Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Optimus stood behind the crumbled wall that once belonged to a holovid store, now blown out and beyond recognition. He didn't let his back kibble touch the stone, fearing he'd make a noise when moving. The blaster in his servos felt heavy and out of place, but he grasped it securely nonetheless, knowing it was his only line of defense against the mechs that were positioned just beyond the wall. A quick glance at a well placed broken mirror told him that they hadn't moved from their position, still scanning for any signs of the enemy. For any signs of him. 

Optimus wasn't going to let them have the chance though. He'd lived his entire functioning in the South Gate of Iacon. He'd been a bitlet when he saw it fall. And now, fully upgraded, he was avoiding patrols and going into battle against the ones who'd turned the South Gate into a battlefield.

The Decepticons.

Three million stellar cycles ago, Iacon and Kaon had entered a trade agreement in hopes of helping each other out. It was going well until the previous leader of Kaon offlined and was replaced by a new mech called Megatron. Megatron instantly ended the trade agreement and declared war on Iacon by blocking off all of their energon trade routes from his city. The Iacon High Council didn't just let that be and chose to fight back, training soldiers to defend their city-state. Now called Autobots, troops begin to defend Iacon at each of her four gates while some higher ranked soldiers, those called Primes, went beyond Iacon's gates and into the wilds.

Most of Iacon's gates still stood. It was just under one million stellar cycles ago that the South Gate fell. Optimus had seen it happen with his own optics. He'd been playing outside in the streets with some friends when the warning went out of the Gate being breached. They'd all run home scared as blasting and bombs went off. He still remembered tripping and falling as an explosion shook the ground hard. A nearby building had collapsed and nearly fell on top of him.

He would've been offline if an Autobot named Kup hadn't saved him in time. Kup had taken him and another bitlet who hadn't escaped all the way to the shelter. All while dodging debris and bombs and a stampede of Decepticon forces. Optimus still remembers his retreating back kibble when the shelter door closed shut. 

It was several solar cycles later that they'd been allowed out of the shelter. And what Optimus saw was the spark-breaking view of his district half destroyed: burning and covered in smoke and energon and the heavy scent of rust. Optimus had been born and raised in the slums, but that stench of rust was like no other and it burned into his olfactory sensors. Autobot and Decepticon frames scattered the streets, their colors long gone aside from the taunting glow of energon. 

The Decepticons had not taken control of the Gate. They were pushed back but the damage they'd left behind was extensive and loss felt deeply. Optimus never saw his friends after that cycle. He'd lost his creators and habsuite; everything was gone in just one fight. So he did the only thing that he could think of:

He became an Autobot. 

It had taken a long time for Optimus to earn his badge. Given that the fallen South Gate was a slum district, there were no boot camps for young bots who wanted to enlist. No, those were reserved for the lower and mid-caste bots with proper IDs. There was also the Academy but only rich mid to upper-caste bots ever got a chance at attending it. So for the lowest of the low like Optimus, he had to simply wait until he was full upgraded to enlist. He had thought he would be getting proper training once he had enlisted but instead he was given a blaster, a number and a unit he was part of. No drills, no exercises, just thrown straight out into the battlefield with a blaster that was too big for him. 

Honestly Optimus found it frustrating but it had already been over fifty stellar cycles since he started and now he'd gotten used to it. Used to being thrown from one battle field to the next with no plan other than to shoot any Decepticon you see and follow orders. It wasn’t glamorous, not like Optimus expected it to be, but it was highly inefficient and cost more sparks than necessary. But Optimus never brought this up with his superiors. He knew what they'd say. He'd heard it all before when others tried to question them.

'We are all cogs in the Autobot Machine.'

And as a cog, Optimus wasn't about to anger his superiors with a redundant question. 

Which is how he came to be in his current situation. The Decepticons had been far more focused on trying to completely take over the South Gate, sending more and more forces in despite having battle fronts at each of the other three gates. A Decepticon General had even been seen controlling the ranks here and as usual, the only tactics he'd been given were to smother them with waves of soldiers. A tactic that could've been effective under other circumstances but had been drained dry by now. 

But Optimus had no time think of this as the two Decepticons he was trying to avoid finally began to move. They were out of view of his mirror and once he was certain that they had their back kibble turned towards him, Optimus pushed out from the wall, braced himself on a tilted light poll and shot. The rounds hit their mark for the most part, firing high powered shots that could pierce a warframe's tough armor if shot close enough. Optimus feared being within reach of a Decepticon, but if it was the only way he could land a hit, then so be it. 

One of the Decepticons went down with a grunt as the other turned in rage towards Optimus. His movements faltered though and Optimus moved his blaster to a half broken balcony above the charging con. A well placed shot and the stone fell onto its target, trapping them underneath. Optimus turned towards the other Decepticon and saw that they were struggling to stay up, which meant he'd damaged their spinal struts with his earlier barrage. Optimus walked towards this one carefully, keeping the blaster trained to him until he was just a few steps away. 

The con was massive, nearly twice his size and a dark blue. They glared at him, rage pushing itself against Optimus who tightened his grip on the blaster, digits locking as he leveled it to their helm. The con's optics went wide before narrowing as Optimus pulled the trigger. The blast was deafening but the sound of the gray frame hitting the ground echoed through his plating. 

He hated this part. Taking lives was never easy, especially not when Optimus had to do it up close. But if he left them alive, they could come back some other time and kill more Autobots. Optimus couldn't let that happen. So he walked to the one who was trapped under the fallen balcony and once again, shot them in the helm. 

Optimus made it back to his unit's station fairly easy after that. He hadn't seen another Decepticon on his way back but he also didn't seen any other Autobots. He was glad that he couldn't find any gray frames on the ground, but knowing he was alone with Decepticons that could be lurking anywhere, left a shudder in him. Optimus ignored this urge as he entered the small station and was greeted by a servoful of Autobots who all seemed to have had better cycles. 

There were fewer now as there were any time he came back from patrol. Their numbers would dwindle down until a new batch of recruits came in; all from the slums and low caste districts, all wearing shiny Autobot badges that stood out against their unbuffed finishes and chipping paint. If they survived enough battles, those badges would soon match the rest of them, just like how Optimus' did. He unconsciously touched the scratched brand, a simple painted one instead of the physical brand that was reserved for higher ranked Autobots. But it was a waste to spend materials on the low ranked who could offline any solar cycle.

Deep down, Optimus wanted that physical badge. To rise in a rank above his current superior who treated them like fodder and to take control of the South Gate. If he could do that, just maybe he could reclaim the fallen gate and get rid of the Decepticons that littered it. Just maybe he could give these soldiers proper training and drills and a better chance in a fight. Maybe he could save the lives of any new batches that came in and so he could learn their designations before they turned into rusting husks.

But what could he do? He was an untrained soldier who learned to fight from the streets and from holovids and datapads that he'd borrowed from a local archive or found in the rubble. He didn't know anything about tactics… he just knew that what he was being ordered to do was wrong.

"So you survived again, Optimus?" 

Optimus clenched his servos and looked up to face his current superior and captain; a bulky orange framed mech named Duststorm who would rather smoke a cygar than do his job. He was far different from Kup who'd gotten the attention of the Academy after his feat during the fall of the South Gate and some bots believed Duststorm was trying to imitate the old mech. He did it poorly since his bent posture and lack of combat abilities gave him none of the respect that Kup had earned. He'd only gotten this post with credits and that was it. 

"I took care of two Decepticons near the remnants of the holovid store and the patrol near Old Maccadam's has changed to include a seeker." Optimus said, forcing himself to give a salute so not to earn another lecture on manners. 

"Street names Optimus, we've been over this." Duststorm spat, waving his cygar at Optimus as he leaned forward. "Write up your report so I can understand it!"

Optimus took the datapad he was presented and gave a quick salute before heading down a hall. This led to the commons room where he met up with other bots in this area who also needed to write reports but didn't have the ability to read or write like Optimus did. Optimus never thought of how much of a luxury his ability to read was until he met new recruits forged since the fall of the South Gate who couldn't even write their own designation, if they even had one outside their ID number. 

In the end, Optimus typed up not only his report, but also the report for seven other bots who thanked him profusely and promised to pay him back when they could. Optimus laid back in his berth, wondering if he could ever make time to teach them but no, there was no time. Most would rather spend what little free time they had training, in hopes of surviving another day. He was certain most wanted to actually learn, it just wasn't feasible at this time. Just another plan on the back burner in case he ever got his own rank.

The next cycle brought with it a big change. Hadeen had just breached the horizon when the alarm went off for a Decepticon attack. Not a patrol team who were causing trouble but a full scale assault led by a general. It was General Blitzwing who was in charge of taking the South Gate and facing him in battle was suicidal at best. 

Everybot gathered together and the nervousness from their EM fields melded together into one big anxiety pit. They clutched their blasters or makeshift weapons to their chassis as they made their way to the door of the South Gate. It was morbidly quiet as they looked around, waiting for patrols to ambush them from the ruins they were marching through. Optimus kept looking around as well but saw no sign of the Decepticons who usually loitered around. A bunch of Autobots out in the open like this was asking for them to be attacked, but none came. Until they came to the Gate.

A massive wall surrounded Iacon, perfectly smooth and made of white stone. A door, standing tall enough for a city titan to fit through, was nestled so perfectly into the wall it almost seemed like it was carved into it. The gate itself was never opened as there were other ways of entering the city but that doesn't stop it from being an entrance if blown open. Which is exactly what the Decepticons had done.

As they marched closer, Optimus could see the base of the gate, blasted open with scuffs and charred stone all around it. The door was cracked and the new entrance could easily fit five warframes at a time. The inside of the gate was mechanical with wires and plating that no longer functioned as it should. Optimus vaguely remembered some fancy looking mech on a holovid mentioning how they would never be able to repair the gate to its proper glory no long after it initially ell. 

Optimus shook his helm of the thought and watched as they were led to a different passage, hidden in the stone wall that would lead them to outside of Iacon. This wasn't Optimus' first time fighting outside the gate, he had done it twice before in other attacks and they were unpleasant memories. It was flat and dusty outside, small rock formations bring the only form of cover but a down hill climb gave the Autobots some advantage on the ground. 

As long as it was on the ground. 

Leaving the passage from the wall, Optimus looked up to see fliers dotting the horizon. Some were seekers but others were bulkier, including a dark colored copter with a massive cannon on the front. Optimus' audial fins tilted back in dismay. This was going to be a very unpleasant battle and he had a bad feeling that he wasn't going to get out of this unscathed. He just hoped he would be able to go back to active duty if he survived. 

There wasn't really a start to the fighting. Once Optimus got his barings on the ground, the battle began. Blaster fire filled the air as dust began to be kicked up. Screaming from both sides became background noise as Optimus focused on the Decepticon coming towards him. He had no way to brace himself like he'd had before so he knelt down, aimed up and waited for his enemy to get close enough to shoot. It was a dangerous tactic and it didn't work against everybot but it was effective against some. 

He managed to take down two with this move before he had to switch tactics. He was being pushed forward and down the hill by those behind him. It was unintentional but with their numbers and lack of coordination, Optimus wasn't surprised. He hadn't seen Duststorm anywhere when he first arrived on the battle. Not surprising but it made Optimus' tanks twist in disgust. But he couldn't lose focus here, not where one mistake could cost him his spark.. 

Moving to the side, Optimus dodged blaster fire from the fliers close by and ducked under a massive sword from a mech on the ground. He braced his blaster onto his forearm and shot, hitting the chassis plating of this mech who stumbled and fell backwards. It didn't completely puncture the dense armor so Optimus had to clamber onto him to make a final blow to hid helm. It was swift and in the back of his processor, Optimus hated how easy it had become. 

Hadeen rose high up as Optimus realized that he was surrounded by more Decepticons than Autobots. Despite this, they never swarmed him. Instead they came at him one by one, like they were trying to see who could take him down first. Optimus almost wishes they would swarm him. He was tired, littered with damage from his various opponents and he had an injury to his pauldron that was causing him to lose sensation in his right arm. 

Optimus cursed out loud, denta gritted as he used his blaster to block an attack from a bulky femme. She wasn't even using a weapon, using her superior size to back Optimus into a corner. In a last ditch effort to escape this barrage of attacks, Optimus feinted, letting the femme's weight fall over his bad pauldron. She stumbled and before she could recover, Optimus put his blaster to her open side and shot. 

The femme fell back with a hiss, cursing at Optimus who tried to steady his weapon again until the whipping sound of copter blades sliced through the air. Every bot looked up, including Optimus, as the dark colored copter from before hovered above them. They transformed in mid air and Optimus moved back as a massive Decepticon landed before him. The ground shook as he did, red dust rushing away from him as his red optics caught Optimus. 

This was Megatron. 

Fear boiled inside of Optimus and he could feel his tanks twisting. Optimus forced his bad servo to clutch his blaster as he braced himself and aimed at the Slagmaker and Lord of the Decepticons. Megatron found this amusing as he smirked and drew just one of his swords. 

"You seem to be a bit more than mere fodder like the rest of these cyberflies." Megatron spoke. Optimus could hear him clearly, even with static drowning out his audial sensors. "Why don't you show me what all you can do?"

With that, Megatron charged forward. Optimus knew he couldn't guard against this and leapt back, blaster aimed as he rapidly fired. Megatron deflected most of the blows with his sword and the few that hit him, clearly did little more than scuff his paint. Optimus tripped over something and fell backwards and to the ground, just barely dodging a swing of Megatron’s sword. He barely had time to register that it was a gray frame he'd fallen onto and rolled to his side to escape from being under the behemoth of a mech. 

Optimus had seen plenty of warframes but Megatron was truly the largest he had ever encountered. He was at least twice as large as Optimus, covered in dense armor that was spiked and a dark pewter. His helm wrapped around his faceplate and the massive cannon from his alt mode was placed on his left forearm. And despite how much that thing had to weigh, Megatron moved around like it wasn't there. 

For a klik, Optimus wondered why Megatron hadn't just shot him with it. But then Optimus realized that he was doing exactly what the other Decepticons had; he was playing with him. To Megatron this was a game and Optimus was just the unlucky mech who had caught his attention. 

Optimus blocked a sword swing with his blaster and realized then it was a mistake. The blaster broke and Optimus was thrown across the ground. He groaned as warnings filled his hud with just how little it appreciated that. Optimus rolled onto his back and looked up in time to see Megatron above him, sword raised. And before he could react, it came down.

Optimus didn't realize he'd been cut until Megatron stepped back and shook his energon from his sword. The bright pink fluid splattered onto the rust colored sand and Optimus looked down. A gash was in his chassis, glass shattered and energon leaking profusely. His frame felt hot, his hud was glitching out as error after error came through. Optimus could hear nothing as he fell back and his optics shut off, leaving him in the dark. 

The first of Optimus' senses to come back was his hearing. It was deafening, beeping and scraping and groaning and glyphs he just couldn't make out. The second sense was his sense of touch. His frame felt heavy and cold and hot at the same time. He wanted to get up and move but every plate and strut in his frame was screaming at him to stay still. And his chassis, oh his chassis felt like it was being torn apart, ripped from his protoform as he lay unable to move. After what felt like cycles, the pain stopped and once again Optimus lost all of his senses. 

This time when Optimus woke, he'd shot up from his berth, scaring the poor medic who was working on another bot next to him. Optimus looked at him, optics wide as he took in his location; the rundown medbay attached to the same station his unit reported to. 

The medic, whose designation Optimus couldn't remember, frantically finished the welding he was doing before going over to Optimus. In between system checks and other Autobots gathering around to see that he'd actually awakened from stasis, Optimus came to understand what had happened. 

He'd lost a fight to Megatron and taken a fatal wound to his chassis. He should've offlined out on the battlefield but some of the bots he helped with reports managed to drag him back and get him to the medic. He'd then spent nearly an entire vorn in stasis as his frame healed the wounds he'd received. They thought he would go offline at any time, none expected him to just wake up at random. 

Touching the jagged welding to his chassis, Optimus looked up at the medic as he spoke.

"Congratulation on surviving Megatron. I'm certain you're the only bot in these parts who can say that."

Optimus could only frown.

Chapter Text

"Slagging Pits, how are ya still online?"

Optimus couldn't help but frown as he stood in front of Duststorm's makeshift desk. It was sloppily welded together and wobbled horribly, clanging against the floor each time he shifted. Duststorm had expected to hear that Optimus had finally offlined and that they could stop wasting resources on him but instead the mech came out of stasis and now stood before him. Optimus could tell by the way he refused to meet his optics that Duststorm was unsettled. Like Optimus was a ghost or walking-offlined.

"The medic said I'm cleared for active duty." Optimus said. He watched as Duststorm squirmed under his gaze and part of him felt guilty for this but it wasn't like he could do anything about being online. Well he could but he wasn't that far gone. 

"Fine, fine. Get out with ya." Duststorm waved him off, sitting back in his rickety chair and turning his attention to a datapad he'd been holding previously. 

"Sir, my blaster was destroyed in the fight, can I get a replacement?" Optimus asked.

"Yeah sure, we got extras in storage since the next batch of recruits are delayed." Duststorm still refused to look at him. "I'll even be generous and let ya take two weapons since ya survived Megatron."

Optimus nodded, gave him a quick salute and turned quickly to leave. Duststorm didn't have a proper office, more like the corner of the main room that wad blocked off by some crates and shelves. When Optimus came out from behind the shelf, he finally took a look at the room and noticed it was far emptier than he remembered. A quick glance around and he couldn't find any of the bots he was used to seeing; the ones he'd always helped with their reports. They'd been the ones who had dragged Optimus to safety and according to the medic, pressured Duststorm into keeping him in stasis. He wanted to thank them. 

After searching the other ⛣ rooms and turning up empty, Optimus finally got the attention of a small green mech who was doing his reports at a table.  

"Excuse me," Optimus said, waiting for the mech to look up. They were caught off guard and looked at Optimus like he'd grown a second helm. "The other bots who were here… the ones who brought me from the battlefield, where are they?"

"That's vague." The mech scolded and Optimus couldn't deny that but they had never exchanged designations so it couldn't be helped. "But all the bots in this unit are here so if they aren't, they're offline."

Optimus flinched. Optics wide and quickly scanned again, looking for their familiar frames and colors but he found nothing. Guilt twisted in his tanks as he clenched his servos and turned away from the green mech and left the room. He stormed down the halls, not really going anywhere until he came to the shared berth space. The door slid open and the inside was vacant aside from numerous berths that were poorly constructed and shoved together so closely you could barely get off and on them. 

Optimus went to the one that had become his, finding a thin layer of dust had gathered. It was by a busted out window that was dirty and gave him the perfect view of a stone wall. In the remaining glass, Optimus could barely make out his reflection and he wasn't sure if it was because of the glass or if he truly looked that bad because he looked like scrap. His scarred up chassis stood out the most and Optimus looked down and gently touched the remnants of the wound. 

His chassis armor was still cracked, the fresh weld having just healed but the gray of the welding plate stood out against his red plating. It was diveted and his glass window pane remained broken as well. The loose shards had been removed and it seemed like the medic had given him some adhesive to keep the rest from falling apart but that was it. The scar reached from his pauldron and across to his abdomen, two digits thick where it cut deepest. The worst thought was how it felt. 

Most injuries to armor could be healed with their self repair systems. Even on low energon and in bad conditions, a plating injury was nothing after a couple of solar cycles. But this was a protoform injury and one that should've offlined Optimus. His nanites had done their best and so had the medic, but he could still feel every shift and movement his chassis plating made and if he lifted his arms too fast, it got to he more than a little uncomfortable. At least touching it didn't hurt and Optimus hoped that over time the other side effects would go away and he'd be able to go back to normal. 

Normal…

Optimus sat down on his berth and looked around the empty room. This was his normal; going off into fights and never knowing who would survive. Optimus hadn't been bothered to learn the designations of the other bots because he knew they'd be gone before too long and now that they were, he regretted never asking. It was frustrating and as he curled into a ball and hid his faceplate in his stabilizer joints, Optimus realized that he'd gotten comfortable with death. He felt guilt over never knowing the designations of the fallen, but he also felt frustrated about how easily he could just accept everything that was happening to him. 

Bots around him offlined. He offlined Decepticons. Decepticons tried to offline him. That was war.

He hated it. 

But he couldn't do anything. Not at that klik at least. It w6a too late in the cycle and Duststorm would not be inclined to listening to Optimus' ranting at this time. But tomorrow he could try. He was the mech who survived Megatron after all. Maybe thay would give him some leeway to be heard.

The next cycle, Optimus finally saw the extent of everything that had happened after he lost to Megatron. He had retrieved a new blaster from the weapons closet where numerous others sat without owners. They weren't shiny new, clearly used from other Gates but that didn't matter to Optimus. He'd chosen one similar to the one he'd had before and then decided to see what else he could find since Duststorm did say he could pick a second weapon. He didn't choose another blaster, that would be pointless, instead he found a small axe made of carbon steel and only a little bit of rust on it. He'd scraped that off the best he could and sharpened the blade before depositing the axe into is subspace and Optimus honestly felt safer with that than his blaster.

Which was a good thing since a lot had changed at the South Gate. There was no longer just small Decepticon patrols within the walls of Iacon but an entire Decepticon unit led by General Blitzwing. The ruins of the lower district had become a battlefield once more with even more buildings destroyed beyond recognition. Even from the slightly elevated position of his unit station, Optimus could tell that the streets had become indistinguishable from the ruined buildings. The district had become a maze of destruction with Decepticons hidden at any corner. 

Despite this, there was no news from Central Iacon. Instead of sending out far more experienced troops or even a semi competent team leader, they continued to send new recruits from other low caste districts and slums. At this rate, the entire district would be overrun with Decepticons in less than a vorn and they would make their way into mid caste Iacon. If that happened, it would be the first time since the war started that Decepticons had managed to get past the low caste district. Optimus couldn't let that happen. If this was the amount of damage a Decepticon did to an already destroyed area, who knew what damage they could cause in other parts of the city.

Optimus clenched his servos and frowned. He could just make out the movement of large frames much deeper into the ruins. A patrol unit who had gotten far too close for his comfort. Above him, three seekers circled the district, swaying back and forth in a way that made Optimus think they had the jitters. Optimis watched for just a klik before turning back to the station and going to find Duststorm.  He knew ths was going to be pointless, but a part of his processor told him that he had to at least try. 

Duststorm was at his desk as usual but unlike before, he was simply letting his chair rock back and forth. It let out a grating metal on metal sound thay could be heard throughout the entire front room and Optimus' audial fins tilted back in displeasure. A dying cygar was clenched between his dentae as he seemed to be staring off into space. Optimus approached and revved his engine slightly to get their attention. 

Duststorm turned to Optimus and nearly fell out of hid chair, catching himself on his desk with both servos. This caused the desk to wobble profusely so the mech ended up standing instead. With a glare that wasn't nearly as impressive as he thought it was, Duststorm spoke.

"And what do ya need now?" He took his cygar from his intake and pointed it at Optimus.

"Does Central Iacon know how critical the situation here?" Optimus asked. He locked his optics to Duststorm's.

"I have everything under control here." Duststorm said, crossing his arms over his chassis.

"And that's why we have Decepticons building a base inside of Iacon and patrols happening just streets away!" Optimus took a step closer. "Most of our bots are offline and the only orders you keep giving us is to just shoot whatever isn't an Autobot!"

"Optimus this is war. It ain't all big battles and glory like the history datapads make it out to be." Duststorm ex-vented, shaking his helm as he sat back down. "Central Iacon is defending all four gates at the same time. They can afford to let this district fall temporarily to gain the upperservo in the long run."

"Because this is the slums?" Optimus frowned and slammed a servo on the desk.

"Sacrifices have to be made." Duststorm spat.

"Is that your way of getting out of doing your job? By treating all of us as sacrifices?" Optimis asked.

"We're all cogs in the great Autobot machine." Duststorm said. "You cogs are replaceable."

"Then so are you." Optimus retorted. 

Duststorm stood up swiftly and punched Optimus on his cheekplate. The force made Optimus take a step and he did look at Duststorm in shock, but it didnt hurt. The mech couldn't put enough force behind it while from behind the desk. Duststorm didn't seem to realize how little he'd done since he was looking at Optimus with a smug expression. 

"Congratulations Optimus. Ya've just signed yourself up for the front lines." Duststorm said. He opticed Optimus for a klik. "We have an attack planned for the next solar cycle and we are currently short on recruits so you'll be leading the charge with what we have remaining."

"Shouldn't that be your job?" Optimus asked.

"Oh no, I'm far too pretty to do that on my own." Duststorm laughed as if his joke was actually good. Duststorm was far from an attractive mech in Optimus' optics. Even Megatron was better looking compared to Duststorm. "Now get out of my sight."

Optimus wanted to stay and continue his argument but he couldn't. It was clear that Duststorm would walk circles around any genuine concern he had and write it off as bring part of rhe war. He'd use that phrase about being cogs to justify every poor decision he made and every Autobot spark that went offline because of him. Oh Optimus wished he had hit Duststorm back. Maybe just once before he went offline or left this Primus forsaken place, he'd be able to. 

Knowing that there was another battle to take place less than a solar cycle away, Optimus wanted to go to his berth and recharge. It helped him escape over thinking about everything that could go wrong, all the sparks that would be lost and all the sparks that they had lost. Because if there was one thing Optimus was good at, it was over thinking. Instead, he left Duststorm's makeshift office and asked all of the remaining bots to meet him in the shared room. 

Most listened to him, Optimus may not have been a higher ranked soldier but he was one of the longest surviving and in a place like this, that meant more than any official rank. It also seemed that he had earned a bit of respect after surviving his fight with Megatron and even bots who would usually ignore him were coming to hear what he had to say. Optimus was grateful, he just hoped it wasn't too late.

Optimus stood by a wall where a large screen was playing some old holovid with cheap affects and subtitles running along the bottom since the sound didn't play anymore. Optimus didn't bother turning it off since turning it back on would be a miracle. Instead he turned his back kibble to the screen and focused on the small group of bots before him. There really wasn't a lot and while he knew the other units would also be joining them, Optimus was beginning to feel the actual dilemma of their predicament. Without the new recruits they were supposed to have gotten, they couldn't even use Duststorm's favorite tactic of overwhelming the Decepticons with numbers. 

"Some of you may have heard earlier but Duststorm put me in the first charge against the Decepticons in tomorrow's battle." Optimus began. "I know this is supposed to be my punishment for angering Duststorm, but I want to take advantage of this and try to come up with a plan that involves more than just shooting any Decepticon you see and hoping you make it back here. I want to come up with a strategy to help bolster our dwindling numbers and make sure as many of us can come back online as possible."

Optimus wasn't much if a speaker, he knew that, but he had hoped that the bots before him would be at least a bit more enthusiastic than they were. They looked between each other, mumbling and whispering low amongst each other. Some fidgeting where they stood and their fields crackling with uncertainty and anxiety. 

"I don't think there's point in trying harder."

"It'll be over quicker if we just do as we usually do."

"We've never done stuff like this before…"

Optimus scanned the room as faceplates went from confusion and fear to something far worse: acceptance. Acceptance of their situation and that they may never come back here after tomorrow. Acceptance that they are fighting losing battles and all of them could easily join the Well of All Sparks soon. Acceptance of their defeat before the fight even started.

Optimus hated it. He hated how little these bots valued their own lives and he hated how useless he felt in being unable to help. They began to leave the room as Optimus remained silent, servos clenched in tight fists as he glared at the floor. If these were gonna be their last cycles alive, they wanted to make the most of it. A servo landed softly on his shoulder pauldron and Optimus looked up to see the medic who had welded his wound. 

"You have done what you could." He said, moving his servo back to his side as the only ones remaining in the room were them. "But I've been here since the war started and I've seen promising bots try just as you have."

Optimus looked back to the floor but loosened his servos as the medic continued. 

"Kup was the most promising to come from this district but he got taken by the Elite Guard. That old mech is training cadets at the Academy but I know he wanted to come back here and help you young bots out." The medic shook his helm at the thought. "But they wouldn't let him return. Told him he was too good for this place and if he tried to do so he'd no longer be an Autobot. Blackmailed him right into their laps."

So that was why Kup never returned. Optimus had always wondered why he had disappeared after the fall of the South Gate and why no bot had hear from him. Of the Elite Guard wanted him training recruits than there was nothing anybot could do. He didn't like it though. Not one bit of him did.

"Try to survive tomorrow." He medic said, patting Optimus on his back kibble. "You got something in you, something most bots lose after being in this place even half as long as you have. Maybe one solar cycle you'll get out of here and make a difference. Just don't go forgetting us if you do."

"This district is my home. I'd never forget it." Optimus said. 

The medic smiled, gave him one last friendly pat on the shoulder pauldron before leaving Optimus to himself. Optimus waited until he could no longer hear pedesteps before he leaned back against rhe wall and ex-vented hard. The air rushed out of his systems as his plating opened and joints laxed slightly. He really didn't think he had something in him others didn't have like the medic said but at that klik, he was too tired to really think too hard on the subject. And since the rest of the unit had opted out of his attempt at teamwork, he decided that recharging for the rest of the solar cycle sounded perfect. 

Hadeen rose far too quickly for Optimus and he grunted as his systems came up after a restless recharge cycle. Others around him seemed to fair just as poorly if not worse than he as they rose from their berths and went through their morning system checks. No bot talked when they knew a battle would be happening that solar cycle so fueling was somber at best with his half cube ration of distilled energon. 

Duststorm gave them a quick briefing as he always did before a battle, emphasizing that their contributions would be benefiting the Autobot cause and assuring the Decepticons were not one pedestep closer to the inner part of Iacon. Most of it was bullslag and most bots knew it but they all tended to tune Duststorm out during these times. When they all began to leave, Duststorm made sure to remind Optimus of his place at the front of the unit that solar cycle. Optimus gave his a short salute before leaving the station and to the gathering bots outside. 

Unlike before when the battles were taken outside the walls of Iacon, these played out within the fallen district and so there were more places to hide and run but less chances of over powering the Decepticons with their numbers. Optimus found it to be more beneficial to be fighting on these streets despite how many memories he had here. But reminiscing could be done when rebuilding began and at that klik, he had to focus. 

They were the initial attackers for this assault which meant the unit would be sent into the ruins with the intent of ending every Decepticon they came across and try and push them towards the gate. Optimus couldn't see any seekers in the sky but he was certain they wouldn't be too far away. It was already hard enough to handle the massive size and strength of grounder Decepticons but flying ones proved to be a challenge that Optimus was still trying to figure out. Getting caught and dropped by a flier was usually the end for any civilian frame so he avoided getting too close. If only fliers didn't have long ranged weaponry that were far more effective than his blaster. Times like these remind Optimus of the fact that they are fighting a war against bots labeled as warframes since long before the Golden Era. It was almost ironic how they were fighting against them now and Optimus truly wondered how they civilian frametypes had lasted nearly four million stellar cycles of this. 

His thoughts were interupted by an alert in his hud that they were beginning their assault. Since he was part of the first wave of attacks, Optimus moved to the front of the group along with four other bots whom he'd never seen before. They were all clutching their blasters like lifelines and Optimus found them comically large on some; especially the lithe femme who probably needed two digits to pull the trigger. They had not even considered getting smaller blasters for minicons and decided on a one size fits none option since even Optimus, who was already big for a civilian frame, found the blasters to be too bulky and heavy. 

Optimus looked down the street he was being instructed to go down. Or at least the remnants of what was once a street. Now it was an obstacle course if stone chunks and metal support beams. He didn't look back, not wanting to see Duststorm's gloating faceplate from the window of the station where he stood safe and sound. He also didn't want to see the trembling frames of the bots behind him.

Getting through the fallen district was much harder than Optimus remembered. There was a lot more climbing and ducking which was difficult with a hefty blaster in servo. He did notice that they had a lot more cover though and it was obvious where warframes went since they left a path of destruction in their wake. They were also easier to spot so Optimus decided that laying an ambush on any he saw would be far safer. Luckily the other bots with him agreed and quickly went about setting their trap after finding a two mech squad of Decepticons.

These two fell quickly, caught completely off guard by them. The second time did not go as planned as one mech managed to send out an alert. The third group was cautious and while Optimus managed to take them down, they'd lost two of their own in the process. What Optimus hated the most was not being able to bring back their frames and having to leave them behind next to the fallen Decepticons. 

Optimus did not try the ambush tactic a fourth time. It had become far too risky and the others had begun to get exhausted both physically and mentally. They could make out the distant sound of blaster fire just a flew blocks away, along with screams from fellow Autobots. Optimus wanted to shut off his audial, to cut it all off but he couldn't. He couldn't risk not hearing a Decepticon coming in close. Or a cry for help from his temporary team. 

It was the shrill shriek of a seeker that caught Optimus' attention. He looked up swiftly and spotted the blue and white flier dive towards them, firing rapid shots from his dual blasters. The team scattered, ducking for cover and out of sight of the enemy. Optimus had dived into a blown out store with two partial walls. One had a cutout for a window that was shattered and Optimus quickly took up position there. 

When the seeker got down low, Optimus attempted to return fire. Using the windowsill as a perch, he shot straight at the charging Decepticon, praying that the wall holds up as the seeker fired back. It did and the seeker flew straight up to avoid colliding into the wall, flipping in the air before turning sharply and diving at Optimus once more. 

This was why Optimus hated fighting seekers. His blaster did nothing against them and the only way he was going to take this one down was if he got above them. But how did a bot get above a seeker? 

He wasn't given time to think about it before Optimus was forced to leave his spot as said seeker came from a different angle to shoot at him again. Optimus ran down the street, glancing around quickly for something he could use to get up and above the seeker when they flew low again. Unfortunately most of the buildings were barely even a single story in height and the only remnants of higher floors were single metal poles that once made up their foundation. Not impossible to climb but unrealistic given his current circumstance. 

Optimus leapt over a collapsed wall and almost did a double take as he spotted a stone wall that went up at last three stories. From the side it looked like a narrow staircase and Optimus knew that this was his only chance. A sharp turn to his left, Optimus ran straight towards the wall as fast as he could, praying to Primus that he didn't lose his balance as he did. The seeker didn't seem to understand what he was doing and charged at Optimus. He was slow to climb and before he knew it, Optimus had jumped off the wall and onto his wings.

The seeker immediately flipped, trying to knock Optimus off but Optimus had subspaced his blaster and was hanging on for his life. The seeker continued to try and throw Optimus off and finally chose to fly straight up, right into the skies above Iacon and if Optimus hadn't been terrified at that moment, he may have tried to appreciate the view. Unfortunately his next view was of the rapidly approaching ground as the seeker chose once again to dive. 

Optimus risked loosening one servo as the wind rushed past him and he begun to feel weightless. He pulled his blaster back out and aimed it right at the wing of the seeker and fired. 

The blast knocked Optimus backward and tumbling four stories down to the ground. He landed hard, tumbling across the fallen debris before coming to a landing at a light post. His entire frame ached, his audials gave off an intense ringing and warnings lit up his hud over the damage he took. He forced them down as the shrieking of the seeker cut through the air and reminded Optimus that his hearing still worked despite the ringing. 

Optimus clumsily got to his pedes and moved closer to where the Decepticon had fallen. Moving around a wall he found the seeker, now in root form, clinging to his wing where a massive gouge was missing. It was smoldering, smoke coming out as the seeker continued to wail in pain. Optimus had always heard that the wings of seekers were particularly sensitive; now he knew they were. He stepped closer, using every bit of his strength to raise his blaster as the seeker finally turned to him with a glare. Their field burst to life, clawing at Optimus in rage, pain and despair and he couldn't help but take a step back as fear swelled in him. This was different from the dismissive field he had felt from Megatron. This was pure hatred pushed directly onto him and it made his tanks knot.

Optimus needed to finish this seeker. He hadn't even tried to get up since he'd fallen which meant that he had more damage than what Optimus could see. Either that or his wing damage hampered him that much. The seeker was also speaking low, in a language Optimus had never heard before. Optimus felt a chill run down his spinal strut as he once again leveled the blaster. 

It took a fraction of a nano-klik for the situation to change. One nano-klik it was just Optimus and the seeker, the next another one was kneeling beside them. Optimus could just make out their gray and purple colors before his entire vision was taken up by a beige and purple frame who'd landed right between them. Optimus had just enough time to register this new Decepticon before he was picked up and thrown straight into a wall that collapsed on top of him as he broke through it. 

"Puny Autobot! I will crush you under my treads!" 

Optimus knew that tone. Meeting Blitzwing was the last thing Optimus needed. He quickly began to push the shattered wall chunks off of himself and sat up only to find the insane con hovering above him. The red faceplate spun swiftly to become a blue one that leaned in closer with a frown. 

"You are the Autobot that Lord Megatron offlined a vorn ago." Blizwing said, placing his servo to his chin. The faceplate spun to red again and leaned down to yell at him. "Why are you not offline?"

"You should tell Megatron if he wants to offline me, he should try harder." Optimus spat. 

Blitzwing seemed caught off guard for just a klik before the faceplate spun to a grinning black one who got way too close for comfort. "Ooh, that's a good idea! I'll go and tell him!" Blitzwing shouted. He then transformed into a jet before flying off towards the direction of the gate, leaving Optimus behind.

Optimus watched him go, mostly in disbelief. He stayed in the same spot of several kliks, waiting for the joke to be over and for Blitzwing to come back and finish him but he never did. So Optimus pushed away the rest of the debris still left on him and looked around for any other Decepticons. He didn't see any, even the seekers from before seemed to have disappeared. He did find his blaster which was surpsingly in one piece and seemed operational. Adjusting it in his grip, Optimus decided to make his way back to the station, knowing full well he was going to get an audialful from Duststorm.

Back in their makeshift base camp, Blitzwing eagerly called Lord Megatron on the video feed. Though he knew he could've offlined that Autobot himself, given that he had survived Lord Megatron’s attack and then stated his challenge to him, Blitzwing had to follow warframe customs. And they demanded he inform Lord Megatron of the Autobot's survival which he did the moment the video feeds connected.

"The Autobot states that if you wish to offline him, you should try harder." Blitzwing repated.

"Well isn't that interesting." Megatron hummed as he leaned back in his throne. "I believe I should visit again then and give this little Autobot exactly what he wants then."

"We will prepare for your arrival then, Milord." Blitzwing gave a polite bow as the video feed cut off. His faceplate spun to his insane persona whi cackled loudly. "It will be another massacre! Ah ha ha!"

Chapter Text

Something changed after the solar cycle Optimus fought Blitzwing.

When he had returned, he expected Duststorm to give a snide remark or reprimand him for returning early. Instead the mech avoided optic contact and dismissed Optimus by turning away from him. Duststorm barely spoke a glyph to him. 

He wasn't the only one avoiding Optimus. 

All of the other bots at his station avoided looking at him, rushed past when he was in the halls or left the room when he entered. It was like they were scared of him and Optimus couldn't figure out why. At first he'd just been confused, but after a couple of solar cycles, it began to hurt. It was a different kind of hurt than what he was used to; a sharp stinging in his spark that almost felt like getting stabbed. 

The only one who didn't avoid Optimus was the medic whose designation Optimus found to be Patchwork. Patchwork had given Optimus his look over when he’d returned and gave him berth rest for a solar cycle and welded together a few minor cuts and fixed some dents he'd gotten. Even though he'd fully recovered, Optimus found himself wandering back to the medbay and glancing inside to see if the medic was there and sure enough he was.

Patchwork was removing some reading cables from a mech who was missing his pede from the stabilizer joint down. He noticed Optimus hovering by the door and gestured for him to come inside despite the protesting look from his current patient. 

"Take a seat by my desk. I'll finish up here and be right with you." Patchwork said. 

"Medic, isn't this taboo?" The patient muttered. He sounded half delirious. 

"Hush, I'm having none of that here." Patchwork scolded.

Patchwork was quick to finish up a few more readings before he put up a divider to give the mech some privacy as he recharged. It was a luxury generally saved for the severe patience and Optimus had been lucky enough to have had one when he'd been in stasis. Patchwork came over to Optimus, pulled out a datapad and asked Optimus for his arm. Optimus obliged, letting the medic hook up the cables and read his vitals.

"So I know you aren't suffering from your injuries aside from some discomfort from your chassis injury." Patchwork began. "So what are you here for?"

"I-..." Optimus hesitated. He didn't necessarily want to complain to Patchwork about his problems, but given that the medic was the only bot still looking him in the optic, he felt like he didn't have a choice. "Ever since I returned from the last battle, everybot in the unit has been avoiding me. Even Duststorm can't look at me!"

Patchwork let out a low ex-vent and removed the cables. "It seems superstition has settled in this unit." He said as he placed the datapad down. He took a seat in a chair beside Optimus.

"Superstition?" Optimus asked, confused. "Is that why they mech mentioned a taboo? Did I do something wrong?"

"No Optimus, you've done nothing wrong." Patchwork shook his helm and placed a servo on Optimus' shoulder kibble. "The fault lies in the paranoia of the bots here and the superiors who don't take care of them."

"But why am I being avoided like I've got the Rust plague?" Optimus asked, exasperated.

"I don't quite understand it myself but I'd say it's because you've survived at this Gate for so long and have faced off against multiple high ranking Decepticons and you always make it back." Patchwork explained. "But whoever goes with you, does not.

"Bots think you bring about the end and are a messenger of Unicron. They think if they stay near you, they will meet the Well of Allsparks." Patchwork frowned. He clearly didn't believe this, Optimus couldn't either.

"How am I a messenger of Unicron?" Optimus stood up as he spoke louder than intended. "All I do is fight to survive!"

"I agree with you." Patchwork said. "You are a soldier skilled enough to survive and normally you'd be coveted for that. But here, where the fear of one's end and the acceptance of defeat meld together into delusion and paranoia, you have become something to fear yourself."

"What am I supposed to do?" Optimus asked, looking down in defeat. 

"I don't know in all honesty." Patchwork looked away. "This place is falling apart right under us. I wouldn't be surprised if the Decepticons overrun us at any time. And I honestly think being under them would be far better than this Primus forsaken place."

"You can't really think that a Decepticon controlled Iacon will benefit any of us?" Optimus was shocked. "They'll send us all to the Well of Allsparks the klik they can!"

"If so, it'd still be better than dealing with this slag every solar cycle." Patchwork covered his optics with his servos and Optimus realized that the medic was tired. Tired of living in this slagging world where bots are offline before they even get a proper designation. 

"I lost everything the solar cycle that the South Gate fell." Opptimus clenched his servos. "I can't just accept letting the Decepticons do as they please!"

"Then continue to fight as you have." Patchwork said, finally looking up at Optimus. "Ignore these superstitious lot who can't see who you are. Fight. And I promise I'll put you back together each time your return until you never do."

Warmth swelled inside of Optimus. That sharp pain was gone and replaced with a soft light. Somebot was on his side, even if they didn't share the same views on their current situation. But it gave Optimus the confidence he needed to leave the medbay and return to his usual routine. 

When a scout returned with news that Megatron had been seen arriving at the South Gate, everybot froze. Another general arriving would be a cause for panic but for the Lord of the Decepticons to return not even two vorns since he'd left meant the end. Some bots had fallen to their stabilizer joints and panicked static burst from them. Others began to hyperventilate, muttering garbled glyphs that no one could understand. A few said a prayer to Primus or even looked at Optimus with disdain. 

Optimus was the only one who turned to Duststorm to see what their commanding officer intended to say. The mech got a glimpse of him looking and quickly averted his optics away as he pretended to focus on the rest of the bots in the room. Duststorm moved in front of them, raising his servo to get their attention and after seeing that wasn't happening, he cleared his intake and began to speak, listening or not. 

"I know the news of Megatron’s return is… distressing for all of us but we must remain calm." If Duststorm had one good thing going for him, it was the fact that he could keep his tone level even when he was the furthest from being calm. "But this gives us another chance to take down the Slagmaker himself! I have already sent news to Central Iacon of him showing up here and soon we will have our final fight against the Decepticons."

It was a bluff and Optimus knew it. The other bots however, were soaking it up like a sponge. They were so broken down from their own anxiety and paranoia that they couldn't see how unreasonable everything Duststorm said really was. Optimus crosses his arms over his chassis, frowning as he watched said mech try and placate the rest of the unit. This went on for several kliks before the group dispersed into the rest of the station, leaving Optimus alone with Duststorm who lit a new cygar and took a position that once again looked like an imitation of Kup. 

"I've got a job for ya." Duststorm said, never directly looking at Optimus as he spoke. "Yer going to face Megatron in this next fight."

"What?" Optimus stood straight in shock. "Why me!?"

"Because the end follows ya around and if we're lucky, it will rub off on Megatron and he'll offline." Duststorm spoke calmly despite his glyphs.

"That's insane!" Optimus protested. "I'm not some messenger of Unicron like you all seem to believe! I just did my best to survive!"

"Messenger or not ya will do as ordered or I will have ya arrested for disobeying a direct order." Duststorm glanced at Optimus, his optics flaring an almost white-blue. "I've been overlooking yer attitude these last few times but no more. Fight Megatron, or be court martialed, yer choice."

Optimus flinched, clenching his servos before he looked away in defeat. He couldn't lose his status as an Autobot, not after everything he went through and how far he's come… Exactly how far had he come though? He was still a no rank soldier who got kicked around by his superiors and was now being treated like some sort of cursed mech simply for managing to survive all this time. Now he had to once again face Megatron in a fight and this time he doubted the con would let him get away.

Maybe Patchwork was right and being offlined was better than dealing with this. 

While Central Iacon had been informed of Megatron’s arrival at the South Gate, they still chose to leave it to the units stationed there and simply told them to leave a means of communication open in case it was needed. Meaning Central Iacon wanted to know immediately if they failed to stop Megatron which was fair given the fact that this was Megatron and him leaving the last time was a miracle on its own. 

The bot who caused said miracle and was still online to tell the tale was not too eager to meet the warlord again. Optimus hadn't stood a chance against Megatron the last time and only survived because Megatron thought he was offline. Now the mech was back again for some reason and as he prepared for what could be his last fight, Optimus remembered the glyphs he'd yelled at Blitzwing before. 

"If Megatron wanted to offline me, he should've tried harder."

There was a part of Optimus that wondered if that was why Megatron had returned. If so, that would explain why Blitzwing left so easily but it also terrified Optimus to his core. Because if that was true, then it meant Optimus was the reason for this fight and everybot who would join the Well of Allsparks this solar cycle would do so because of him. His servos shook slightly at the thought and Optimus had to hold himself to stop from hyperventilating. He knew he had to get himself together but the thought of all of this being his fault left him frozen with guilt. It grew in his tanks and Optimus wanted to purge. 

It took every bit of Optimus' self control to not empty his tanks in the middle of the damaged streets. He'd been sent out by himself less than twenty kliks prior and had instantly begun a harsh cycle of self deprivation the klik he was alone. Optimus leaned against a wall, letting it hold his weight as he tried to settle his swirling thoughts. He was on a battlefield and the last thing he needed to be was distracted. He was actually grateful to Duststorm for making him go alone this time because now he didn't have to worry about other bots along with himself.

Optimus closed his optics and let himself focus on slowing his vents and emptying his processor of all thoughts. It was far more difficult than it sounded but after a couple of kliks, Optimus managed to settle himself enough to where he no longer felt like purging. Opening his optics, Optimus slowly looked up at the sky and took in the sounds around him. In the distance he could hear the familiar cacophony of fighting, mixed together with the powerful engines of seekers and all too familiar sound of blaster fire. Optimus could also hear pedesteps, steady and thunderous, coming towards him but not rushed, like the mech was taking a walk in the city and not a battlefield. 

Optimus adjusted his grip on his blaster and braced his pedes on the ground. He kept his optics focused before him as he relied on his audial to figure out where this con was going. At some point, they got closer, close enough that Optimus swore it sounded like they were on the other side of the wall he had his back kibble to. Here, they stopped. Optimus shut his vents and clamped down on his plating as everything suddenly went quiet. The con wasn't moving, he had to be on the other side of the wall. The wall that was only two helms higher than Optimus…

At the sound of the crack, Optimus launched himself from the wall and turned, letting his back kibble hit another as he started to shoot. The wall he'd just been at was a pile of rubble and through the smoke, Optimus could make out the shape of a massive Decepticon. He grunted at the blaster fire but quickly swiped away at the smoke with a servo the size of Optimus' chassis. 

Megatron stepped onto the rubble, optics glaring down at Optimus who had stopped shooting. The warlord watched Optimus with narrow optics before a smirk grew on his faceplate. Optimus pressed himself against the wall behind him and returned the glare as best he could. His chassis began to throb where his scar was still visible to anybot. 

"I was hoping to find you out here." Megatron mused as he once again took out a single sword. 

He swung the sword down at Optimus, not caring that it sliced through the wall behind him at the same time. Optimus dodged to the side, stumbling over the debris as he turned back to face Megatron. Regaining his stance, Optimus didn't raise his blaster, knowing it would just get in his way. 

"Why did you come back here, Megatron?" Optimus asked, glancing to the side to see if he had an escape route. 

"You're the one who issued the challenge, Autobot." Megatron mused. He readjusted his stance and looked far too relaxed for bring on a battlefield.

"What? Wait, you don't mean what I told Blitzwing?" Optimus looked at him wide opticed. 

"What other reason would there be?" Megatron asked. "You issued the challenge and now I'm here to answer it. And as you desired, I'll try harder to take you offline!"

Megatron charged at Optimus, sword to the side as he aimed to swing wide. Optimus ducked down and bolted through the debris of the wall Megatron had destroyed. He bounded over the rocks, firing his blaster one servoed as he did. Megatron deflected these shots with ease and followed after Optimus who did his best to keep his distance. 

"Come now Autobot, you aren't just going to run away, are you?" Megatron asked. He rounded a corner where Optimus had vanished and found the street empty. Glancing around, Megatron just caught the glint of the blaster barrel and just barely dodged the shots aimed at his helm.

Optimus cursed loudly when Megatron avoided the shots and kept moving. He knew what happened if he let Megatron get close to him with that sword. The dull ache of his chassis was a constant reminder. In this fight, his only saving grace was that Megatron didn't seem to be taking him seriously since he only used one sword and didn't seem interested in using his fusion cannon. Ducking into a building that was surprisingly still standing, Optimus moved up a flight of shady stairs and onto the second floor. Here he was just above Megatron and when the large Decepticon came into view, Optimus fired onto him from one of the windows. 

This maneuver caught Megatron off guard and would have been rather effective if his blaster power hadn't been so weak. It was a well known fact that Megatron had some of the toughest armored plating out there and had taken direct hits from the Magnus Hammer and still continued fighting. Optimus always relied on lucky shots or coordinated close ups when it came to landing hits on Decepticons, but that wouldn't work on Megatron.

Optimus moved away from the window as Megatron pointed his fusion cannon at him and fired a single round. The shot collapsed the already rickety building and Optimus barely escaped through the blown out back. He tumbled to the ground before he regained his footing and turned in the direction Megatron had been. The collapsed building kicked up a large dust cloud, surrounding them in an orange red smoke. Optimus glanced around quickly, trying to figure out where Megatron had gone but he couldn't hear anything. 

Taking the opportunity to get more distance, Optimus turned around and nearly slammed straight into Megatron's leg. He jumped back, bringing his blaster up as Megatron once again swung his sword down. The blaster was sliced clean through, falling to the ground with the remaining pink energon now spilled between them. Optimus grunted and held his servos. They'd jarred when bracing for the attack and locked uncomfortably before he managed to loosen them again. 

Megatron began his next attack and Optimus got a sense of dejavu as he did. He was going to take another hit by that blade and this time Megatron was going to make sure it ended him. He was going to the Well of Allsparks knowing full well that he had provoked Megatron into attacking him. Into coming all the way out here just to offline him since he'd failed to do so before. But Optimus wasn't ready to end things as they were. No, he could still fight back if he only had a weapon!

A weapon…!

He had one! For the first time ever, Optimus was thankful for Duststorm randomly deciding to let him have a second weapon. Taking the ax from his subspace, Optimus swung it as hard as he could to deflect Megatron’s attack. He nearly dropped the weapon when he felt the shock from the impact run through his plating. With a low grunt, Optimus readjusted his grip and parried the next swing Megatron gave him. Megatron seemed like he'd been caught off guard but after a klik he began to swing with less intent to offline and more to just exchange blows. It threw Optimus off for a nano-klik before he returned his focus to what he was doing.

The ax felt different in his servos. It was light, fit snug in his grip and it went where Optimus wanted it to. He'd never picked up one before since they had to rely on blasters, so he had no formal training, but this felt right to Optimus. So caught up in having a weapon that worked for him, Optimus didn't notice how long he and Megatron had been exchanging blows until his joints began to ache from the strain. 

"I must admit, you have gone far beyond my expectations." Megatron mused, putting a bit more force into his swings as he continued to play with Optimus. "It has been a long time since I've met an Autobot capable of parrying my swings. Tell me, what is your designation?"

"Optimus!" Optimus said roughly as he began to be forced back once more. 

"Now then, Optimus, lets see if you can impress me." Megatron switched his sword from one servo to the next and now added more pressure onto the Autobot before him.

Optimus did his best but with a change of rhythm and strength, he was being forced back with each swing of his ax. He tried to swing low, aiming for Megatron’s stabilizer joint but Megatron saw through it and trapped his ax to the ground with his sword. Optimus leaned forward as his weapon was locked into place and tried to yank his ax free until a servo wrapped around his neck cables and lifted him off the ground completely. Optimus’ servo just barely brushed the bottom of the long handle of his ax as he glared at Megatron. The Decepticon looked smug after having caught him and Optimus couldn't help but squirm. 

"It appears our game has come to an end." Megatron says in triumph as he moves his sword away from Optimus' ax. "You certainly held up well but unfortunately you are still far from impressing me."

"Get fragged." Optimuw spat as he tried to loosen Megatron's grip on him. 

But it was hopeless, Megatron’s servo was the size of his chassis and one wrong move and he would have neck crushed. Optimus glared at Megatron the best he could but this simply amused the con even more.

"It is an honor to be offlined by me." Megatron said solemnly as he lifted his sword above him.

In a burst of strength or desperation that he couldn't explain, Optimus managed to grab his discarded ax and swung blindly at his capture. He felt it hit something hard before something gave and Megatron let out a low growl and hiss as he released Optimus and his sword. Falling to his aft, Optimus looked up in time to see Megatron remove his ax from his neck cabling where it was lodged. The moment he did, energon leaked profusely, causing Megatron to cover it tightly with his free servo and look at the injury with disdain.

Optimus tried to get to his pedes but froze when Megatron turned his glare back at him. Megatron still held his ax and Optimus thought his helm would fly from his frame by it until Megatron let out a dry laugh. Now Optimus was terrified and confused as the Decepticon ruler dropped his ax and turned to pick up his sword, servo never leaving his neck cabling. 

"It seems you are able to impress me." Megatron said, picking up his discarded sword and subspacing it.

"Why aren't you offlining me?" Optimus asked, hesitating to pick up his ax.

Megatron turned to Optimus and hovered over him. "Oh, I intend to. Just not this solar cycle." He said, being vague.

"Why?" Optimus asked again. 

"Because I want to see you get stronger so I can fight you at your peak and then completely annihilate you." Megatron grinned. Optimus looked up at him in confusion but said nothing and he pointed at his scar. "That means that you are my target and no other warframe will try to offline you when they see it. If you try to cover it, I will make you wish I had offlined you when we first met."

Optimus didn't doubt that and only nodded. Megatron seemed satisfied with that and stood up straight once more. "We will meet again, Optimus." Megatron said.

With that, Megatron transformed and flew away in the direction of the Decepticon camp. Optimus watched him go before collapsing onto the ground and releasing an ex-vent he hadn't realized he'd been holding in. In all honesty, he didn't understand a thing Megatron was talking about and he also didn't want to think about it. Now that Megatron had left the battlefield, he needed to head back to his station, but he really didn't have the energy to move. So instead he closed his optics and rested for a klik.

When Optimus returned to his station, he found only a servoful of bots had returned from the battlefield. Most were being treated by medics as they lay on the ground while others nursed their already treated injuries. Some began to mutter amongst themselves the moment he came into view but just as before, his unit refused to look him in the optic. Optimus was too sore and too tired to care about what they thought so he found a spot near Patchwork and sat down to wait his turn to be seen. He couldn’t help but overhear what the bots around him were saying since they were not staying quiet in their whispers.

“A femme from the other unit saw him fighting Megatron.”

“Heard he managed to fight him off too!”

So some bot had seen their fight. Optimus wasn’t sure if he should be happy or upset about this. 

“Stoneridge said he landed a hit on Megatron too! A clean one!”

“Stoneridge is a lying crankshaft!”

“Yeah but other units saw Megatron holding his servo to his neck cables and a lot of energon was on him.”

“No way!”

“Do you think Central Iacon will be informed? No bots landed a damaging blow to Megatron since Kup.”

“I bet you a cube of energon they’ll be here in five solar cycles.”

“I bet they’re here in four.”

Optimus turned his audial off and closed his optics. He didn’t  want to listen to bots taking bets over a lucky shot he made. There was no way Central Iacon would care. Instead he needed to figure out how to explain to Duststorm that he did fight Megatron as he was told to and by some miracle he’s still online. Though Megatron seemed quite intent on hunting him down later on to offline him which Optimus found weird and made very little sense. He’d have to ask Patchwork if he knew anything about what Megatron said, but right now he just wanted to rest.

Chapter Text

The last thing anybot was expecting was for a Prime to show up at the South Gate.

Duststorm clearly hadn't been expecting them but he was making up for it in cheap flattery and grubby servos that rubbed together as he followed behind the other mech. This mech was very different compared to the slumbots that made up the unit. And next to the clunky, rust colored armor of Duststorm, the Prime was like a carved statue. He was tall, slim framed with a broad but flat chassis and long legs. His paint was a marble white with medium blue accents and a scowl that was as elegant as it was arrogant. 

His designation was Nova Prime and he did not walk, he glided through the common rooms, servos clamped behind his back kibble as he clearly ignored the yammering Duststorm beside him. Nova Prime instead surveyed the room where all surviving bots were gathered. His optics, the color of sapphires, stopped when he spotted Optimus who stood beside Patchwork. The rest of the bots still kept him at a distance, even in the small room. Nova let his optics trail down to Optimus' chassis and to the massive scar that was now a focal point of his frame. The optics narrowed before he gestured towards Optimus with a single servo. 

"Are you the bot who faced Megatron in battle and survived?" Nova spoke in an accent that only those from Upper Iacon would have. An accent Optimus had only heard on the news before and never in person. It sounded just as pompous now as it did on the holovid. 

"Yes, sir." Optimus tensed his shoulder pauldrons and gave a salute. 

Nova's frown deepened as he turned his full attention to Optimus. Duststorm had stopped talking and was currently glaring at Optimus from behind the taller Prime. He was even taller than Optimus which was a surprise since Optimus was already quite tall for an Autobot. 

"Your combat against Megatron, was it just you, or did you fight as a team?" Nova Prime asked, clamping his servos behind his back kibble once more. 

"Both times I faced Megatron by myself." Optimus said.

"Both times?" Nova Prime tilted his helm in confusion. 

"Two solar cycles ago, Megatron attacked again, I was ordered to fight against him myself." Optimus replied. "He chose to withdraw after I damaged an energon line in his neck cabling."

Optimus decided to leave out the claim Megatron had made on him that would prevent other Decepticons from killing him. He honestly had no understanding of what it meant and neither had Patchwork. He also felt that Nova Prime either wouldn't care or wouldn't like to know this information. He already seemed quite annoyed by Duststorm's earlier attempt at coveting.

"Iacon had only been informed of your exploits against Megatron in this last battle. We were unaware that Megatron had come before then, nor that you had faced him a previous time." Nova Prime was speaking to Optimus, but he had turned to glare at Duststorm, who was looking away sheepishly. "When was this battle?"

"A little less than two vorns ago." Optimus answered, his servo went to his scar. "I was nearly offlined by Megatron and spent an entire vorn in stasis." 

Nova Prime followed his servo but made no indication towards his scar. Instead, the Prime turned away from Optimus as he continued to speak. "Very well, I will be sure to inform Ultra Magnus about this…lapse in communication. It is clear that Duststorm did not report your first battle against him but given that you were on the verge of offlining at any cycle, I am willing to overlook it at this time." Nova spoke smoothly, like he'd practiced this entire speech before. "However that is not my reason for coming to the South Gate, Optimus you have been invited to Central Iacon. Ultra Magnus wishes to speak with you personally about your military feats."

This was not what Optimus had been expecting and his shock was clearly visible on his faceplate. The bots around him were equally shocked aside from Duststorm who was fuming. Nova Prime gave Optimus time to gape before giving him a rather disapproving stare when he didn't settle down. 

"I-I am honored, but why me?" Optimus sputtered out. 

"The Autobots reward military accomplishments." Nova Prime said quickly. "A mech capable of fighting against Megatron and even injuring him is one worth rewarding."

"I… I understand." Optimus looked down at the ground, finials tilted back. He'd wanted a promotion, but this seemed so sudden. "Thank you! I will go to Central Iacon."

"That was non-negotiable." Nova Prime scoffed, not caring about the mood. "I just have one more question, which area are you from? I am unfamiliar with your accent."

"Oh, I was raised here at the South Gate." Optimus said. "I was here when the gate fell."

If he hadn't been paying close attention to Nova, Optimus would've missed the slight twitch of his optic and stab of disgust in his field that was quickly smothered under practiced placidity. Optimus frowned, but decided to ignore it in case the Prime decided not to take him to Central Iacon because of his behavior. Classism was prominent in Iacon and one of the only reasons bots like Duststorm stayed in positions of power. If smiling and nodding to a pretty Prime who's clearly never seen a Decepticon up close was how he got a promotion, then so be it. He wasn't going to suck up like Duststorm, but he also wasn't going to lose this chance.

"We will he leaving for Central Iacon immediately." Nova Prime turned on his heel and made his way to the exit. "You have ten kliks to get what you need."

With those glyphs, the mech left the unit station and Optimus was bombarded by the bots inside who had clearly forgotten about their fears and superstitions.

"That was an actual Prime right?"

"I can't believe Optimus got invited to Central!"

"Ain't seen anybot since Kup go from this place!"

"Shouldn't we warn them that he's working for the Unmaker?"

Well, almost everybot. Some still had their paranoid suspicions of him but Optimus chose to just ignore it. Looking down at his servo, he couldn't help but smile since he'd finally get what he wanted; a promotion! A hail to Central Iacon couldn't be anything else, right?

"What a bunch of slag." Duststorm spat. He gave Optimus a glare from under his helm as he jabbed a digit to Optimus' chassis. "I don't know what ya did to get noticed by Ultra Magnus, but if ya think ya are gonna get some fancy promotion, then forget it! They just want to interrogate the mech who survived against Megatron. Once yer there, they'll realize that yer only worth is being a pretty berthwarmer with nice legs."

"Only a fool would overlook the abilities that Optimus has." Patchwork intervened, placing his servo on Optimus' shoulder pauldron. "Optimus is a promising soldier and under the right tutelage can become a great one. Tutelage he never got here because someone us are too busy buying cygars with military fundings than investing in his own bots."

"Medic I will have you court martialed for that offense." Duststorm spat, his optics trained to Patchwork. 

"I am the only medic for this entire gate! You can't punish me since Central Iacon won't send out another medic!" Patchwork snapped back. "Court martial me and then see how long you last without any medical treatment!"

Duststorm visibly flinched from this and looked away in shame before he stormed off. Optimus had been stunned silent the entire time. He'd never heard Patchwork raise his voice and he certainly had never seen anybot win an argument against Duststorm. He must've been staring far longer than he thought since Patchwork chuckled at him.

"Duststorm dislikes me but he knows I'm the only medic willing to work in this pit. I also get paid by a separate unit and not by him so technically he's not my boss." Patchwork said. 

This reassured Optimus who nodded and relaxed his plating a bit. "Do you think Central Iacon will really give me training?" He asked, unsure. He'd considered the promotion and what he could so with it, but he never thought about anything else he'd be getting. 

"If they have half a processor they would put you under Kup." Pathwork said. "But they may just send you out onto another gate to use your abilities there instead."

"Surely the other gates aren't as badly managed as this one is." Optimus contemplated. The South Gate was always looked down on for being in the slums and a lower caste area, this was one of the main reasons it was so poorly maintained. It only got so many new soldiers because it was openly breached, unlike the other three gates that all had their battles fought outside the gates themselves. 

"I've been to the East Gate, it was pretty well managed though I can't remember who was in charge." Patchwork said. "It was a long time ago, before you were sparked. I was there with my teacher for some servos-on-training. They did have training sessions for soldiers as well."

"So only the South Gate is so backwards." Optimus let out a deep ex-vent before glancing to the window. Outside he could see Nova Prine waiting impatiently for him, glancing towards the building every now and then. "I think my time is about up, I should get going before my one chance decides to leave me behind."

Patchwork nodded and patted Optimus on the back kibble, his field swelled with warmth. "Don't forget us here in the slums." The medic said, jokingly.

"Never!" Optimus promised. "Maybe the next time we meet, I can finally remove Duststorm from his position here!"

"You better keep that promise, Optimus." Patchwork said.

Optimus turned to face Patchwork, now halfway to the door and waved at him. He then turned away, waiting a nano-klik for the door to slide open and exited out into the late cycle Hadeen. Nova Prime stood a few steps away, optics on him the moment he stepped out. The Prime readjusted his position before pointing to the remains of a road that led away from the gate and deeper into Iacon. 

"Due to the derelict conditions of this area, we will be traveling in root mode until we arrive at the next district." Nova Prime spoke as he began to walk, not caring if Optimus was keeping up or not. 

Optimus did his best to keep pace with the mech and once he found the right rhythm, managed to keep in step right behind the Prime. It was clear that Nova Prime had no interest in small talk, nor did he want to stay in this district for longer than necessary. Their quick walking pace and lack of communication proved how little he wanted to stay. Optimus on the other servo was looking around as they walked. 

Unlike the areas before the gate that had become a flattened battle ground, beyond their unit buildings and deeper into the Iacon city state was far less destroyed. This area had still been hit during the initial fall of the South Gate, but it hadn't seen any combat since the unit had been established so there was a clear difference traveling through this area and the battlefields Optimus was used to. The main road still existed, but it was broken apart, covered in debris and craters to the point that driving was simply impractical. 

Nova Prime was aware of this as he carefully weaved around chunks of stone, broken class and twisted metal. Each time he had to make even a slight detour, Optimus was certain the mech was losing his patience just a bit more. It was either that, or the Prime disliked walking through what was essentially the worst slums of all of Iacon. He would constantly look around at the abandoned husks of buildings and too-dark alleyways like he expected to be jumped at any time. 

Though clearly he didn't see nor notice the bots that were actually hidden from view. While the slums were evacuated during the initial fighting, many residents had come back and picked up life right where it started. In fact, the slums thrived nearly as much as it did before the war had even started. Sure the survivors were more hostile and seemed to hate Autobots nearly as much as the Decepticons, but they didn't cause problems for any of the Autobots stationed at the South Gate. Even when they walked through the main street on a solar cycle off in hopes of reaching the next district over that had proper shops and actual energon. Optimus hadn't had a solar cycle off since before he'd woken from his vorn long stasis. According to Duststorm, that entire vorn was his next ten stellar cycles worth of time off and Optimus couldn't do anything about it. 

Though now it seemed like he'd finally get a promotion and hopefully be allowed back to the South Gate to relieve Duststorm of his duties. Optimus didn't have much of an interest in rising the ladder as many bots put it, he would honestly be fine serving his entire function as a rank-less soldier. But he knew that nothing would change at the South Gate if he remained rank-less and he refused to watch bots march to the Well each battle and not stand a chance against the Decepticons. So if that meant jumping at the first opportunity of getting promoted, Optimus would take it. No matter what any bot said about him.

Caught up in his thoughts, Optimus almost missed Nova Prime coming to a stop and just saved himself from running into him. Optimus straightened himself out and took several steps back to give the mech a respectful distance before looking at what made him stop. In front of them was the checkpoint between districts, a large structure built across the major streets within each area that helped keep the districts separated. They were mostly used to keep bots with no IDs from going deeper into Iacon.

Panic swelled in Optimus as he remembered that he had no ID. While his creators had given him an education, they were still slum bots who couldn't afford to purchase proper IDs. Even as a soldier, Optimus was considered too low rank for it to matter if he had one or not. Quietly, Optimus spoke to Nova.

"Sir, I am sorry, but I don't have an ID." Optimus spoke softly.

Nova Prime turned to him and Optimus swore he tsked. "I will vouch for your identification." He spoke smoothly, walking past the line of bots waiting to be checked by a green and brown mech. A couple of mechs seemed ready to say something to Nova and Optimus until the guard stuttered and saluted.

"Good cycle, Nova Prime sir." He stood straighter but never let his optics fall to the Prime. "Is your job at the South Gate complete?"

"I would not be here if it wasn't." Nova retorted. "I will be bringing this mech through with me on Ultra Magnus' orders."

The guard looked at Optimus with a scrutinizing optic before he nodded and moved to the side. Behind the guard was a door that opened automatically once Nova Prime stepped closer. Optimus quickly followed after him, glancing at the guard who was now refusing to look at him. On the other side of the door was a long room with high ceilings and open arches that showed the busy streets of the next district. The building was maintained, but the stone was dirty and cracked and worn down from stellar cycles of being walked upon. Outside, the streets were in equal treatment with buildings no higher than four stories and all made from dark stone that clearly should've been replaced centuries ago. 

This was a lower caste district and while it was far busier than the war-blown slums, it was still far from being well taken care of. The bots that traveled around kept to themselves and a low buzz of chatter could be heard but did not overwhelm the audial sensors. Some hid in alleyways and others shopped at outdoor stalls but nearly everybot stared at Nova Prime as he left the checkpoint. While some were clearly hostile, Nova simply ignored them and continued his quick pace, never looking back to see if Optimus was with him or not. 

Bots moved out of the way of Nova Prime as he traversed the street with Optimus on his heel. Optimus was constantly looking around, not used to being surrounded by so many bots, even if they were civilian frames like himself. He felt uneasy with so many frames and fields pressed together and he felt that if he was to be snuck up on, that he wouldn't notice until it was too late. Nova clearly didn't notice, or he didn't care since he walked like every bot would get out of his way. And they did which unnerved Optimus quite a bit since he was following right behind the Prime and a third party to this avoidance. 

Once they had managed to leave the main street that led to the checkpoint, they finally came to a drivable street. They had taken a turn at an intersection with zero hesitation and Optimus nearly missed Nova transforming into his vehicle form and driving off. Optimus transformed and swiftly caught up to him once more. On the driving street, Nova went fast, but didn't speed enough to have them catch the attention of local enforcers, though Optimus was certain that if Nova Prime was pulled over, those enforcers would be in far more trouble than he would. At least that was the attitude Optimus was getting as they continued the drive. 

They made it to the next checkpoint in half a cycle and like before, Nova skipped the line and was promptly let through. This time a mech did try and start something but was swiftly stopped by an enforcer on stand by. This was the first time Optimus had seen one up close. The bots were still small compared to a Decepticon, but their thick armor and large frame seemed far more suitable for fighting against them than the small and lithe frames that had been getting sent to the South Gate. One caught Optimus' optic and gave him a hard glare which caused Optimus to quickly look away. Enforcers had always been a source of fear for those in slums and it seemed that Optimus still instinctively avoided them. 

The next district was much the same and they drove straight through it until the next checkpoint. This continued on for several cycles and with each passing district, Optimus watched as buildings changed from worn and cracked to polished stone that was barely reflective. The middle caste had been the noisiest as they passed right by the major markets and they had just managed to avoid traffic by coming up to a transport station. Nova Prime transformed and walked straight for the transport which stood tall above the streets below it. Optimus followed swiftly, knowing better than to stop and gawk in such a place but he did look around the best he could. 

Taking a transport was expensive and a luxury to the mid caste but normal for the upper caste who viewed driving as below them unless absolutely necessary. He had heard that most of the upper caste districts had a transport system on every corner. Optimus wasn't sure if this was true or not, but he definitely understood why the transports were only used by the upper caste. The transport roads stretched high above most buildings and in between the towers that became more and more common in Central Iacon. While the cheaper transports consisted of multiple shared cars, the pricier ones were single cars that could be purchased to have to oneself. 

Which is exactly what Nova Prime had done. 

A single car pulled up in front of where Nova Prime stood, a well polished femme bowed politely to him as the doors slid open and he stepped inside. The femme gave Optimus a quizzical look before he awkwardly followed the Prime into the car. As the doors closed behind him, Optimus noticed that Nova had taken a seat on the well cushioned seat of the car. Thinking it would be rude to sit down as well, Optimus instead chose to hold onto the bar by the door as the car jerked slightly forward. 

The ride was quiet and awkward which made it feel like it lasted far longer than it probably did and by the time the car came to a stop, Optimus was ready to throw himself out of it. Nova Prime hadn't spoken a glyph the entire time and had even offlined his optics as he remained seated with his back struts straight and servos on his lap. Optimus almost thought he'd gone into recharge until an automated voice mentioned the arrival to Central Iacon. The klik the announcement was over, Nova's optics opened and his focus went to the door behind Optimus. 

Nova Prime did not stand until the car came to a stop but he was at the doors just before they opened. He exited the car first and then began the all familiar pace out of the transport station with Optimus right behind him. Once again Optimus had to stop himself from gawking at the scenery around him.

Optimus had thought the mid caste district had been amazing, but it had nothing on Central Iacon. The stone was polished till it reflected those who walked across it. The stone arched high, carved with decorative posts and entryways and crystal fauna spotted the buildings and along the pathways. They reflected Hadeen's light, bouncing colors of blue, white and yellow along the already shiny stone. The bots who walked seemed to glide in the same way that Nova Prime did, all were well polished and Optimus suddenly realized how dirty he really was. 

The wash racks at the South Gate were on a timer and it never left anybot with enough time to scrub properly. He'd never used wax in his entire creation and his window glass was still cracked due to the deep scarring that he had. He was dull, dirty and chipped, dented to the pits and clearly out of place here and these bots were letting him know with their glares and looks of disgust. It made Optimus clamp his armor tight and try to make himself smaller.

By the time they reached their location, Optimus was starting to regret coming to Central Iacon. He was feeling far more self-conscious than ever and really wanted to take a nice long solvent scrub. But Hadeen was now setting and Nova Prime, who remained ignorant of his distress, was entering a tall tower that Optimus recognized as the center most building of the city state of Iacon. It was also the headquarters for the Autobots and where Ultra Magnus worked. Nova led him to an elevator near the main entrance as he barely acknowledged the bots that saluted and greeted him. Once the doors slid shut and they began to go up, did Nova finally break the silence. 

"You will be taking a solvent shower before you present yourself to Ultra Magnus." Nova said, his optics focused on the changing number of the elevator. "I will not have you appear before him looking as you currently do."

"Yes, sir." Optimus said. He honestly felt grateful for this since he really wanted one.

"Once you are done, I will lead you to Ultra Magnus' office." Nova added. "Everything else is up to hm."

Optimus nodded and mumbled a soft 'yes sir' as the elevator finally came to a stop near the top of the tower. They left and Optimus was led to a large private wash rack where he spent a little longer than usual scrubbing his plating clean. He did the best he could to get all of the dirt and debris out but he decided to not wax his plating since he honestly didn't know how to put it on. When he came out, Nova Prime did not seem impressed but he also didn't make Optimus scrub again which he'd expected. 

They entered another elevator this time, one that needed Nova Prime's signature to operate. It led them higher once more but was a far shorter trip. Exiting this floor, Optimus found that it was busy with many bots going back and forth. Some sat at desks on consoles while others carried datapads stacked high. They didn't even look up to see who had entered the floor as they went about their work. Optimus tried not to focus too hard on the chaos before him since he didn't want to over hear anything he shouldn't. If there was one thing Optimus learned in the slums, it was to mind his own business. 

Nova Prime took him down a hall along the outer windows. Glancing outside, Optimus could see Central Iacon far below with streets winding between buildings for transports and walking paths far below that. Bots looked almost like dots as they moved about below. Nova stopped at a desk positioned beside a large door. A femme was at the desk, typing on a console and without even looking up, she opened the door for them. Inside this room was a large office filled with shelves of datapads, a sitting area with plush looking chairs and a large desk with an equally large mech behind it. 

Ultra Magnus was nowhere near as big as Megatron but he was still the biggest Autobot Optimus had ever seen. He sat with his back struts straight, in a similar manner to how Nova Prime sat but his attention went between his console and the datapads strewn across his desk. The mech looked tired with the deep creases on his faceplate and had white and blue plating. The Autobot symbol was on his chassis along with the signature wings of the Elite Guard decorating either side. Behind the desk and propped up on the wall was what Optimus could only guess to be the Magnus Hammer. It stood taller than Ultra Magnus and matched his color scheme so well that Optimus silently wondered if that had been on purpose. 

Nova Prime stood in front of the desk and remained silent, servos behind his back kibble. Optimus stood behind and to the side of him, his position far more loose as he awkwardly fiddled with his digits in the silence that hung in the room. When Ultra Magnus finally put down his datapad with a light tap, Nova Prime stood stiffer as he saluted the Autobot commander. Optimus quickly followed suit as he received a nod from the Magnus. 

"I have brought you the bot who battled Megatron at the South Gate and remained online. As stated in the report I sent, he has fought Megatron twice now and though he received heavy injury, still survived." Nova Prime said.

He stepped to the side and gestured towards Optimus who nearly flinched at the sudden attention directed towards him. Ultra Magnus remained seated but his cerulean optics were focused on him, assessing him and picking him wire by wire. Optimus stayed silent until the Magnus finally addressed him.

"What is your designation, soldier?" Ultra Magnus asked. His voice was raspy, like he'd used it too much. 

"Optimus, sir!" Optimus replied. 

"Optimus, I congratulate your efforts in stopping Megatron from taking control of the South Gate." Ultra Magnus began. "Fighting Megatron is no easy feat and seeing that you are a promising soldier, I intend to promote you to a rank you deserve."

Optimus felt his field flutter but immediately pulled it in tight. "Thank you, sir!" He said quickly. 

"I will be making you a Prime," Ultra Magnus continued. He glanced at Nova Prime whose optics widened slightly at this before returning to their neutral state. "A soldier capable of handling Decepticons as you has the right to be this rank."

"Th-thank you, sir…" Optimus stuttered. "I don't know what to say…"

Optimus felt pride swell into him as he let his optics fall to the floor. He'd hoped for a promotion coming here, but he'd bever expected to receive the title of Prime! It was unbelievable and part of him was waiting for the joke to be over but Ultra Magnus was still talking and Nova Prime was leaking bitterness from his field despite how tightly shut he'd had it their entire trip. 

"You will be officially registered as a Prime tomorrow and will receive a proper badge to replace your current one." Ultra Magnus looked through a datapad as he continued to speak. "I have a new post for you to go to as well. An outpost near Decepticon territory where I want you to take control of a small team of Autobots and monitor Decepticon activity."

"A new post?" Optimus felt his finial flick back as he finally looked at Ultra Magnus. "What about the South Gate?"

"The South Gate will continue to function even without you." Ultra Magnus stated. "Your new post will be much better for your abilities. This outpost is a crucial location along the Decepticon border and I need a bot I can trust running it. I hope you are that bot, Optimus Prime."

Optimus felt his spark pulse at the designation. It wasn't the South Gate, but he was being put in charge of a critical location and who knows, maybe in the future he can have more say on where he's positioned. He was just made a Prime, there was no reason to push his luck and make an enemy out of the Autobot commander. So he stood as straight as he could and saluted Ultra Magnus.

"I will do my best to not disappoint you." Optimus said as confidently as he could. 

"Good." Ultra Magnus finally looked up at Optimus. "You will rest in a guest habsuite this dark cycle and tomorrow you will get your new badge. Afterwards, I will have a bot escort you to the outpost where you will begin your new position immediately. I will reach out to you in a few solar cycles with your first set of orders. Nova, please show Optimus to his habsuite."

"Yes sir." Nova said, though far less enthusiastic than he'd been before. 

Optimus was led three floors down and to a corridor with several doors. Nova Prime stopped in front of one seemingly at random and opened it for Optimus before leaving without a single glyph or glance at him. Optimus had gotten used to it after spending the entire light cycle being ignored by the prickly Prime and treated like an annoyance. Instead, he went inside and took a quick look around the habsuite he’d been given for the night cycle. 

It was clean and bare of anything but the necessities with a desk, a berth and an energon dispenser and a small wash rack hidden behind a small wall. The desk was empty, but the berth had a thin organic mesh pad on it that was far softer than anything Optimus had ever felt before. This was even more of a luxury than the wash rack which he was happy to have access to despite having just taken a wash cycles prior. The energon dispenser even gave him a full cube of energon and it wasn’t watered down!

Optimus sat on the berth as he sipped at his energon, savoring its rich flavor. So much had happened that solar cycle and he could barely believe that he’d actually been made a Prime. He’d been sent away from his goal of making the South Gate a better place, but he’d been put in charge of an outpost that Ultra Magnus had said was important. It was close to Decepticon territory, but the South Gate was constantly overrun by them so it meant little to Optimus. Maybe that was why he was assigned there; because he had experience with Decepticons. Nova Prime clearly didn’t seem the type to have experience, he was probably a Prime for different reasons after all. 

Optimus finished his cube and tossed it before glancing at the wash rack and then the berth. He could wait to take a shower the next day cycle. He was exhausted from traveling all cycle and wanted to rest. Especially since he’d have to leave Iacon all together tomorrow. So Optimus decided to recharge on the berth instead.

Optimus was woken by a sharp knock on his door. He’d jumped out of recharge and was up quickly as he looked at his internal clock. Hadeen had just started to rise which meant he’d slept the normal amount, but oh he felt so much better than he’d ever felt. No sore joints or stiffness he’d had at the South Gate. It was almost sad that he’d have to leave such a nice berth behind. But whoever was at his door would have be waiting for him, so Optimus stretched a bit before going and opening his door.

“Good day cycle, Optimus Prime.” The femme was yellow with green accents and just a bit shorter than Optimus. She smiled as she took a respectful step back. “I am Elita-1 and I will be taking you to the outpost.”

“Thank you.” Optimus said. Eilita-1 seemed caught off guard by that before she quickly tugged her field in and gestured down the hall. 

“Before we leave, Ultra Magnus ordered your badge to be upgraded so we will be going to a detailer first.” Elita-1 made sure Optimus was following her before she began walking down the hall, towards an elevator Optimus remembered from the solar cycle before. “Have you fueled yet?”

“I did last evening cycle.” Optimus said, looking down at the femme.

“I will get you fuel while you get your upgrade then.” Elita-1 said. 

She was cheerful, far different from Nova Prime. It was nice to know that not all Iacon bots were distant and dismissive to those around them. Elita-1 led Optimus to a detailer who quickly got to work on his new badge. He spoke quickly through the process, informing Optimus of new features and information his badge would have and any soreness he might feel afterwards would be normal. Elita-1 had disappeared right after dropping Optimus off but returned just a few kliks later with the promised fuel. Another full cup of energon which Optimus gladly drank. He’d never had access to so much fuel before and he wasn’t about to refuse it.

Once his upgrade was finished, Elita-1 and Optimus left the tower and Central Iacon. They chatted about small things, mostly Elita-1 asking Optimus about the South Gate, about Decepticons and about Megatron. Optimus managed to answer them to the best of his abilities and the femme seemed satisfied with each answer he gave her. The travel went by fast, even as they exited Iacon through a hidden tunnel that led out to the dusty wilds surrounding the city state. They exited closer to the East Gate, heading just slightly north and along a barely noticeable path. Bots had traveled enough to clear out rocks and debris but not enough to leave a clear trail to follow. 

Hadeen was high above them as they drove on, passing rock forms, giant crystal fauna and the occasional half collapsed building. Elita-1 kept driving, even as seekers flew over-helm. They made Optimus nervous but he did his best to ignore it since they weren’t attacking them and Elita-1 seemed perfectly okay with ignoring them herself. 

Finally, at an outcropping of stones, a small structure came into view, half hidden by the natural formations around it. The structure was once white and now stained orange by the wild’s sand. Cracks decorated the entire structure, a canopy made of metal pipes and sheet metal hung over the top of it and the windows were empty, though if the glass had been broken, it was cleared away now. Despite the open windows, a solid door remained. As they drove closer, Optimus noticed a smaller building hidden behind it in not much better shape than the first structure. All in all, the place looked worse than the South Gate Unit buildings.

Elita-1 transformed and walked to the door, knocking her servo on it a few times as Optimus came behind her in root mode. After what felt like several kliks, an old mech opened the door and looked at them with a scrutinizing glare. He was a medic from what Optimus could tell, far older than Patchwork based on his frame and a scowl present on his faceplate. 

“What do ya want?” The medic snapped, looking up at Elita-1.

“I am here on order from Ultra Magnus with your new leader.” Elita-1 replied, clearly unfazed by the gruff medic. Said medic turned his gaze to Optimus for a nano-klik before returning to Elita-1. “This is Optimus Prime, and he’ll be in charge of his outpost from now on.”

“Great, a Prime, just what we need.” The medic scoffed but moved from the door and walked inside. 

Elita-1 gestured for Optimus to go in but didn’t follow. Instead she placed her servo on his shoulder pauldron and muttered. “Good luck.”

Optimus looked back at her but the door slid shut before he could speak. Instead Optimus turned around to the inside of the building where he was met with three other bots along with the grumpy medic. Each one was either looking at him with distrust or nervousness and Optimus was starting to realize what Elita-1 had meant. Before Optimus stood an old medic, a very small and young bot, a much larger and equally young bot and a lithe mech who was clearly glaring at him from behind his visor. 

This was not a good start.

Chapter Text

Optimus looked at the four mechs before him and glanced back at the door in hopes Elita-1 decided to come back and help him. But she never did so he turned back to them and let out a short ex-vent. This caused the one with the visor to tighten his plating while the large green one visibly flinched. The tension felt thick enough to cut with a blade and Optimus then realized how awkward he was in situations like this. He was so used to remaining silent and hoping to leave but that wasn't a choice right now and he knew it. So he did what he thought any proper Prime should do: he introduced himself.

"Well, uhm, I'm Optimus… like Elita-1 said." He completely fumbled that right from the start and of course now he felt even more awkward. "Can you tell me your designations and functions here?"

The three younger mechs turned to the old medic who gave them a glance before letting out an exasperated ex-vent. "I'm Ratchet, the medic here." He began, crossing his arms over his chassis. "In order we got Bulkhead, Bumblebee and Prowl."

"And your jobs here?" Optimus asked again.

"Uh, don't get caught by the Decepticons out on patrol?" Bumblebee said with a shrug. "We don't really have any assignments here since we're the throw aways."

"What?" Optimus asked in shock. Everybot was supposed to have a function, a job. Even if it's just to go out and kill as many Decepticons as you can before you join the Well. It was impossible for these bots to just be thrown here with no regard for what they were supposed to do. "Ultra Magnus said this was an important outpost-"

"Ultra Magnus lied to make this place seem important but look around kid, this place is just an abandoned building that Autobot Command randomly decided to turn into an outpost." Ratchet gestured towards the dimly lit room and Optimus saw that it really was nothing more than an abandoned building.

While not nearly as corroded as the bombed out remains of the buildings he was used to, the place was clearly falling apart. Rust and sand mixed together in a sad appearance of what may have once been a proud outpost but was now left to rot. The metal walls were half gone, wires and screws jutting out dangerously. The lights flickered in places and were blown out in others, making the room rely on the natural light of Hadeen that poured through empty windows. Chairs were made from crates and a table was welded together even more poorly than Duststorm's desk. The only thing that made this place look like it is in fact a running operation was the communications station that was lit up despite several of the screens being cracked and staticy and some not even on at all. There was an opening that led to a hall and the frame was bent inwards like the door had been rammed in and more doors that were closed could just be seen. The place was a mess and Optimus was starting to wonder if him becoming a Prine was all just some cruel and sick joke.

"Sorry if I destroyed your idea of glory, I don't know why they sent a Prime to this place but seeing that you aren't some arrogant codpiece, I figured I'd tell you up front." Ratchet continued. He could tell by Optimus' field that the bot was disappointed. "I'm sure if you complain to Ultra Magnus, he might give you a better post elsewhere."

Optimus looked at Ratchet, to the other three bots and then back to the room. He clenched his servos until he felt like his wires would burst. "I never thought I'd get a chance at a promotion and I finally have one of the highest ranks there is." Optimus turned to ratxhet. "If I complain, Ultra Magnus could easily take this away from me and then I have nothing again. I swore I would change how things are done if I ever got the chance too, I have that chance now and I'm not going to give it up just because I was put in charge of this outpost."

Ratchet looked at Optimus with surprise, like he'd expected the young Prime to go off on them, blame them for being sent there or to just complain in general. But Optimus didn't. He admitted that the situation wasn't ideal but that his own end goal outweighed anything else. What surprised Ratchet even more was when Prowl stepped forward to address the young Prime.

"Where are you from?" Prowl asked, his focus trained on Optimus. "Your accent isn't from Central Iacon, nor any mid-class district I'm aware of. You're also damaged, but the welding is old and healed. Your clearly not from the Academy but it's obvious you've seen combat."

"You're right, I'm not from Central, I'm from the South Gate." Optimus said. "I came online in the slums there and was also there when the gates fell so I've been in the warzone since I was a bitlet."

Prowl's visor lit up slightly brighter, now caught off guard by Optimus Prime just as Ratchet had. He seemed to want to ask Optimus something else, but was rudely interrupted by Bumblebee who shoved his way from behind the taller mech to question Optimus instead. 

"Wait, so does that mean you've fought against Decepticons? Is it true that they're huge? Did you offline any? I heard Megatron showed up not too long ago and some bot fought him and made it out alive? Do you know that bot?" Bumblebee rattled off his questions quickly and with far more energy than Optimus was expecting. The young mech was smiling eagerly though and Optimus couldn't help but smile as he answered. 

"Yes I've fought Decepticons, yes they are nearly twice my size. I have offlined them, that was my job. Megatron showed up, I'm the one who fought him." Optimus answered carefully, making sure he didn't miss a single question. 

Bumblebee gaped at him when he mentioned fighting Megatron and then his optics went to Optimus' scar. They widened and he pointed at it and then looked back at Optimus who nodded that yes that was from Megatron. Bumblebee then looked around at the other bots in the room and gestured towards Optimus dramatically. "How are you still online?"

"I get asked that a lot." Optimus said, bringing his servo to his chassis on reflex. 

Ratchet narrowed his optics at Optimus, glancing down at his scar before he starting turning to the hallway Optimus had seen earlier. "Prime, come with me, I want to take a look at that." He said, expecting Optimus to follow. "You three go find something to do that doesn't involve bugging us. Or leaving the building!"

Bumblebee booed at the last part but turned his focus on Bulkhead and Prowl disappeared from sight the klik Optimus turned his focus back to Ratchet. The medic had brought Optimus to the first door in the hallway which slid open to reveal a makeshift medbay, including a berth that was being balanced on crates, shelving neatly lined with medical supplies, a locked cabinet and machinery that was humming slightly. Compared to the rest of the building, this room was immaculate and far nicer than the medbay Optimus was used to. 

"Sit on the berth, I've got to get some vitals done and then check that scar out." Ratchet said, gesturing towards the berth as he began rummaging through a drawer. Optimus obediently sat down on the edge and noticed that the berth didn't even shift under his weight. "What medic did you have that left your welding in such a state?"

Ratchet was scolding as he came back over with some medical cables that were already hooked to his system. Optimus handed Ratchet his arm and opened his medical port for him. "Patchwork was our Medic." Optimus said. "I was in stasis for three vorn and he made sure the mech in charge didn't pull the plug." 

"So that idiot is still online?" Ratchet asked. His optics never left his readings but Optimus noticed a softer tone in the medic’s gruff voice. 

"He's doing as good as you can in his situation. Best medic the South Gate could hope for." Optimus said. "He does his best with what he's got."

"Which doesn't seem to be slag." Ratchet scolded as he traced the scar gently with a digit. "Does this hurt?"

"No." Optimus said. When Ratchet gave him a scolding look, Optimus raised his servos in surrender. "It pulls on my protoform when I move but is uncomfortable at the worst of times. It only hurts during combat."

"Describe the discomfort." Ratchet said. He prodded at the edge of Optimus' window glass which crumbled slightly. 

"Pulling mostly, like it's tight and no matter how I move it won't loosen." Optimus tried not to move. The glass part of his chassis had no pain receptors but he could still feel it.

"And the pain." Ratchet went back to typing on a small machine in his servo. 

"A burning sensation I get at the beginning of a fight. Like the wound reopened but it doesn't?" Optimus explained.

"You didn't tell that to Patchwork." Ratchet said. "He would've written it down in your file if you had."

"I was worried he'd pull me from combat if I told him." Optimus explained. 

"So why inform me?" Ratchet asked.

"Because I feel like I wouldn't be able to hide it from you and if I tried and you found out, I'd be in way more trouble than telling you now." Optimus explained. "I've been in a warzone for several hundred millenia, I know somebot with a temper when I see them."

Ratchet let out a short snort but Optimus could see the edges of his intake rise in a small smile. He pretended not to notice as Ratchet finally put away the medical cables and turned his focus to Optimus again. "I can fix the welding on your chassis to be less noticeable and reduce the pressure on your protoform. The glass needs to be replaced before it crumbles and falls away on its own and we may have some paint to touch you up and cover it up for the most part." Ratchet began. "The discomfort is caused by the deep welding having been too deep. Patchwork most likely did that to ensure your life but was unable to go back and loosen the welds once you were no longer in danger. It's still fixable but without a full plating replacement, the damage will remain."

Optimus put his servo to the scar once more. He'd like the discomfort to go away and he knew it was probably for the best to get the welding fixed, but Megatron's warning kept echoing in his processor and making him hesitate. Ratchet noticed his contemplated look and frowned. 

"Okay kid, what's in your helm?" Ratchet asked. "I know you got this wound from Megatron but it ain't pride that's making you hesitate."

Optimus looked up at Ratchet and then looked down at the ground. "Megatron told me I’d regret covering this scar because he put a claim on me." Optimus hoped he spoke clearly because in truth he had no clue what Megatron had meant by a claim or why the scar was so important. 

Ratchet leaned against the counter and his frown deepened. "He said a claim right, that glyph specifically?" Ratchet asked. When Optimus nodded, the medic let out a stressed ex-vent and covered his faceplate with a servo. "In all my stellar cycles as a medic, it just had to be this."

Optimus looked at Ratchet in confusion. The medic let out another short ex-vent and then spoke. "Warframes have a very unique culture and amongst their different traditions are their claiming rituals." Ratchet explained. "The first is the mate claim and the second is the fight claim. The latter is what you have."

"Whay exactly is a fight claim?" Optimus asked hesitantly. He wasn't quite sure he wanted to know but Megatron never explained anything to him that made sense and he didn't feel like finding the mech to clarify either.

"When a warframe has a grudge against a bot or if he's impressed by their fighting abilities, they'll put a claim on them to let other warframes know not to target them. It was primarily used to enact revenge before the war when they were mostly around each other. After the war started, they begun marking any Autobots that impressed them in hopes of fighting them again." Raychet explained.

"That doesn't make any sense." Optimus stressed. 

"To us it doesn't but to them, it's part of the way they live." Ratchet explained. "It's like a racer calling another their Rival if they are just as fast." 

The analogy did help Optimus but it was still hard to believe that Megatron wanted revenge on him. It's not like he actually did anything to the mech specifically! Well he did offline a good amount of Decepticons and he did blast a hole in that Seeker's wing but that's war! And Megatron seemed almost amused when Optimus landed a hit on his neck and damaged the cabling. He never actually saw the mech angry which was almost terrifying in its own right.

"What's going through your processor?" Ratchet asked.

"I can't think of anything I did to make Megatron mad." Optimus admitted.

"Which means he was impressed with your abilities." Ratchet said. "At least he won't be doing everything in his power to hunt you down."

"Somehow that doesn't make me feel any better." Optimis let out an ex-vent.

“I won’t be bothering with covering up that scar though,” Ratchet said. “No point in you receiving any ire from the mech of it isn’t already there.”

Optimus gave Ratchet a disgruntled look but the medic shrugged

 before going over the rest of Optimus' systems. It took nearly a cycle for them to finish and Ratchet let Optimus down from the berth and let him leave. Before exiting the medbay, Optimus remembered the pain he had before fighting and that Ratchet never told him what it was so Optimus asked.

"Phantom Pains." Ratchet said. "It happens often when patients go through a great deal of shock when they receive an injury. I've seen it in amputated limbs and in large injuries like what you suffered. A trigger causes the feeling of pain to emerge and many claim to reel a burning sensation in the area of the injury. Healed, replaced or missing, it doesn't matter."

"Is there anyway to make it go away?" Optimus asked. He didn't want the pain to spark each time he faced somebot in a fight. 

"Its psychological not physical. I'm not an expert in that and I won't pretend to be." Ratchet explained. "I only know what the issue is called and can recommend a therapist but given our current situation, that may be impossible."

"I understand." Optimus said. "Thank you Ratchet."

Optimus left the medbay and glanced down the hallway. There were four other doors, three had a makeshift sign on each one. Upon closer inspection, the designations of the other three mechs were coarsely engraved onto the thin metal. Even Prowl had one but the penmanship looked very similar to the one Bumblebee had which made Optimus think that the taller mech was given the plate against his will. Optimus couldn't help but smile at this as he walked back to the main room with the communication station.

Bumblebee and Bulkhead were in the room, messing with something that the two quickly hid when they saw Optimus approach. Optimus had just caught the sight of sparks but decided against asking about it. 

"Hey Optimus… Prime, sir?" Bumblebee fumbled horribly and seemed to flinch when he realized just how rude he'd sounded. 

"Just Optimus is fine." Optimus told him. "Being called sir feels stuffy."

Bumblebee and Bulkhead loosened up with this and they seemed to relax a lot more. Like they'd been worried about offending Optimus and expecting him to yell at them over anything. It was confusing but it made Optimus realize that he wasn't the only one walking on glass in this base. They all had a reason for being assigned here and Optimus was starting to think that it wasn't for a good reason. 

"I finished with Ratchet and was wondering if you had a patrol system or schedule for each solar cycle that you went by?" Optimus asked.

"Uhm, we do have a schedule." Bulkhead offered. "I can send you the file if that's alright with you?"

"Sure, thank you." Optimus said, offering his contact to Bulkhead. The large mech seemed rather flustered at this but quickly sent over the file. It was a block chart with each solar cycle and listed who did what and was even broken down by the cycles they'd spend on each task. It was highly efficient and easy to understand. "This is well made. I wish we'd had this as the South Gate."

This time Bulkhead sputtered our static and tapped his large digits together as he looked away. The praise clearly caught him off guard and Bumblebee seemed very amused by his friend's behavior because he gave the large mech a few friendly smacks before turning to Optimus. 

"Between you and me, Bulkhead may be a bit slow but he understands everything better than I can and I'm the fastest bot around." Bumblebee covered his intake with a servo as he spoke but he was grinning wide. 

"Bumblebee, don't you have patrol duty soon?" Bulkhead said. He was clearly trying to steer the attention away from himself and Bumblebee had no issues in letting it happen. 

"Yeah yeah, I got a few more kliks before I need to leave." Bumblebee put his servos behind his helm, clearly reluctant to actually go out on patrol.

"Can I join your patrol?" Optimus asked. Bumblebee looked at him in shock. "I'd like to get an idea of what the ground looks like outside and what we're dealing with when it comes to the Decepticons."

"Aren't you in charge here now?" Bumblebee asked. "I mean I ain't got a problem with it but that's also not up to me?"

"I may have been put I charge here but I have no intention of overstepping." Optimus said. "I know what it's like to have a horrible leader and I'm not going to treat my team like that."

Bumblebee smiled brightly and seemed to bounce slightly as he made his way towards the door. "Let's go then!" The smaller bot exclaimed loudly. Clearly the idea of going on patrol was no longer disgruntling. 

"We'll be back." Optimus told Bulkhead as he followed Bumblebee outside. 

The little yellow bot kept his lighthearted step as he led Optimus behind the building to the outcropping of rocks. Hidden from view was a narrow tunnel that looked like it was carved out of the stone. It was just big enough for Optimus to fit through without scraping the stone and plenty big for the smaller Bumblebee. Once out on the other side, Optimus was greeted with the open wilds that he'd only seen at a glance on the times the fighting took him outside the gate. The sands were a bright orange and spread out to the horizon with rocky outcrops dotting along it. Hadeen shone bright above them, giving small amounts of shade and protection from its heat. 

"So there's actually a road just a few kliks that way!" Bumblebee said, pointing in a random direction. "See those two out crops that look like an arch? You can remember the direction by always heading towards them!"

"Do the Decepticons use that road?" Optimus asks, trying to mesmerize the shape and location of the outcrops.

"All the time!" Bumblebee explained. "They even have caravans of supplies going back and forth to somewhere, but we don't know where."

"Ultra Magnus doesn't order you to find out?" Optimus asked.

Bumblebee shrugged. "We don't get any missions from him. We were just told to keep the outpost from collapsing. Well, more like to keep the communication station from shutting down." He said. "That's pretty much all we do."

"Wouldn't just one bot be sufficient for that?" Optimus asked. "It doesn't make sense to have four bots, including a medic and now a Prime there."

"I didn't think so either but it's not like we get a say in anything." Bumblebee said. "It's not too bad but we thought it was gonna be all over when you showed up. Docs always been in charge and then you came out of nowhere and you're a Prime too so we thought we were in trouble since none of us really like Central."

"Why not?" Optimus asked. 

Bumblebee looked back at the wilds as he spoke. "I don't know about the others, Ratchet was already here when Bulk and I got here. But the two of us were in a bootcamp together and we accidentally dropped a wall on our instructor during a training exercise. We apologized but he was a hardaft and sent us here saying we'd never be Autobot cadets." Bumblebee frowned. "He was a jerk that thought he was better than us just because he was a Prime!"

"That's not fair." Optimus said. 

"It's not but what are we supposed to do about it?" Bumblebee asked. The young bot walked away from the rocky shelter and into the open wilds. He turned back to Optimus and had a look Optimus recognized before; desperation, acceptance and pain. "Optimus, are we going to live the rest of our creation stuck in this rusted out place?"

Optimus clenched his servos and walked towards Bumblebee. He stood a respectful distance and looked down at rhe bot. "I will do everything I can to make sure that doesn't happen." He said. "I don't I know what I'm going to do, but I won't leave any of you to rust."

Bumblebee smiles again and turned his attention towards a nearby rock formation that he usually drove to during his patrol. Optimus followed, glancing at another cropping in the opposite direction that led further out into the wilds and away from Iacon. He had felt something but when his optics couldn't find a source, he instead focused back on Bumblebee who'd transformed and driven ahead. 

At the rock formation, a warframe watched the two Autobots through a scope. From here, he could easily snipe them, but his orders were to observe and so that's what he did. But the red and blue mech was a newcomer to the small team that they'd been keeping an optic out for whenever they had deliveries through the area. The team had appeared non threatening, made up of a small mismatched group but this newcomer was clearly different. He walked like a warrior of the battlefield and his glance towards this direction told Barricade that he'd instinctively felt him watching them. This was something he'd have to report back to Lord Megatron about since a skilled fighter could easily change this team from being harmless to being a real threat. 

Without a second thought, Barricade called the communications of Kaon, requesting contact with Lord Megatron. He had to wait a few kliks but was greeted by his leader instead of a general. 

"Lord Megatron, a new mech had been added to the team stationed at the small outpost here." Barricade began. "He has battle experience from what I can tell and is already establishing patrols with the other members."

"Do you recognize the mech?" Megatron asked. 

"No, he is taller than the yellow minicon,a convoy with red and blue plating, a large scar is on his chassis." Barricade described, watching the two Autobots through his scope again. 

"Is there a rim on his helm and does he have yellow accents?" Megatron frowned at the description.

"Yes sir." Barrjcade replied.

"That is Optimus, the mech I put a fight claim on at the South Gate." Megatron said. "He has offlined several Decepticons during his time there and is not to be taken lightly."

"I will make note of that." Barricade replied.

"Good, but keep your distance. I do not need them knowing they are being watched." Megatron warned.

The call cut off and Megatron stared at the signal radar that showed where Barricade was on the map. A major trade route ran nearby, too close to Iacon for comfort but far too important to find a different course. Magnus had placed a small team to watch the route stellar cycles ago but they were barely a team and no true threat. Now with Optimus that could change. The mech was skilled enough to fight Megatron but he also had thousands of stellar cycles of experience handling Decepticon troops,  something many Autobots did not have since they tended to be offline too soon. 

But why had Magnus put Optimus there of all places? Yes the trade route nearby was vital but to the Autobots it should be nothing more than a minor supply route that was often bait to hide the more important routes. There were too many questions that Megatron could not understand. He just hoped he could figure them out before it came to bite him on the aft.

Chapter Text

After two solar cycles, a mission finally came. It was a direct order from Ultra Magnus about a possible transport making its way to the road not far from where Optimus was. This was the same stretch Bumblebee had informed Optimus of on their first patrol. It was possible that the transport itself was a decoy to hide something else, but Ultra Magnus was not taking that risk and decided that Optimus would intercept it. Optimus had informed the Magnus that he'd never done anything of this nature before but was told that he didn't have to steal whatever the transport held; he simply had to blow it up. 

This was certainly far easier than trying to steal whatever was on it, but once again, Optimus had zero experience with tasks of this nature. He was a soldier, not a saboteur. Even Bumblebee seemed hesitant about taking the task on. 

"We're not actually gonna try and blow up a transport protected by a bunch of Decepticons, are we?" The small bot asked.

"Unfortunately we don't have a choice." Optimus said, placing his servos on his hip joints. "Though I don't know with what. We don't exactly have any explosives just sitting around."

"Unfortunately." Prowl said. 

"I could probably rig something." Bulkhead said. Four sets of optics turned to the larger green bot who got flustered and tapped his digits together. "It's not that hard to create one with the right wiring, a fuse and some raw energon."

"How fast can you make it?" Optimus asked. The transport would be there before the night cycle ended so they didn't have long. 

"I can make two in a cycle." Bulkhead said, holding up two digits. 

"Okay, let's see how many you can make then." Optimus had no idea how many explosives it took to blow up a single transport but he'd rather have too much than too little. This was also his first mission assigned to him by Ultra Magnus and he wanted to have good results. 

By the time they needed to make their way to the road, Bulkhead had managed to make five small explosives. They fit easily in Optimus' servo and could be triggered with the press of a button. It had taken longer than they thought to find stable fuses in the rundown outpost but they'd managed. Ratchet had watched Bulkhead close but seemed quite impressed by his work. 

"How'd you know how to make something like this??" Ratchet asked.

"My caretakers were construction bots and they used these small explosives to do demolition work. The explosion is enough to take down buildings, but easily controlled." Bulkhead explained. "I learned how to make these before I went to boot camp."

"You never mentioned that before." Bumblebee huffed. He'd been keeping a safe distance from the explosives, hiding behind Prowl. 

"You never asked, little buddy." Bulkhead said with a light hearted smile. Bumblebee couldn't deny that. 

"So what's your plan, kid?" Ratchet asked, his optics on Optimus. 

"Bumblebee, Prowl and I will go to the transport and quietly hide until it passes. I saw some fauna we can tuck down in and we should be able to simply throw the explosives under it as it passes." Optimus said. "It's risky, but we were never told to fight the Decepticons, only to blow up whatever they are transporting."

"Why do I have to come?" Prowl demanded, crossing his arms over his chassis. 

"You are the best here at stealth. Bulkhead isn't suitable for a mission like this and sending Ratchet is illogical. I'm also not taking on this mission with just Bumblebee." Optimus explained. "You're the only option."

"And if I say no?" Prowl asked, taking a step forward. "Are you going to order me to go?"

Optimus clenched his servo and frowned, optics staring at Prowl. He hadn't expected this much resistance from the mech. He'd thought that Prowl would just quietly follow along without a complaint like he seemed to do with everything else. Optimus didn't necessarily want to just throw around orders–he knew all too well how horrible it feels to be unable to disobey then. Which was why he had a habit of asking the mechs here to do stuff or for help. Optimus was a Prime, he had the authority to make orders but Optimus didn't want to abuse his power.

But would it be abusing his power if the outcome of this mission was reliant on Prowl being there?

Probably not. There was a reason a chain of command existed in armies. Somebot had to take control and say what needs to be done. That somebot here was Optimus and if that meant ordering Prowl to go with them then that was well within his authority to do so. He had his own orders and he and Bumblebee were at far less risk with a third mech who was clearly well versed in stealth. So Optimus stiffened his plating and spoke.

"If I have to, I will order you." Optimus said. "If you're willing to understand that we need you to help make this mission a success and with as little damage to our side as possible, I won't order you. But if you refuse to do so, I will be forced to order you to do so."

Prowl stayed silent, watching Optimus from his visor. His field crackled subtly, like static shock licking across his frame and just barely reaching Optimus’. It didn’t even cause Optimus to flinch, merely a spark that showed Prowl’s apprehension of the entire situation. Clearly he had issues with far more than just Optimus but now wasn’t the time to pry and honestly, Optimus didn’t know if he’d ever learn anymore than what this mech would openly deny him. So instead he waited, and let Prowl decide how he wanted their relationship to go. After what felt like an eternity, Prowl ex-vented, shoulders dropping just slightly as he looked away from Optimus.

“Fine, I’ll go. But I will be leaving the moment I think my spark is in danger.” Prowl said, turning back to Optimus and leaning in a bit closer, field flared now.

“I would rather you do that then recklessly put your spark on the line.” Optimus said. “I mean it when I say I don’t want to see any of you offline!”

Prowl withdrew his field and grabbed two of the bombs, carefully storing them in his subspace before moving towards the door. He stopped just outside of the sensors before glancing back at Optimus. “Then let’s get this over with before this solar cycle ends.” He said before walking out the door.

Optimus subspaced the remaining three bombs as Bumblebee followed Prowl outside. “We’ll be back soon.” Optimus told Ratchet and Bulkhead, the latter wishing them luck while Ratchet scoffed and warned him about getting injured.

Outside, Bumblebee was clearly far more amped for this mission than Prowl was, practically running laps around the mech. Prowl extended his pede out at the last nanoklik and successfully tripped Bumblebee who then fell right on his faceplate. Optimus was about to ask if he was alright when the small yellow bot jumped up and began to complain to the other. Prowl had his arms crossed over his chassis and was clearly ignoring Bumblebee, might have even had his audio sensors turned off given how he didn’t so much as twitch at a single insult. Prowl looked at Optimus and gave Bumblebee a nice shove.

“Lead the way then.” Prowl said, gesturing towards the open path in the surround rock wall that he’d take with Bumblebee when they’d go on patrol.

Optimus nodded and led the two of them through the narrow path. On the other side, they stayed low near the cliff side, looking around until Optimus was certain no one was on the ground nor above them. They moved swiftly from location to location, Prowl moving with far more ease than any of them. On two separate occasions, the mech would slam his servo over Bumblebee’s intake when the younger mech got too antsy over staying silent. Optimus was grateful for this since they were right next to the road and really couldn’t afford to be caught now.

The road was more of a well worn path in the rust colored ground that made up most of the wilds outside of Iacon. It was a lighter color, clear of most rocks and vegetation and was honestly well hidden. From a distance, Optimus would never have known it existed. From where they had come up to it, the road disappeared into the horizon in both directions, melting into the rest of the scenery and with Hadeen sinking as well, it would soon vanish all together. There was vegetation and boulders large enough to hide Autobots on either side and Optimus chose two where they could easily see out to the other side but be hidden no matter the direction the transport was going to come from. He had Prowl set up on one side of the road by himself while he settled on the other side with Bumblebee.

“So what exactly are we going to do?” Bumblebee asked as Optimus pulled out the three bombs he had.

To his credit, the younger mech was being quiet but Optimus wished he’d comm him, until he remembered that he never shared his comm number with any of them. He’d never shared it with any bot aside from Patchwork. He’d have to make sure they were all given it once they returned to the outpost. He needed to be able to contact all of them in case of an emergency.

“Once the transport gets right past us, we will toss the bombs underneath it and then drive away, circle around and meet up at the base.” Optimus said. “The bombs have a ten nanoklik delay so we have to be fast and accurate.”

“Can I throw them?” Bumblebee asked, a little over eager.

Optimus was hesitant. He’d brought Bumblebee along so that he could run back to base in case something happened to him or Prowl, not to blow up the transport. But he also wouldn’t have time to throw the third bomb so he carefully slid it closer to the bot. “You get one.” Optimus emphasized. “When the transport comes by, we hit the button, toss them underneath and then drive away. Don’t go straight to the base, go in a random direction and then we will regroup when we are certain we aren’t being followed.”

He’d already explained this to Prowl who seemed content that this was all there was to the mission. Optimus was certain he’d have no issues getting away, but he was worried Bumblebee might fumble the bomb given his age and the last thing Optimus wanted was to see him get hurt because of a mission he’d decided on. 

They crouched behind the fauna for over two cycles and honestly, Optimus was impressed at how quiet Bumblebee was being. He wasn’t exactly sitting still but he wasn’t talking nor making a lot of noise. This was stressful and the waiting was even eating away at Optimus. He’d been hunkered down in a trash bin before for half a solar cycle when he’d once gotten trapped too deep into Decepticon territory and it wasn’t nearly as tedious as this. But their patience was rewarded since not even a half cycle later, Optimus could pick up the sounds of something coming down the road from a distance.

Peaking out carefully, Optimus could see the dust cloud of what should be their transport. It didn’t take long for it to come into view: a large orange vehicle, painted to blend in with thick framing, only the front had windows and a large enclosed trailer that could easily fit several warframes inside was dragged behind it. It was designed to withstand the war for sure but Optimus knew these trucks had one fatal weakness: the bottoms weren’t as well protected. They probably assumed all threats would be from the sky and not under pede which would make their lives easier if they got the timing right for tossing the bombs. A quick look to the sky, Optimus spotted no fliers so he gathered his two bombs and flashed his headlights at Prowl. Hadeen still shone brightly enough so that they shouldn’t be seen by the transport. Bumblebee grabbed his bomb and the next klik went by in what seemed like slow motion.

Optimus pressed both buttons on his bombs and tossed them on the road, he just made out Prowl and Bumblebee’s landing nearby before the transport covered them. He was turning to run when he heard the familiar click of the bombs. He expected a shockwave of some kind. What he didn’t expect was for the explosion to be so large and for the shockwave to send him and Bumblebee flying towards the open wilds, helm over pede as dust and debris clattered around them. 

Scrambling to his pedes, Optimus ran towards Bumblebee and helped the clearly shocked bot get up and running. When he couldn’t, Optimus picked him up and ran with him over his pauldron. From the corner of his optic, he could see Prowl escaping in his alt mode and glancing back, he saw the flaming aftermath of the transport, flames tinted pink and thick smoke billowing above. He could see Bumblebee saying something but couldn’t make it out due to his audial being blown out by the sheer size of the explosion.

By the time Optimus made it back to the outpost, Prowl was sitting on the medical berth getting checked out by Ratchet. He was still carrying Bumblebee who was still rattled and Ratchet cussed loudly. Prowl moved off of the berth and Optimus sat Bumblebee down carefully. Ratchet got between them and went through diagnostics as Prowl moved closer to Optimus and tapped his arm with a digit. Optimus looked down at him and noticed a notification with Prowl’s contact ID. Accepting it, Optimus opened the chat log.

[DES. OPTIMUS.1002366] Did you get hurt?

[DES. PROWL.7899498] No, just my audial sensors blowing out. Ratchet says they will recover by tomorrow. 

[DES. OPTIMUS.1002366] I’m glad.

[DES. PROWL.7899498] What happened to Bumblebee?

[DES. OPTIMUS.1002366] I think he got hit too hard by the shockwave. He couldn’t stand up afterwards so I carried him back.

[DES. PROWL.7899498] Most Primes would’ve left him.

[DES. OPTIMUS.1002366] Well not this Prime.

Ratchet called to their attention and both mechs turned to him. Bumblebee was lying down, now in stasis with his optics closed. Ratchet pointed at Optimus and then gestured towards his own audial sensors. Optimus shook his head so the medic sent him a chat log request as well that Optimus once again accepted.

[DES. RATCHET.0000112] He got rattled pretty hard by that explosion. He’s gonna be on medical rest for the next couple of solar cycles to make sure his processor didn’t take too much damage. I’ll be keeping an optic on him during that time.

[DES. OPTIMUS.1002366] Thank you, Ratchet

[DES. RATCHET.0000112] Let me check your audial sensors to make sure they aren’t any worse than Prowl’s.

Optimus stepped closer and after a quick check over, his audial sensors were more damaged and his joints stressed from carrying Bumblebee across the wilds while hyped up on adrenaline which meant he’d be taking the next solar cycle off to rest. And ratchet swore that if Optimus didn’t rest, he’d be strapped to his own berth. Optimus promised to rest completely, knowing from his experience with Patchwork that yes, medics kept their promises.

Bulkhead was anxiously waiting for answers and after quickly sharing his ID with him, Optimus filled both him and Ratchet on what happened. The transport had exploded far more than it was expected to and Bulkhead assumed it was because they hit the fuel tank wrong or well, right in this case and that caused the explosion. Bumblebee had his processor rattled hard because of how lightweight he was and being far too close while Optimus was better off with his large frame. Prowl had minimal damage but he’d gotten away faster and was further from the blast. 

Optimus wanted to stay with Bumblebee in the med bay but Ratchet forced him back to his own habsuite and into recharge. He assured Optimus that Bumblebee would still be in stasis the next solar cycle and that he could see him then. Optimus agreed and was about to head into recharge when he remembered that he had to contact Ultra Magnus about the success of the mission. Despite the late time of the night cycle, he managed to get through to Central Iacon and spoke with a mech named Jazz who said he’d pass on the message and that Optimus would submit a formal report the next solar cycle. Jazz had waved during the call and Optimus almost thought it was to him until he turned around and saw Prowl in the background who proceeded to scowl at Jazz and left abruptly. 

“He’s still prickly.” Jazz had laughed it off and left the call with some glyphs for their recovery. Optimus couldn’t help but like Jazz immediately and hoped in the future, he’d be able to contact Ultra Magnus through him.

Now in his berth, Optimus started his recharge protocols as soon as he lay down. He honestly wanted to just go over everything that had happened during the meeting but his frame was so tired it was practically begging him to recharge. He usually felt the need to recharge to turn away from every bot that was lost during his previous missions. Instead he found himself so relieved that they all survived. That Bumblebee simply needed to rest for a few solar cycles and that Prowl’s audial sensors will be fine by the day cycle. That no bot was left behind and that they’d succeeded despite how inconvenient the entire situation had been. So for the first time since he could remember, Optimus let his recharge protocols kick in and drag him into stasis.

The next cycle came far too quickly for Optimus but he came out of recharge with his audial sensors working just fine. They weren’t sensitive at all but his frame felt as stiff as he’d expected it to. Hadeen was just fully rising past the horizon, much later than he usually got up but he had a feeling it was too early for Ratchet’s approval. So to make any stress the medic would have over this lessened, Optimus made his way to the med bay to check on Bumblebee and probably get another look over. 

Which is exactly what he got the moment he stepped inside. Ratchet was sitting at a chair, going through some data pads and Bumblebee was still deep in stasis on the one berth. He had less wires attached to him compared to the previous night cycle and his spark monitor was beeping regularly beside him. Ratchet barely looked up to see Optimus before he gestured to the chair before him. Optimus sat down obediently and let Ratchet do all of his tests while his optics remained trained to Bumblebee.

"I'll be letting up on his medical stasis later this solar cycle as long as his stats don't change." Ratchet said, not even looking up. "He's gonna be okay, kid."

"I'm… I'm not used to hearing that." Optimus said, looking down at the ground. 

"I bet you aren't." Ratchet said. "You've gone from being on the front lines your entire functioning to leading a servoful of bots in an abandoned outpost where you see a Con maybe once a decacycle. This is an entirely different environment and I'll be honest with you, you're managing it a lot better than I thought. Still a bit jumpy and you're clearly overprotective of the young bots but that's not the worse thing. I'd rather you be overprotective than not care at all about them."

"I know what it's like working under a bot like that. I refuse to treat any bots I command to die." Optimus said. 

"And that's why these young bots are willing to listen to you." Ratchet said. "You care about them and their opinions and this is the best they've ever been treated. Which is sad in all honesty but that's how our society is."

"Have you ever thought about what life will be like when this war ends?" Optimus asked. 

Ratchet had finished with him but Optimus still sat down in front of him. "Of course." Ratchet said, turning to start sorting through some supplies. "Thought’ve what life would be like whether we win or lose this. I might be lucky being a medic, I might get to live if the Cons win since medics are always needed. If we win, I'd still be a medic but probably out running a small clinic and not holed up in here fixing up dents on a kid who can't stay still and another who breaks everything he touches. You?"

"I try to but I can only think about what my life was like before the South Gate fell. Living in the slums with my caretakers and doing small jobs for oil shards." Optimus said. "I can't think of anything else."

"You young bots just don't know what life is like outside this war." Ratchet said. "None of you really know what this State is like during peace. But it'll come eventually. Though if we lose, I hope it happens when you lot are still young."

"Why is that?" Optimus asked.

"Warframes care a great deal for their younglings. They tend to go easier on the Autobots who are clearly not fully developed, either letting them live or killing them mercifully. If they won this war, they'd probably let you lot live." Ratchet explained. "Very different from how we raise ours as quickly as possible."

"But I'm completely upgraded." Optimus said. He couldn't possibly be considered a youngling in his frame. Even Prowl wasn't that much younger than he was. 

"Well there's no point in worrying about that now." Ratchet said. "We'll figure out what happens in the future when it happens. For now you are good to go back to resting. No patrol, no standing around. Sit or go back to recharge."

"Thank you, Ratchet." Optimus said, standing up and giving Bumblebee one last look.

"I'll let you know when the kid wakes up now out with you." Ratchet shooed Optimus who finally left. 

Optimus decided to go to the main room where the communication station was and to write up his report there. That way, he could finish it up and send it before retiring to his habsuite and not have to walk back and forth when he's supposed to be resting. It was empty when he first entered and Optimus sat down at a dented metal drum that he'd claimed as his chair and sat down to work on his report.

At some point, Bulkhead had come into the room and gave Optimus a greeting which was followed with offered energon. Optimus thanked him and sipped at the concoction as he continued to type away. As he was reading over it the first time, Prowl mentioned their dwindling supply of enegon and Optimus made a note to ask whoever answered his call about how to submit an order for more. By the time Optimus was satisfied with the report, Bumblebee was awake and clearly grumpy about being stuck in med bay. Optimus had gone to visit him before sending in his report just in case he needed to change anything else. 

"I can't believe I got knocked out by just the shockwave!" Bumblebee retorted. He was grumbling about being in the med bay but was clearly embarrassed by it all.

"Technically you were just rattled." Optimus said. "Ratchet put you in stasis to let you rest."

"You got shell shocked." Ratchet explained. "You're never had real combat before that and your frame responded to the shock it received. You'll be fine after another solar cycle of rest."

"Are you saying I'm not built to be a soldier?" Bumblebee asked, offended. 

"None of us are built for this." Ratchet snapped. "We're civilian frames for Primus sake. We weren't made for fighting! The Decepticons are called warframes for a reason!"

Bumblebee huffed but he didn't say anything else. Ratchet was right after all. None of them were made for fighting. But Iacon had gone to war with Kaon and here they were over three million stellar cycles later. It was almost ironic but Optimus was in no mood to ponder on this. He had a report to submit.

Returning back to the communication room, Optimus brought his datapad with his report to the console and uploaded it. Once that was done, he sent out the communication ping and waited for it to be picked up. To his relief, Jazz was on the other side. 

"Hey Optimus, how's it going?" Jazz asked. 

"Everything is fine here. Bumblebee woke up a bit earlier." Optimus replied. 

"Good to hear!" Jazz said with a smile. "Your audial sensors seem to be fixed too. You had to message me yesterday."

"They are." Optimus said. "I've got the full report for Ultra Magnus on what happened."

"Great! Send it over and I'll make sure it gets on his desk!"

"Thank you." Optimus said, hitting some buttons and sending the file over. It was a bit slow but eventually it sent. "I also have a question: how do I order more energon? Our stocks are getting low."

"Received on this end." Jazz said. "You gotta make a request through an order form and send it off to our supply runs specialist which is lead by Rodimus Prime. His contact is Scattershot. I'll get it done for you this time and then send over the form for you so you can do it next time."

"Thank you Jazz, that means a lot!" Optimus said. 

"No problem! You seem to be a little too busy right now to be figuring out how to order energon." Jazz said. "I'll get things sorted out and let you know when to expect the shipment."

Optimus thanked him again and then the call ended. Optimus stared at his own reflection in the blacked out screen for several nano-kliks before he slumped back down against the table. He really should get back to his habsuite and recharge . He definitely needed it and Ratchet would probably throw a fit if he saw Optimus slouched over the table. After a couple of kliks, Optimus finally forced himself to get up and trudged his way to his habsuite where he once again activated his recharge protocols as soon as he lied down. 

When Optimus finally got the all clear from Ratchet to get back to work, the first thing he did was go out on patrol. This time he accompanied Bulkhead whose turn it was despite Bumblebee wanting to get out and grind his wheels. Ratchet had told him no though so Optimus and Bulkhead left early that day cycle and chose a path that is in the opposite direction of the road. This path was more towards Iacon, a bit rougher in terrain which Optimus found did not hinder Bulkhead at all.

Unlike Bumblebee who liked the wide open spaces or Prowl who preferred a different path each time they went out, Bulkhead liked the rougher paths where you had to move around or even over large rocks and boulders. He wasn't the most agile of mechs, but Bulkhead could easily scale rocky hills and drive through the rough terrain like it was nothing. Optimus managed to keep pace with him but he always found himself feeling uncertain with the uneven rocks under him. He was built for city streets after, not the wilds. But he never complained, knowing that this was what Bulkhead preferred on the patrols that were already way out of his comfort zone. 

When they reached a midway point, Bulkhead suddenly stopped and turned to Optimus. They were on a cliffside, a gradual incline beside them and a sheer cliff above. Optimus had no idea where he was but he was certain Bulkhead did since he walked so confidently. Bulkhead was not so confident now though, digits tapping as he tried to come up with the glyphs he wanted to speak. Optimus waited for him, letting his arms hang loose at his sides so he didn't appear impatient.

"Do you think we'll be sent out on more of those missions?" Bulkhead finally asked. 

"I don't know." Optimus said carefully. "I honestly don't know what expectations Ultra Magnus has for us and what he would want us to do. I told him we weren't qualified for that sabotage mission but he still made us do it."

"So Bumblebee and you and Prowl could be put in danger like that again?" Bulkhead asked. "Or in a worse situation?"

"It's possible." Optimus ex-vented. "This is war and we are expected to follow orders. I don't want you all getting in trouble because I said no."

"Even if we get hurt?" Bulkhead asked. His tone broke Optimus' spark. He was stressed and scared. Scared of his friend getting hurt again, scared of losing the other members of this makeshift team. 

"I don't want any of you getting hurt." Optimus began.

"And yet you go out and do something so stupid."

Optimus snapped his helm up quickly, recognizing the voice in an instant. He watched in horror as Megatron dropped down behind Bulkhead and knocked the green mech down the side of the incline with one servo. Bulkhead flew before hitting the ground hard enough to bounce a couple of times. Optimus tried to rush after him to help but a single servo to his chassis had him crushed to the cliffside behind him. The sheer force caused the wall to crack like a spiderweb and Optimus felt like his chassis was going to cave in.

Megatron sneered at Optimus as the Autobot sputtered and weakly clawed as his servo as it shattered the windshield beneath it. Optimus glared at Megatron the best he could but it wasn't nearly as effective as the sheer rage thay emitted from the warlord. His frame suffocated Optimus, frying every wire and plating in him and causing him to flinch. 

"You seem to have gotten bold since coming here, Autobot." Megatron growled. He pulled out a sword as he kept the crushing pressure on Optimus. "Did you think since I put a warrior claim on you that you were exempt from being offlined? Did you think it made you safe from me? I'm the one who put the claim on you! And I can kill you any time I desire. And after that stunt you pulled with my energon transport, I'm not about ready to make it quick."

As he spoke, Megatron slowly added more and more pressure to Optimus' chassis until it did in fact buckle. Optimus felt his vent heave and panic began to set in as he desperately tried to claw at Megatron’s servo. He kicked and he screamed for Megatron to let go and for the first time, Optimus truly felt terrified of him. Terrified of the massive Decepticon that could clearly offline him with little effort who now had a reason to send him to the Well of All Sparks there and now and was very eager to do so. But something stuck to Optimus as he struggled to find a way to survive this encounter.

"I-I didn't know it was an energon transport!" Optimus had sputtered out. He truly hadn't. Ultra Magnus hadn’t informed him of the contents and there was always a possibility that it was a decoy. But thinking back, thay explained a lot. It explained why the explosion had been so much bigger than expected and it explained why the flames appeared pink in color. But that didn't matter now and Megatron clearly didn't want to hear Optimus' excuses. 

"Your knowledge of the contents is irrelevant." Megatron stated. He raised his sword, pointing the tip to Optimus' helm. "You will pay the price for destroying the energon with your spark."

Megatron thrust his sword at Optimus, ready to decapitate him in one swift move. However his comms went off the klik he made contact, piercing the wires and plating of his neck. With a growl, Megatron withdrew the sword, causing energon to spurt out before he threw Optimus off of the cliff and down to where Bulkhead still laid. Megatron ignored how Optimus groaned and curled in on himself, trying to stop the energon from bleeding out. 

Instead, Megatron answered the comm and wiped off his sword as he was prepared to chew out whoever had disturbed him. He stopped when he heard Strika telling him to return. The femme didn't demand this unless it was serious so with one final glance at Optimus and assuming he'd bleed out before help arrived, Megatron transformed and flew back to Kaon. 

The flight was quick given the emergency and when he returned, Megatron found himself faceplate to faceplate with an overly zealous Overlord. The tall and gangly mech was getting way to amped up while remaining in Kaon and clearly wanted some action. So action Megatron would give him some.

"I owe the Magnus for destroying my energon delivery." Megatron mused. "Go to the North Gate and go crazy."

Overlord seemed to ponder the idea for a nano-klik before he smiled widely and left the throne room look quite pleased with his orders. Megatron watched him leave before sitting down on his throne. 

"You're going to regret that decision in the future." Strika warned. 

"Then future me can deal with it." Megatron snapped, rubbing his optics. 

In the wilds, Bulkhead came back online in a rush, confused and disoriented until he saw Optimus nearby. Seeing the damage to his leader, Bulkhead carefully as he could, picked Optimus up and rushed him to Ratchet.