Rubyverse

In a security room at Garrus-9 Prison in Iacon sat two seekers. These two had been forged with guns on their arms, and as such, were contracted into guard work. They had been part of Zeta prime’s personal guard for most of their lives but had been transferred to become prison guards a few million stellar cycles ago. Neither of them would admit it, but they both had dreams far beyond guard duty. Thundercracker wanted to write stories that bots all across the solar system would love. Skywarp wanted to start an academy where Outliers like she and Thundercracker could live in a judgment free environment, and train their powers. But for now, they sat eating energon goodies and looking out the glass over the lunch room where most of the prisoners were dining.

“You know he kinda has a point.”

“What.”

“Megatron. Okay listen I know that sounds bad-”

“Yknow if we hadn’t been transferred here we would probably have been executed for failing to protect Zeta”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah…”

“But actually I think you’re right to be honest.”

“THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYIN-”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

They both took a bite of food.

“You ever think about how fragged up it is that some of these guys are in here for literally just sayin scrap?”

“Yeah.”

“You ever think about like. Rebelling?”

“Man- Are you crazy?”

“No cause listen-”

“Yeah?”

“Megatron starts a rebellion, and you been hearing these stories about all the bots who’s lives have improved in Tarn, yeah?”

“Y- Yeah, actually, now that I think about it!”

Neither of them had heard any stories.

“So like, we both hate working here.”

“Hey hey hey I never said I hate working here.”

“Do you?”

“Yeah.”

“Right, so, like, all these bots gotta also hate being in here right? Honestly, it looks terrible.”

“I’m following.”

“So what if we just. Broke everyone out? Who’s gonna stop us? The other guards?? Ramjet and Dirge probably hate it here as much as we do!”

“You know Thundercracker, you’re makin some good points. But how in the name of the allspark would you intend to do that.”

“Well, okay, here’s my thought. You know those guys from the capital riot? The miners from Tarn, right?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“See, we were told explicitly to keep em separated from each other!”

“Okay, and?”

“So I think that something that the big guys above us don’t want to happen happens when they’re all together.”

“Hot damn, dude. I think you’re on to something!”

“So like, we could get them, and probably that big lady Blackout, and, ya know, just Bing Bang Boom- We’re out. We hightail it for Tarn and then we’re home free, ya know?”

“Right, right.”

“But that’s just my thoughts.”

“No I think it’s a good idea.”

Punch was calm, despite the panic. Today was the day. He was finally going to get his big break. Sure his show was popular among citizens, but for the big boss reporters from places like Iacon and Vos, he was just some stupid celebrity. However, if he could expose Megatron’s crimes then he might finally get some respect from his peers. Sure, Rodion was never as strict as other Cybertronian sectors when it came to alt mode castes, but that also meant it was never really respected much. Polyhex was treated like slums, but Rodion was treated like a joke.

Punch glanced up at the display clock, then back down at his notes, then up at his cameraman Dogfight, then to the empty doorway, then to the waiting audience members, then back to his notes.

Punch looked at the camera as Dogfight gave him the thumbs up to indicate they were rolling and Punch immediately composed himself, sitting up right.

“Heeellllloooooo Cybertron, and welcome back to the show! As you all know, we’ll soon be starting our exclusive interview with the leader of the Ascenticon Party, Megatron! If you have anything you’re dying to know, make sure to send in your questions on our site, and I’ll try to get ‘em in!”

A few minutes of filler chatter later, and suddenly, booming steps began echoing down the corridor, leading to a figure in grey armor emerging from the darkness. Some of the audience were awestruck, seeing Megatron in person, and some began clapping, perhaps out of habit, perhaps out of admiration. Punch waited for the applause to die down as Megatron made his way over to the guest chair.

“Everyone please welcome our very special guest today, Megatron of Tarn!”

This time, the whole audience began clapping, except for one in the top most row, who looked absolutely horrified by the massive cannon that was strapped to Megatron’s arm. Megatron caught a glimpse of the dull red metal and the shining blue glass and choked for a second as he thanked the audience for the warm welcome.

As the audience quieted down, Punch officially began the interview.

“So, Megatron, some bots have been wondering what exactly the purpose of the Ascenticon Party is, would you mind laying it out for us?”

“Not at all, not at all. Essentially, we believe that a Cybertronian shouldn’t be limited in life just because of the alt mode they were forged with, and that those that choose to become miners or janitors or guards, etcetera, should be properly compensated for their work, and be given better overall working conditions, instead of being forced to work for measly rations in the dark.”

“Well, I suppose I should ask, didn’t Zeta Prime institute new policies during his early cycles as Prime that abolished the caste system based on alt modes?”

“While that is true, he never worked to enforce it planet wide, only in his home sector of Iacon. In Tarn, our local senator continued to enforce the caste system behind his back. Not to mention, the bills did nothing for those already forced into lower jobs. Zeta Prime laid the groundwork, sure, but he never followed through with it.”

“So would you say that perhaps led to unrest within those working such jobs? Something like, say, murderous intent?”

The audience, who had been previously quietly mumbling among themselves, suddenly burst out in a roar, realizing the implications. Orion couldn’t say anything.

“Are you trying to imply something, Punch?”

“Well, Zeta was killed with a drill type weapon. Many witnesses place miners from Tarn at the sc-”

“Are you saying that just because I disliked him, I killed him? I wasn’t even at Iacon that day, I’ll have you know, I was in Polyhex watching pit matches as I often do in my free time.”

The crowd’s roars grew louder. Orion would later come to regret this moment, as maybe, if he had said something, things could have been different. But he didn’t- he couldn’t.

Punch tried fruitlessly to retort. “I- Well-”

“Are you saying that all miners are the same to you? I suppose you suspect me in the disappearance of the Senators too, hm? You think I’m just some criminal, do you?”

“Well, no-”

Megatron turned to face the camera, pointing directly at it with his finger. “If you wish to live a life free from judgement, free from slavery, a life of unity, where we forge our own destinies, come to Tarn. You will find haven there. I will make sure there are bots stationed around to help anyone who wants to join us do so. The Ascenticons are here for you! Til all are one!”

Clearly, Dogfight took that as a cue to end recording, as he quickly shut off the camera as Megatron moved towards the crowd’s open arms. Orion had disappeared.

A few hours after Punch had been shunned out of the studio surrounded by security, Megatron had told the audience to return to their lives, as he had to as well. He started back down the dark hall, unknowingly about to run into a nervous Orion Pax.

Orion tried to get some words out, but he couldn’t even muster Megatron’s name.

“Sir, with all due respect, have you blown a fuse?” Dion tried his best to remain calm after what he had just heard. “You know there are innocent citizens in Tarn, right? You can’t just-”

“I’m the Delta Magnus, and I’m currently the highest authority on Cybertron. I can do whatever I want, and I will do whatever I can to save the bots D-16 has trapped in that city.”

“You can’t prove that!”

“I don’t need to prove it. I know it in my spark. That monster is assuredly torturing countless people as we speak. You saw firsthand what he did to Zeta Prime.”

“There’s no proof that he did that either. I arrived while Zeta was already dying and there were no traces of Megatron.”

“Oh please, we all know who killed Zeta Prime.”

“I won’t- I can’t support you in this, sir.”

“If you don’t show up on time to drills tomorrow, I will have you arrested for desertion.”

“I’d rather die standing for what I believe to be right than live kneeling to injustice.”

Power gave Dion a look of disgust.

“Dismissed, soldier.”

Dion saluted and walked out of the room. The second he had enough space, he transformed into his armored truck form and began speeding to the medical facility where Orion was.

When he got there, Orion was sitting on the bed, trying to read. Dion pushed through the door, opening his chest door and pulling out the matrix. Orion noticed this and looked up, surprised, before putting down his tablet.

“Dion…?”

“Orion, I’m sorry to thrust this on to you but the Delta Magnus is likely going to arrest me, and I can’t take this to prison. You have to take care of the matrix.” Dion held out the ancient artifact to Orion, who looked even more confused.

“What??”

“He’s going to attack Tarn and arrest me if I don’t help him. Please, take it.”

“I- Uh, okay…?” Orion nervously took the matrix.

Megatron had excused himself from the feast, leaving his officers to continue the festivities as he descended into the fortress. With Ramulus gone, he had quickly moved to ensure that all those living in the slums of Tarn had been moved to the empty living quarters in the main city. Tarn’s own capitol building had been repurposed as the home base for the Ascenticon party. After travelling the halls, Megatron turned into the room he had chosen to use for himself and dismounted his arm drill, leaning it against the wall. He turned to the wash station and looked at himself in the mirror. He saw his hands clenched into tight fists. He saw his face and arms stained with the energon. He saw the rage in his eyes as he had hurt Orion and killed… He saw Zeta’s dying face in the mirror behind him and turned around, frightened, to see…

Rubble.

“You okay?”

A few million solar cycles ago, after his shift in the mine, Megatron had found an abandoned sparkling trapped under a collapsed section. He had rescued it, of course, but due to his assigned caste, he couldn’t officially have children. So, Rubble, as she had been christened, became Megatron’s secret child. He had been good with taking care of her for millions of cycles, but then, just over a week ago, Ramulus had caught him trying to sneak extra rations for Rubble, for what they at least celebrated as her forgeday. Terminus had taken the blame, saying he had asked Megatron to steal extra rations for him. And that led to- Well, Megatron didn’t want to think about it. In the past 10 days, Megatron had shed more blood than he had in his whole life.

“You okay?” Rubble repeated her words, snapping Megatron out of his trance.

He kneeled down to be more level with the bed she stood on, and set down the tray of food he had taken for her. “Yes, dear. I’m fine. Just preparing for my interview tomorrow.”

“Oshkay!” Rubble responded, despite already shoving the food into her mouth.

The door to the room slid open, and Megatron instinctively moved to hide Rubble.

Shockwave stood at the door, bearing repairs and upgrades he and Starscream had been working on since he returned from the Sea of Rust. “Ah- Sorry to interrupt, Lord Megatron. I did not realize you were preoccupied.”

“No, it is alright. I am just used to having to hide… Her… “

Megatron moved aside, revealing a wide-eyed Rubble, still with handfuls of food ready to be shoved into her mouth. Shockwave remained motionless.

“This is Rubble, my daughter.”

“Shello!”

“Greetings, sparkling.” Shockwave did a small bow, a gesture of respect from his days as a senator. “I am called Shockwave.”

“I am shcalled… Shrubble!” Rubble threw her arms in the air, excitedly.

Shockwave returned to his full standing position, and turned to face Megatron. “Are you prepared for your session?”

“Ah, yes…” Megatron stood up and patted Rubble on the head. “I have to go for a while, okay? If you need anything, you know to call Soundwave or Grimlock.”

“Yup!”

It had been a week since the attack on the capital. Orion hadn’t given any details, only that he was attacked and knocked unconscious before Zeta had been killed. The captured ascenticons refused to talk, and apparently Zeta’s final command before death was for Ultra Magnus to hold the matrix so that ‘it may light our darkest hour’. Shockblast and the Dynobots were missing, and when the Wreckers were sent out there, all they found was the blown apart bodies of many of the Senators in a collapsed building. Given the current state of the senate, and the world, surviving senators had been ordered back to their respective cities to manage things, and cities without a senator were following protocol. This of course meant that currently, Iacon was under military rule. Currently, Orion sat in a medical room with Dion. They were watching the news, as the Delta Magnus, Power, was giving a speech regarding all the aforementioned events.

“You know…” Orion knew exactly what Dion was going to say, as much as he didn’t want to hear it. “I know you want to protect him, but this would be easier if you would just tell us what happened.”

“If it were Shockblast, you wouldn’t talk either.”

“Don’t bring him into this, Orion.”

“...” Orion took a deep breath. “Sorry, I’m just… Still on edge.”

“Yeah, we all are.”

First Aid walked in immediately after Dion finished speaking, almost as if he had been listening to not interrupt. “Ah- Ultra Magnus, sir.” He saluted Dion, but Dion simply gave a wave.

“I’m off duty, First Aid. No need for formalities.”

“Right…”

“So…?” Orion looked over, trying to peek at the medic’s notes.

“Well as it stands, it looks like you won’t be in here much longer… You might even be able to walk around later today!”

“That’s great…”

Orion collapsed back onto the bed.

“Thank you, First Aid.” Dion nodded towards the novice medic.

“Of course-” First Aid instinctively went to salute him again, but stopped himself. He walked awkwardly out of the room and the brothers turned their attention back to the news broadcast.

“The mastermind behind these riots- calling himself ‘Megatronus’ after the legend of the fallen prime- has officially taken control of the city of Tarn, and has begun construction of walls around the borders. I urge any citizens who wish to remain safe to evacuate while you still can, lest y-”

Orion had sat up and muted the broadcast before lying back down and turning his head towards the wall. Dion leaned over and placed his hand on Orion’s shoulder.

“I will always be here for you, Orion. No matter what.”

Dion waited a few moments before removing his hand and leaving the room. He could tell when his brother wanted to be alone.

After a few minutes, Orion turned to lay on his back again, dimming the lights in the room to prepare for a short nap. He saw on the muted screen a breaking broadcast from the celebrity reporter Punch, and a headline that mentioned Megatron. He quickly unmuted the broadcast in time to hear what Punch had to say.

“Breaking news, folks! The ex-minerbot known as Megatron has agreed to do an interview on the show!”

Some voice from off camera chimed in “I thought his identifier was D-16?”

“Hey, Dogfight, we’re not monsters, kay? He asked us to call him Megatron so that’s what we’re doing!” He turned back to face the camera “And any of you with any decency out there better do that too!”

Punch settled back into his chair and continued his announcement.

“Now, about that interview. Tune in tomorrow at 3 jumps past sundown to make it in time, we’ll be starting the interview at 3.5! So write it down, kay? Until next time, this has been Celebrity Reporter Punch, bringing you Cybertron’s best news!”

Before this chapter, here's a quick TW for body horror. You have been warned.

Shockblast tried to open his eyes. Questions flooded his mind. Where was he? Why was he tied down? Where was Magnus? So many questions and yet none of them answered. He could hear the whirs of machinery, and, masked by that, the chatter of some robots. He couldn’t make anything out. He tried to open his mouth to call out to them but he found himself unable to. He could barely move. Not out of fear, no, Shockblast was always excellent under pressure. This was different. He heard footsteps approaching him and he didn’t know whether to be relieved or even more scared.

His dilemma was answered, however, when he heard the voice of his fellow senator, Decimus. “Look who’s finally awake…” Huh…?

Suddenly, Shockblast could see again, but his view wasn’t from his own eyes. Somehow, his sight was being broadcast from somewhere above himself in the space he found himself in. He recognized Decimus, standing over a table where Shockblast could see his own body, restrained down, with his head almost entirely disassembled. His eyes had been removed, as well as his helmet. He could see his own processor. As a scientist, he wasn’t unfamiliar with the sight, but seeing his own produced some visceral reaction that he couldn’t even process properly. The entire scene was baffling, to say the least. Shockblast tried to say something, but to no avail. Decimus reached out a hand and stroked Shockblast’s chin. Shockblast tried to move away but he couldn’t. He felt disgusted.

“Oh Shockblast, don’t try to move. It will only make it worse.” Decimus turned around and gestured for someone out of Shockblast’s view to come closer, to which Shockblast saw even more of his fellow senators enter the scene. Momus. Dezarus. Proteus. With each new member, Shockblast grew even more disgusted, and, quite possibly, enraged. He had no idea what was going on but he knew whatever it was couldn’t be good.

Perhaps the thing that scared Shockblast the most in this situation was the cold demeanor with which Decimus, who Shockblast knew for his kind tone and his helpfulness with Shockblast’s career as a senator. “Are you all ready for the show?” to which, the others in the room all muttered various words of agreement.

It was then that Shockblast heard a voice he hadn’t heard since his early days as Senator. One of the first things Shockblast had worked for was the imprisonment of the monster scientist Jhiaxus. Jhiaxus had been doing unethical experiments on other Cybertronians, and when Shockblast discovered this, he made sure he had been put away for life. But here he was. The large rust-orange body of Jhiaxus emerged from the darkness and stepped towards Shockblast’s body as the senators all stepped back.

The senators all offered torturous options for the mad scientist, but Jhiaxus disregarded this. His hands transformed themselves into needle-like implements as he descended on Shockblast’s head. He pulled out Shockblast’s emotion cortex and, still connected to the rest of the processor, Jhiaxus offered it towards the Senators. Decimus stepped forward, grabbed Shockblast’s emotion cortex, and looked up to where Shockblast’s view was streaming to, before crushing the cortex in his hand.

Shockblast felt a rush of every emotion he had ever felt magnified tenfold, and then, nothing at all. He watched as Jhiaxus continued to pull apart and modify his body four hours upon hours. He didn’t feel anything. He had no mouth, and he could not scream.

Shockblast would like to say he had lost track of time when a sudden barrage of blasts shook the room, but he had been doing nothing but counting time. He had watched Jhiaxus and the senators destroy any semblance of Shockblast, performing even outlawed procedures such as the empurata, twisting his body until he had become unrecognizable. At some point, Jhiaxus and the senators had stepped away from the operating table to discuss something out of earshot. It was during this period that Shockblast could hear a large metal door be blasted open and the senators panic as roughly 5… No, 6 sets of footsteps rushed in. He couldn’t see much from his fixed point of view, but he did see one abnormally large bot come up to his body, checking something on their wrist before ripping the straps off his body. The large bot tried to lift Shockblast’s body, before realizing the wires connected to his head. They called over someone called Sludge, and an even larger bot came over, carefully working to reassemble what remained of Shockblast’s head. Shockblast’s vision returned to his actual body, along with the ability to move it. In an instant, his body instinctively lashed out all the pent up movement from the course of the torture. The two larger bots stepped back and waited for Shockblast to calm down. When he regained control of his body, he sat up calmly and turned to the two bots who had freed him from his restraints. From this angle, he recognized them as the Dynobots Sludge and Strafe. He looked around the room and saw some of the other Dynobots battling it out with the senators. Jhiaxus was nowhere to be seen. The Dynobots, superior in size, strength, and combat experience, quickly overpowered the senators. With all the senators unconscious, the remaining Dynobots made their way over to Shockblast.

Grimlock, the leader of the Dynobots, offered Shockblast a hand as he got off the operating table. “Senator, sorry we’re late. The rust storm jammed our signal.”

Shockblast couldn’t respond.

“We’ve been ordered to follow any request you have from here on out that doesn’t conflict with our mission, but I recommend we get out of here before they wake up.” He said, gesturing back to the other senators.

Shockblast couldn’t respond.

“Alright, well, if you don’t start moving, I’ll just have Sludge carry you out.”

Shockblast began moving towards the exit without responding.

“Okay team, let’s get the hell out of here!” Grimlock rallied the other Dynobots and they all made their way out of the door they had blasted open and onto the jump ship that was waiting for them. Shockblast was the last one, and as it began to take off, he saw that one of the senators had woken up and was trying to call to the others. Shockblast was filled with a sensation that can only be described as emotionless rage. He grabbed a bomb off the wall of the ship, and hurled it into the building with strength he never would have thought possible of himself. Two of the Dynobots got up and rushed over to Shockblast, holding him back as the jump ship picked up speed. Shockblast watched, emotionless, as the bomb exploded inside the building, seemingly causing a chain reaction due to the decrepit nature of the place, causing the entire building to collapse in on itself and burst into flames as the Dynobots and Shockblast left the area.

The two that were holding Shockblast back let go after realizing that the senator had essentially gone limp, and the strike team just watched as the construct was destroyed.

A few hours of flight later, and the ship began to slow. Shockblast sat up from the floor and noticed something immediately. They were not in Iacon. Grimlock seemed to notice Shockblast’s observation, as he spoke on it.

“Yeah, sorry for not telling you sooner, Senator. But change of plans. Welcome to Tarn.”

Shockblast followed behind the Dynobots as they all exited the jump ship and stepped into the city. Darkness enveloped them along with the thunderous noise of thousands of Cybertronians going about their life around the mining town. The neon signs plastered across the buildings were nearly blinding, and the wind was harsh. Shockblast looked up and instantly recognized the insignia that Orion and Megatron had designed for the Ascenticon Party flying on a massive banner flowing high above the street. The Dynobots led Shockblast around and to a large building that almost resembled the grant capitol at Iacon, if not a dark reflection of it.

Inside, there was an antechamber filled with supplies in between large granite pillars, and in the main room sat a massive half-moon table, around which sat various faces that Shockblast recognized, and even more that he did not. All sitting at the table were talking and gorging themselves on energon delicacies, all except one. Sitting at the center of the table, notably missing one of his almost trademark toothed horns. Dried energon was stained around the wound.

When Megatron looked up to see the Dynobots and their escortee, he stood up and gave an odd smile. “Ah, Senator! Welcome to the Ascenticon Fortress! I do hope the Dynobots have made your trip comfortable.”

Shockblast couldn’t respond.

“When I learned that you had been kidnapped by your fellow senators, I made sure to send my best men to retrieve you, my friend.”

Shockblast couldn’t respond.

“I’m terribly sorry for what you had to undergo, Shockblast. But soon, our chance for change will come. I can feel it in my servos. Our time is now, my friend! And I would like you to be in my cabinet when glory calls. So what say you, Shockblast?”

Orion Pax sat in the gray shuttle, trying not to think about too many things at once and failing. He glanced around, up to his commanding officer Ultra Magnus, to his platoon mates; Kup, Ratchet, Ironhide, and Chromedome. They all looked apprehensive, and none of them were ready for what would come. While most of them were paying attention to Ultra Magnus’ orders, Orion’s mind drifted from place to place. His friend Arcee had been deployed earlier, to a different smaller riot. His friend Senator Shockblast had gone missing, and the Dynobots were currently venturing into the Insecticon Hives to find him. Were the archives safe or were the violence from the riots creeping into them? But the biggest of all, he knew who was waiting for him at the capital. Megatron, his closest friend. The senate and Zeta Prime hadn’t taken much notice of the Ascenticon movement, but while they ignored it, Orion and Megatron had worked together to gather a large following, and they were going to right the wrongs of Cybertron. Megatron was the first thing in Orion’s life that made him feel like he could actually make a difference. Orion wasn’t sure what happened, but something had led Megatron down a quick and slippery slope, and now there were the riots, and, as Orion feared, the possibility of a civil war.

“Orion? ORION!” Ultra Magnus shouted, startling Orion out of his trance.

“Ah- Sorry sir-”

“You all there, soldier?”

“Yes sir, just worried about the senator is all.” Orion tried his best to hide the fact that he was lying.

“No one’s more worried about Shockblast than I am, but the Dynobots are the best of the best. They have the situation under control, I’m sure of it. Now everyone, heads up. We’re almost there.”

The sounds of violence grew louder as the shuttle slowed to a stop, and the team stood and lined up behind Magnus. The door hissed open, and the noon light flooded inside. Outside, the square around the capitol building was filled with Ascenticon rioters and Autotroopers. Luckily, most of the civilians seemed to have fled. As Orion’s squad ran out of the shuttle to join their comrades, Orion looked around and saw some familiar faces. And, perhaps most worryingly, Elita-1. Orion didn’t have time to wonder why the Wreckers of all were here as he ignored his squadmates and ran off to a side entrance. Inside, the world suddenly seemed relatively peaceful. The noise from the battle outside was muffled by the intricate designs that lined the hall, and the soft sunlight filtered in from the curved glass ceiling. Orion didn’t have time to stop and admire the tranquility however. He had to get to Megatron before anyone else. The door at the end of the hallway led him to a small room full of logs. Not even a fraction of the vast archives nearby that Orion had spent most of his freetime in, but it was still a lot of valuable information.

As Orion made his way through the room and to the door that would get him closer to the main chamber of the fortress, suddenly large booms approached from outside, and Orion barely had time to react before a large figure crashed through the ceiling, destroying everything on its way down and exposing the inner workings of the building. Orion cringed back, covering his opticals, and backed up as he waited for the dust to disperse. As he looked back, Orion recognized what it was. The gargantuan, Devastator. 6 of Megatron’s miner friends, who had volunteered for some secret project and gained the ability to combine their bodies and minds into one big brute. Individually, they weren’t too scary, but in this form, Orion worried about the time delay. If anyone got to Megatron first, the consequences could be fatal.

Devastator opened his eyes and saw Orion standing there, preparing to get up while speaking in his booming voice; “Autotrooper… Devastator, devastate! Hah, hah, hah!”

The giant’s laugh was grating, and Orion had to run quickly to the side as it suddenly plunged a giant purple fist down where he was standing.

“I DON’T WANT TO FIGHT YOU.” Orion shouted up towards Devastator’s blocky face. Orion knew the members personally, but he was unsure if they even recognized him with their minds melted together. The prospect terrified him almost as much as the damage to the archive shelves. Devastator only continued to laugh and attempt to hit Orion as he ran around.

After several minutes, Orion got fed up with the whole ordeal and began looking for something he could use to get out of the situation. He jumped out of the way of yet another punch, and upon landing, noticed a length of chain that must have been dragged in by his colossal foe. He grabbed the chain and waited for Devastator’s next strike, after which, instead of jumping out of the way, he jumped onto Devastator’s hand, and began parkouring his way up Devastator’s arm, using Scavenger’s bucket arm to flip himself up onto Devastator’s shoulder area. Devastator panickedly tried to reach up to grab Orion, but to no avail. Orion threw the chain around Devastator’s thick neck and pulled.

“YIELD, DEVASTATOR.” He shouted to the giant.

The giant only responded with a gargled “NOOO.”

And so, Orion pulled up with the chain, lulling Devastator into stasis, but not to death. As the giant began to fall backwards, his components separated, and Orion had to make a rolling jump so as to not get crushed under their massive bodies.

Orion stood up, and looked at the destruction, sighing. Despite how much it broke his heart to see all the destroyed logs, he had far more important matters to attend to. He made his way through the capitol building until he got to the grand chamber. At the bottom of the massive room, he saw Megatron, accompanied by Soundwave, Starscream, and Thrust, all gathered around Zeta Prime. News screens in the room were talking about the events at various riots, and the movement as a whole. Megatron was holding Zeta, who was limp and on his knees, by the shoulder plates, staring daggers into Zeta’s eyes.

Orion ran to the guard railing that overlooked the steep walls and shouted down, “MEGATRON, STOP!”

Megatron turned sharply, his expression softening the slightest bit at the sight of Orion, before harshening again, as if remembering the circumstances. “And why should I?”

Orion hastily began to run down the staircase, to which Thrust and Starscream began to prepare to shoot before Megatron ordered them off. By the time Orion had made it down, Megatron had left Zeta to be held by his companions as he slowly approached the exasperated Orion Pax.

“You don’t have to do this Megatron, we were going to fix things together! It isn’t too late to stop this!”

“Oh, but don’t you see, Orion? This is the only way. The only way to fix a system that is this broken is to burn. It. Down!” Megatron was suddenly cut off by a news monitor near the ground getting enough signal strength to be heard.

On the screen, renowned reporter and television personality Punch was making lighthearted banter of this situation. “They call themselves the ‘Ascenticons’ See that, Eject, it’s like they want us to laugh at them. Now, we have exclusive info that the main bot behind this movement is some miner bot named ‘D-16’. He doesn’t even have a name, and he wants us to be afraid of him! Ha-” the news screen was blown up by a shot from Starscream, who drew Orion’s attention away from Megatron only long enough for Megatron to become enraged and grab Orion in a similar manner to the way he had been handling Zeta.