#combatrons

“Hey, doesn’t he frighten you, that Megastorm?” The mess hall of the Galvaburg I, the primary Destron flagship, was large enough that the Destron troops who gathered there could feel secure in a sense of anonymity, and conversations like this could arise.

“What, the SIC? He’s nothing but a meek fool.” The mech who’d spoken was an experienced general. Several younger soldiers murmured their agreement, a few laughing quietly, others looking more unnerved to hear such blatant disrespect at the expense of a member of High Command, their leader’s brother, no less.

“You wouldn’t get it! An Autoroller like you always ends up on missions directed by Galvatron. Megastorm’s different when he commands alone.” The Combatron who’d spoken glanced over his shoulder nervously as if the unruly Prince of Destruction might show up at any moment, while his partner nodded in agreement.

“Different, how?” The Autoroller general replied.

“Cold, sneaky… More reserved than our Emperor.”

More troopers approached the table, pushing up seats to listen. One interjects, “Sure. One time I was under his command, he called a retreat because the Cybertrons were acting strange. We thought he was being cowardly, but it turned out they had a new weapon and were planning an ambush. Our squad owes our lives to that call.”

“Feh, as if he could have known. When I was under his command, he went behind Galvatron’s back and ordered a raid of an abandoned Cybertron base. He showed no care when one of us got nearly crushed by disturbed rubble, and when Galvatron discovered his ploy, he tried to initiate the self-destruct to trap our leader inside. We all saw it!”

A shocked muttering passes through the crowd.

“So,” someone says at last, “Megastorm or Galvatron, who would you rather have as leader?”

“Who knows?” Grins another, “but if Megastorm became Emperor, well… I’d want to stay on his good side. Don’t underestimate him, you know?”

"Wise words." The voice that spoke up was tensely authoritative, recognised instantly by the gathered troops, although the speaker it belonged to was known to many as usually speaking in a much higher, more anxious tone.

"M-Megastorm!" The troopers part a path, shrinking back at once under the scrutiny of the Second in Command.

"Megastorm, what?"

There was a beat of silence, then the Combatron who'd started the conversation tentatively said, "Megatron, Prince of Destruction?"