herself comfortable next to Sport, trying to avoid the lecherous stares of the others.

"Yeehaaaah!" Wildrider grinned maniacally as the pod shot out of its berth and into the depths of space, rocketing away from the self-destructing behemoth.

Alita covered her face with her hands, thanking whatever deities existed that her anti-vertigo machinery was functioning. At this rate, she'd end up dead anyway.

* * * * *

"Where is she?" Galvatron raged, bumping into yet another wall in his quest for his escaped victim. He was rapidly running out of steam, finding that his blindness was a bit of a hindrance in his search. A rather unusual thing was happening. Galvatron was starting to second-guess his actions. He was starting to miss Cyclonus, since now he had no one to hit or scream at, or -- not that he ever needed it of course -- to advise him. His ravings merely echoed off the metal walls, coming back to him.

'Do I really sound like that?' he wondered. 'No, couldn't be. That sounds like a madman.' Clarity, long submerged, began to surface. What had Cyclonus said about the ship being in danger? Not that Galvatron was ever wrong about anything, but perhaps it might not be a bad idea to make his way over to the shuttle bay. After all, that's probably where that witch had run off to.

Galvatron stopped short as an ominous rumbling sound reached his audios and knew he was too late. The last of the cobwebs in his fevered mind cleared away, and he knew he was going to die. It was all due to his ill-conceived actions and his failure to listen to calmer heads. Now his capriciousness would get him killed.

He bowed his head as images of him hitting and screaming at Cyclonus flooded his CPU. Why had he treated such a worthy soldier with such contempt? Cyclonus was the one that stuck by him through everything, pointing out holes in his strategy while protecting him from vicious attacks on his character -- or worse, on his person. Cyclonus deserved to lead, not him. And now he would have his chance.

'What irony,' Galvatron thought bitterly. 'My blindness has finally allowed me to see.' Preliminary explosions barely registered in his mind. "Long live the Decepticons!" he cried defiantly. And, in a more subdued tone, "Good luck, Cyclonus." Then, despite his damaged optics, a blinding white flash filled his vision as the ship blew itself apart.

* * * * *

"May you rest in peace, Galvatron," Cyclonus murmured respectfully from his position at the viewport, watching the magnificent spectacle of the explosion. He didn't seem to notice the shockwaves that buffeted his pod, nor the frantic efforts of the crew to hold it steady.

Finally, as if in a dream, he turned to face his elite soldiers that had earned the right to share his escape pod, the largest and best equipped of them all. "Damage report," he ordered tersely.

The technician checked the readouts hastily. "Minimal hull damage," he announced with relief.

"Casualties?"

The tech frowned as he tried to compile the information. "Difficult to say, sir, since it's difficult to scan for individual life forms within the pods, but judging from the figures that I'm getting, we've lost about 425 soldiers.

Cyclonus cursed softly at the news. What a waste of fighting potential. He regretted their loss, but he stuck by his decision to limit the amount of escape pods in favor of enhanced weaponry. He'd had no idea that the ship would be destroyed so soon (or at all, for that matter) and hadn't arranged an escape plan. The Decepticon army had been dealt a harsh blow, and it would take quite some time to recover. The best thing to do now would be to retreat and lick their wounds.

"Open a channel to all escape pods," he ordered, and the technician hastened to obey.

"Attention, Decepticons!" Cyclonus boomed. "This is Cyclonus, your new leader. We have unfortunately lost our revered leader Galvatron in the explosion. He will be sorely missed, and his loss will be felt. As his second-in-command, the position of leadership falls to me. If there are any objections, you will address them directly to me and we will settle them, one way or another."

He was cut off by loud chanting. "All hail Cyclonus, leader of the Decepticons!" Cyclonus had been much preferred to the unstable Galvatron, and, for the moment, anyway, nobody was likely to challenge him.

Cyclonus allowed himself a moment to feel pleased at the acceptance, then continued. "We will withdraw to Seneca Prime for repairs and reinforcements. Believe me, all of you. This isn't over."

end of Chapter Ten

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