Transformers Fan Fiction ❯ TF War: Sorrow ❯ Fall From Grace ( Chapter 4 )
[ P - Pre-Teen ]
By: Darzoni 
The destruction of Marhex.
Anime/Manga: Transformers Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.21.2003 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.3K | Visits: 233 | Status: Completed
The destruction of Marhex.
Anime/Manga: Transformers Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.21.2003 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.3K | Visits: 233 | Status: Completed
Transformers: War
Fall From Grace
by D. Park
"One world, one soul
Time pass, the river roll"
-'Sorrow', D. J. Gilmour
[Cybertron- BC 6,421,849]
Cybertron was free at long last of the Quintesson slavers. For years, the transformers celebrated and lived in peace. They formed a planetary government, the Cybertron Alliance, to deal with inter-city disputes and arguements between the factions of Cybertron. The bloody and violent Destron faction was captured and imprisioned, though a few are unaccounted for. And Cybertron looked to the stars.
But the question arose "How will we defend ourselves from other conquerors?", and this divided the Transformers. The dissenting Alliance members belong to a faction of transformers designed by the Quintessons for military use; the Decepticons. They believed that to protect the homeworld from conquest, the Transformers must conquer all. The majority faction of the Cybertron Alliance, the Autobots, believed the opposite. Allies and friendships should be forged, so that conquerors of any kind would be stopped from invading any world.
The disagreements became increasingly worse. Eventually, the Decepticons struck, destroying an Autobot diplomatic shuttle. The Autobots, being the largest faction on Cybertron, began forming a militia to help protect the city-states from increasing Decepticon predation. Nobody knew that they had witnessed the beginning of a civil war that would grow into an ethnic war that would last several million years.
The First Great War had begun.
[Cybertron Alliance Citadel]
(Note: Translated from pre-Earth Cybertronian dialects.)
A stern face, the optics betrayed the hardened wisdom of leadership. He sat at the head of the Cybertron Alliance council, blue head, ornate cloak fastened securely to his shoulders. A hard smooth faceplate guarded and concealed many facial expressions he might have. He would be recognizable to the Transformers of this era as the leader of all Transformers, but later generations would only remember him through his progeny. He held the Transformer Matrix of Leadership in the safety of his chest cavity, the first Matrix bearer to ever hold the honor. But he knew a great secret about the orange-shelled orb, which it wasn't really the Matrix of Leadership but the token of Primus' promise to always watch over his children. Alpha Prime knew it was the Covenant of Primus, not any mere badge of office. Yes, Alpha Prime knew many secrets, many that not even his successors would learn.
As he listened to the Lithone representive's reports of casualties from the ongoing war, he hoped his son was not one of them. Optima would never forgive him if their firstborn's spark left this world because he sent him into the militia. The Decepticons were getting out of hand. Damn Straxus.
The Lithone continued. "We have intelligence reports indicating that the Decepticons are preparing for a large-scale assault. They've developed a new weapon apparently and plan to unleash it soon. Our operative was killed before she could discover exact details, so we're operating in the dark, Prime."
"Do we even have a hint, Kranix?" Alpha Prime inquired.
"The report says that it is, and I quote; 'an engine of destruction'."
[Decepticon Underground Headquarters]
Some would claim that the most twisted individuals crave the darkness, even bathe in it. The Decepticon Leader was one such individual. His appearance was unlike the rank and file Decepticons; he was different. Straxus looked the part of the Grim Reaper, sans cloak of course. His face was a stark plate of metal with holes cut out for the eyes and sharp protrusions near his chin that could have been fangs. Dissenting faction members accused him of being a small-minded tyrant, which could have been true. But here in a dark recess on Cybertron, Straxus would be more comparable to Genghis Khan for his accomplishment of unifying the fractious Decepticons. Except for Liege Maximo and Liege Centuro, who rivaled him and had similar origins.
He looked at the super warrior before him, the massive engine of destruction laid out on the table before him. Shockwave, that smug logical cyclops, gestured with his one hand at the inert form before him.
"The six individual units show genius intellect, sir, which was why they were selected. However, the combined form displays symptoms of mental retardation and is prone to fits of berserker tantrums. But, my research indicates that some modifications to the unit's command protocols will render it easier to command. For future implementations of this technology, I recommend that one member of such groups be selected as a commander." Shockwave stated.
Straxus nodded slowly. Science was beyond him, he only cared that it worked. "We'll attack Marhex tomorrow then. Make sure the Constructicons are ready by then or I'll have your head on a platter." Simple threats were best, Straxus thought. A dark glee filled him as he thought of Marhex being reduced to rubble. Teach those peace-loving Autobots a lesson. He turned to leave the room to go to his command room and sit for awhile, look menacing for the troops and calculate strategies to destroy Autobots.
He was getting into the plans involving him and the absolute control over Cybertron when his runt of a son Megatron came into the room. Although Megatron was no runt by Decepticon standards, by Straxus' standards, he was a runt. He would never succeed Straxus as the leader of the Decepticons, or so Megatron's siblings thought. Straxus thought Megatron would never earn the right to bear the mantle of leadership when he was gone.
"Sir," Megatron began in his smooth voice, following the rules of conduct, "Shockwave reports that the Constructicons suffered a major malfunction and will not be available for several weeks."
Straxus' reaction was immediate and explosive. He shot Megatron in the chest at close range with his cannon. It spoke volumes about both Straxus' temper for shooting his own son and Megatron's inherent ability to take punishment. The blast threw Megatron through the wall of the command chamber and left a smouldering crater in his midsection. Megatron lay sprawled on the corridor's floor, unable to get to his feet because his gyroscope had been destroyed.
Straxus stood over Megatron and intoned, "Your mother would be very disappointed you didn't see that coming." Then he marched off to revise his plan of attack. Something new would be required. Straxus would use his way; the Destron way, whether his subordinates liked it or not. He reached the communications room and barked orders at the technician, standing at the doorway to the small room because his bulk would never fit without severe and sudden modifications to the door.
"Get me my little brother, now." he hissed.
[Marhex Garrison Rec Room]
Kup grumbled as he looked at his squad. There was that kid Optimus doing what he always did, sitting and thinking about something. Feh, couldn't be easy, being the first son of the leader of Cybertron. Kup didn't like how the other members of the squad would resent Optimus, how they said he was only promoted because his daddy was Alpha Prime.
"No," Kup thought to himself, "Optimus is sergeant because he's got the potential. I said so myself to Commander Deicon. I says 'Look you rust-brained desk jockey, I see him day in and day out, I -know- he can handle this. I've seen lots of kids come in, turn their CPUs off cuz they think they're hotshots, and get killed. This Optimus has his noggin wired right, he can do it.' to him. Of course I know Deicon trusts my judgement. Humph! Not wanting to promote him cuz he's the Prime's son." Kup scowled outwardly as he spotted a young squad member dozing off. He woke the lazy mech up with a rough kick to the side. Just enough to wake him.
"Hey! This ain't some training assignment, rookie! If this was the Liberation War, you'd be Transorganic chow!" Kup rebuked the recruit because he hated seeing young transformers die from stupidity. Even the hardened veteran had a heart. He wondered what his old sergeant was doing, what that brawler Ironhide was up to. Young and brash, these new Autobots, they had never seen what the Quintessons forced transformers to do. Slaves they all were, and didn't know any better because they were, as Ironhide might put it in that mid-Vircon drawl of his, "dumber than a sack of scrap". Kup himself probably owed Alpha Prime his life. Up until Alpha Prime and Optima broke open the barracks he was assigned to, all Kup had known was hauling freight from one place to the next. Then it all changed one day. He was discontent and unhappy at being caged suddenly, as if a new light had shined into this ignorance he once called life. But he wasn't a combat model, so he could do little more than make sure the shipments were late. Man, those lashes with the energy whip were brutal, but Kup felt his resolve grow with each one. And then, just as suddenly as the light peeked into his life, it turned into a spotlight of hope when the wall of the barracks came crashing down.
"But", Kup thought, "That's a story for another time." He looked at the wall chronometer and saw it was almost time for their shift. So he made a motion to Optimus, the one that was a subtle one that meant get the men together it's time to move out. So Kup started jogging up the stairs as Optimus made sure everybody was prepared. Kup grimaced from a twinge of pain in his reconstructed knee servo. He knew that signal when he felt it. It always meant battle was ahead. He should really get that thing fixed.
"I'm getting too old for this." He muttered. Little did he know.
It all looked quiet from the city-state's wall-top guard posts. Nothing but the empty Plains of Glass with filament grass swaying with solar winds under the starry sky. Kup kept a close eye on the nearest neighboring city-state, which was Decepticon-held. His squad jogged the perimeter, keeping an eye out for any signs of attack.
He squinted his optics, thinking he saw something. What exactly was that structure doing out in the middle of the Glass Plains? It hadn't been there yesterday. Kup's optics widened suddenly, realizing who, and what, the structure was. Tapping the autobot logo on his chest, he radioed it in to the Marhex Command Center and on general Autobot frequencies.
"We have contact! Wall section 213 west. It's a Destron!" Of all the things on Kup's "Things I Don't Like" list, a Destron was on the bottom of Kup's list. It was right below suicide mission. Kup was one of those few Autobots who survived the small war against the Destron. He had seen the insanity and the immense firepower that the monsters possessed. He had known that a few had escaped incarceration with Dezaras and his followers by hiding in the ranks of the Decepticons and being granted amnesty by them. But now, he was facing a barrage of missiles, lasers, and cannon fire as the Destron opened fire on Marhex as the sirens went off inside the city. Kup hadn't survived two wars already by being dumb. He ran, since he knew under that kind of firepower the section of the city wall he was standing on would be toast. Just for good measure he snatched a grenade from where it was tucked away, pressed the primer button, and chucked the thing at the Destron. It landed some distance away, and five seconds later it blew, sending glass-like shards of shattered filament grass flying into the air and leaving a smoldering blackened crater.
Kup barely escaped the blast resulting from the missile swarm the Destron had launched. The section of the city-state wall that Kup had just vacated was so much rubble now. Kup turned his gaze upward quickly, hearing the telltale signs of incoming Seekers, that queer sort of high-pitched whine that their subsonic thrusters made as they flew through the thin Cybertron atmosphere. He clutched his gun tight and scrambled to his feet and made a mad dash to the Militia Garrison, shouting.
"This isn't a drill! Get out here now and bring the long rifles! We have Seekers and Primus knows what else coming in fast!" He shouted. There was only a moment's pause between receiving the order and acting on it. The young Autobots snatched up their normal weapons as explosions began to thunder outside.
"Hardhead, Crosswind- You shoot down the Seekers with the long rifles. The rest of you, cover them." The sniper experts nodded and grabbed two of the huge anti-aircraft guns that Kup was talking about. Autobot energy weapons weren't worth much against the aerial Decepticons. The magnetically propelled heavy ion bullets were, though. The long rifles fired with reports worthy of a thunderclap. A seeker was shot through the underside and clean through, and began to fall, transforming and firing his rifle as he did.
Optimus pointed at the approaching fortress, shouting. "Shoot the turrets!" amidst the barrage of weapon fire and explosions. With an appearance of ordered chaos, the squad began firing their weaponry at the mobile battle fortress' many turrets and cannons, in some attempt to disable the weaponry. More reports from the long rifles sounded, and somewhere above a Seeker cursed the Autobots and made disparaging remarks about their parentage.
Kup looked around. "Dammit, where's the calvary?" he muttered. He glanced over at the battle fortress. Thing was a juggernaut, very little was going to stop it. He saw the missile batteries come to bear on the section of wall they were positioned. Kup didn't have to wait to know what was going to happen next.
"Fall back into the city!" he ordered the squad. They began retreating, taking potshots as they did. Kup glanced back to see what was going on, and saw the Decepticon troops marching behind the battle fortress. Then the fortress unleashed the full fury of the missile batteries against the wall. Overhead the Seekers swooped in close and dropped bombs. And it was all coming to bear on the city wall.
Kup shoved some of the laggards off the wall and into the city, jumping off as he did. He hit the ground running. They had precious little time. "MOVE!" He bellowed, his vocal unit threatening to overload. He didn't have time for embellishment. They ran. And behind them, Hell's own was coming to pay Marhex a visit.
The wall exploded in a hurricane of fire and flying chunks of wall, sending reverberations throughout the entire city wall. Cracks formed for half a kilometer in each direction as the force shattered the entire wall segment. Debris the size of aircraft was sent flying through buildings, and even more fiery garbage showered down upon the city streets. Billowing clouds of smoke and flames rolled along the street and clouded the sky. Somewhere, the sound of somebody massive transforming rang out, and behind the wreckage loomed a great figure, laughing.
The voice bellowed over the din of battle, some looming shadow hidden by the smoke and burning wreckage of the wall segment. "Foolish Autobots! Fall before the might of the Decepticons! Face the wrath of Overlord!"
[Marhex Control Center]
Inside the control center, sirens were blaring and panic was ensuing. The situation was quickly getting worse. The Decepticons had breached one wall, and it appeared as if they were working on another.
"Guardians activated! They're moving to intercept the Destron in the northwest breach."
Deicon looked at the escalating casualty reports. The Decepticons were beginning to swarm through the city. He thought briefly as the reports simply kept coming in. The garrison wasn't meant to handle this kind of concerted attack. It had always been assumed that the Decepticons would lay siege to Marhex. He made his decision. He should save as many civilian lives as he could.
"Give the order to evacuate." He finally said.
[Marhex]
It fell to the garrison to help get everybody evacuated. Worst part was that right behind the garrison was the Decepticon war machine leveling everything they could see. Overlord was laughing, the eerie sound seemed to be audible over all the commotion. Mechs and femmes were fleeing for their lives, and all the garrison could do was provide cover fire.
Kup and his squad ducked behind a fallen column, firing back from cover. Ironhide and his squad were doing the same.
"Just like old times, right Kup?" Ironhide asked.
"Yeah, just like fighting the Sharkticon Horde at Kwai 18." Kup snapped. "Now stop jaw-jacking and shoot some Decepticons!"
A little distance over, Optimus saw a civilian femme carrying a young mech between the oncoming rush of Deceptions and the holding line the Autobots were about to be forced out of. Out of impulse, Optimus leapt over the column, drawing protesting shouts from Kup and others. He ran hard towards the civilian, who was taking fire and shielding his cargo with his own body. Finally, Optimus reached the civilian and was attempting to help the femme get to cover when she shoved the young mech into Optimus' grasp. There was fear in the mech's optics. He must've almost been eleven, almost an adult.
"Come on." Optimus stated, grabbing the femme around the waist and hauling the two back to cover. He winced as a few Decepticons hit their mark and scorch marks appeared on his back. He dove over the fallen column and set both his charges to the ground.
"You're safe now." He looked over at the femme, but the light in her optics was gone. Death had claimed another innocent life. The child pounded his fists against a twisted piece of a building, clearly full of mixed emotions.
"Mother!" cried the youth.
Overlord was having a great time. Death, destruction, mayhem, this was all a symphony to him. A glorious orchestra of chaos raged all around him. For fun, he fired a missile volley at a building, sending plumes of dust and ash into the air. He furrowed his brow as he realized he was hearing a 'whump whump' sound like somebody's huge footfalls getting closer. He turned around to see a Guardian unit charging him. He laughed and fired off a volley of most of his weaponry, enshrouding the Guardian in a haze of smoke from the missiles and weapons fire. Much to his surprise, the Guardian kept going, charging through the smoke. Clearly the attack had damaged the Guardian on a large scale. Holes were everywhere and mechanisms exposed.
"You will not succeed", the Guardian stated, in that stereotypical monotone they possessed. And then Overlord was struck with the massive claw arm, and, much to his surprise, forced to take a few steps backwards from the momentum and force of the blow. Overlord could feel his jaw servo had been torn from its anchor in his skull, and an optic had been shattered.
Overlord smiled, putting his jaw back into place and wiping the leaking mecha fluids from his chin. Already the Guardian was preparing to fire the blaster on his arm. "I have to ask one thing before we battle, my worthy foe. What do they call you?"
Tersely, as if to say that small talk was irrelevant, "Omega Supreme." And then blasted a large hole in Overlord's side with the blaster. Overlord had dodged to one side to avoid the most of the blast, and returned the favor with a kick to the legs. Guardians were notorious for being unable to keep their balance. True to their reputation, Omega Supreme fell backwards onto his back with an earthshaking thud. Like the consummate predator he was born as, Overlord jumped onto Omega Supreme and attempted to rip the Guardian's living spark from his body.
Kup blinked as he saw Omega Supreme charge Overlord, take a missile blast, and keep going. He mutter something and shouted to his unit. "Let's haul aft out of here. What do you say, Ironhide?"
Seeing as how morale was probably falling, Ironhide shouted his agreement with that sentiment, but, there was a problem. "Fine with me, Kup, but we got a problem. Most of the gates are being used by the civilian transports, so we got to go out that way." He pointed to where the breach in the wall had been made by Overlord. Overlord and Omega Supreme were still fighting, shaking the ground as they did so.
"This just isn't my day", grumbled Kup. He turned to the kid Optimus had hauled out of the firezone and handed him a spare pistol.
"You know how to use it, right?" The kid looked cluelessly at the gun. Kup sighed.
"You point this end at the enemy, then pull this thing here" Kup showed him. Considering for a moment how impersonal he must be right now, Kup added "What's your name, kid?" The fighting in this region had died down now that the Decepticons that had poured in from the breach had spread through the city. There were some still remaining, however.
"Bluestreak, uh, sir."
Kup slapped Bluestreak's shoulder. "Well, we're getting out of here, and to do that we have to run across that mess. If you see a Decepticon, shoot 'em with that popgun I gave you and we'll do just fine." The squad members belonging to both Ironhide and Kup were taking potshots, waiting for the order to run.
Kup turned to Ironhide. "Let's go."
"Let's MOVE!" The Autobots leapt over their impromptu cover and started running across the no-man's land.
Omega Supreme caught Overlord's forearm with his claw and clamped, pulling it off at the elbow with some effort. Overlord got back up, clutching the stump of his arm and grimacing. The stalwart Guardian took advantage of the lapse in Overlord's attack to get to his feet. Overlord snarled and backhanded Omega Supreme with his good arm, striking the transparent face shield that covered the Guardian's face. "Die Autobot lover!"
Omega Supreme was forced to lean to one side, his face exposed to open air and his tactical HUD shattered. He got a brief glimpse of the Autobots huddled behind chunks of debris and his determination to do his duty as a Guardian was bolstered. He had guarded this city-state against onslaughts of Transorganics and Sharkticons, he would not fail in this duty.
He caught his balance and swung his gun arm around, firing. Overlord twisted as his good arm was blown off. He retaliated by launching all of his remaining missile payload at the Guardian. Trying to hold his ground, Omega Supreme slid backwards from the kinetic force of so many impacts. He could feel them ripping into him, damage being dealt on a grand scale he had never experienced before.
The smoke cleared and Omega Supreme was still standing. The dense, thick armor that covered most of his body was gone, blown away by the missile barrages. Of his face, only one optic remained unscarred. One of his wings lie on the ground some distance behind him, the other hanging off his back by some thin shred of metal. His gun had been blown to pieces, exposing the perfectly normal hand hidden underneath it.
Omega Supreme took a shaky step forward and grabbed Overlord around the neck with his claw.
"You." He punched Overlord in the gut with his hand, grabbing something inside there.
"Will." Omega Supreme's servos protested as he lifted Overlord's considerable bulk over his head. His systems were redlining, complaining. All over the giant's body were sparks and hydraulic lines bursting. He turned slowly toward the breach.
"Not." With as much might as he could muster with his heavily damaged body, Omega Supreme threw Overlord. Overlord landed just outside the breach, causing a small earthquake with it. The cracks and fractures in the city wall surrounding the breach shattered from the shockwave. Worse yet for Overlord, he hit the ground with his shoulders and the back of his head and tumbled a short distance before coming to a rest.
"Succeed." Omega Supreme moved to the outside of the breach to guard it against further incursion.
Everybody was running for the breach, now guarded by Omega Supreme. The fight seemed to be taken out of the Decepticons after seeing the Guardian's defeat of Overlord. So at least the Decepticons weren't shooting at them too much while turning tail. Finally after what seemed like the longest time, they made it. They stood around Omega Supreme's legs, taking a breather. Ironhide was listening in to the Autobot communication channels, and clenched his fists in rage.
"Primus damn them! They're destroying the transports as they come out of the gates." Ironhide said. Yes, the Seekers were bombing the gates as the civilian transports were coming out of the gates, killing the fleeing civilians.
Overlord got up slowly, using his stump of an arm to prop himself up. The toss had hurt a lot. Oh well, time for revenge. He turned his radio on. "Decepticons, fall back and leave the city as quickly as possible. Skywarp, plant our little surprise and set it for three minutes. We'll have the last laugh after all."
Overlord stood up and laughed, turning to face Omega Supreme. "You can say goodbye to Marhex, Autobots!" He laughed at them. "And I wouldn't stand too close to the fire if I were you." The air above Marhex was slowly becoming filled with Decepticons leaving any way they could. The more wounded ones were carried by their air-worthy brethren via tow cables and such, not wanting to risk their lives for this endeavor. Overlord began walking towards the nearby city-state of Polyhex, from whence he came.
[Marhex Control Center]
Deicon was very surprised when a dark blue Decepticon Seeker appeared out of nowhere with a large device with a boom and rush of air. Right in the middle of their command center.
The Decepticon punched some buttons on the device, chuckled to himself. He then took a few steps backwards, mocked a salute. "Give my regards to the Abyss, Autobot." And with a crack, the Decepticon was gone again and Deicon was left alone in the command center with the device. Everyone else had been evacuated. So Deicon rushed over to the device and tried to disarm it.
He had no training in such matters, and he knew it was a bomb. The countdown ticked like a horrible heartbeat as he furiously tried to disable it. He sighed as it counted down to five seconds and tried make his peace with Primus.
[Marhex City Wall]
The Autobots and Omega Supreme had chased Overlord as he made his way back to Polyhex. But then Overlord turned and laughed maniacally. "You're too late, Autobots. Look."
And they turned to look, seeing Marhex go up in a bright flash as a cataclysmic explosion incinerated it. It hurt their optics to look at it, actually shorting the delicate visual sensors for a moment. A wave of heat washed over them as the shockwave of highly compressed air struck them, swaying them. Shards of filament grass hit then slid off their bodies.
"No!" Bluestreak screamed, starting to rush towards the newly created ruins of Marhex. But Optimus grabbed him and held him back.
"It's over now, there's nothing we can do for them, Bluestreak."
[Decepticon Underground Base]
Straxus shot Overlord again. "I ORDERED YOU TO CAPTURE MARHEX, NOT DESTROY IT!" the tyrant bellowed. Overlord was cowering before Straxus, not having any means to fight back with. Otherwise he would, despite the face that Straxus was his older brother. Destrons were notoriously violent. "Get him out of here." Straxus hissed to minions nearby. The lackeys helped Overlord off to the repair bays for a long recovery.
Straxus stormed off to his command center and contemplated the next move. Now that the Autobots were demoralized by the destruction of Marhex, he should hit them right where it would hurt most. Their capital; Ikron. Chuckling to himself, Straxus turned to his communication officer. "Call Maximo and tell him I have a little job for him."
[Ikron Barracks, Autobot Central Command]
"I don't want the medal." Optimus said, busy checking his weapon.
Kup sighed. "Why not, Optimus? I mean, you saved that kid's life, and they're giving you a medal for it."
"Because I was doing my duty, Kup. Death's just another way for the Decepticons to take away somebody's freedom. And as a soldier, I've been entrusted to guard others' freedoms." Optimus stated, eyeing the barrel of his weapon critically, inspecting for pits and other malformations that would affect the accuracy of the weapon.
Kup muttered under his breath as he walked out the door. "Now I see why your father stuck me with you." Kup had realized that Alpha Prime had placed his only son under the crotchety veteran to show Optimus how to be a leader. Kup was quite proud of how Optimus was turning out.
[End Transmission]
Author's Notes
I obviously watched too many war movies as a kid. Then again, Kup is a lot like my grandfather. Grumpy old war veterans who love telling kids the more glamourous things they did in the war. Of course, what veterans rarely ever talk about are the horrors they saw. My grandfather helped liberate several internment camps in Europe, and he doesn't talk about what he saw there (not that I can't blame him).
'Sorrow' (c)1987, 2001 for the world by Pink Floyd Music Publishing Inc. Transformers and all related characters (c) 1985, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Takara. Written July 25, 2003.
Fall From Grace
by D. Park
"One world, one soul
Time pass, the river roll"
-'Sorrow', D. J. Gilmour
[Cybertron- BC 6,421,849]
Cybertron was free at long last of the Quintesson slavers. For years, the transformers celebrated and lived in peace. They formed a planetary government, the Cybertron Alliance, to deal with inter-city disputes and arguements between the factions of Cybertron. The bloody and violent Destron faction was captured and imprisioned, though a few are unaccounted for. And Cybertron looked to the stars.
But the question arose "How will we defend ourselves from other conquerors?", and this divided the Transformers. The dissenting Alliance members belong to a faction of transformers designed by the Quintessons for military use; the Decepticons. They believed that to protect the homeworld from conquest, the Transformers must conquer all. The majority faction of the Cybertron Alliance, the Autobots, believed the opposite. Allies and friendships should be forged, so that conquerors of any kind would be stopped from invading any world.
The disagreements became increasingly worse. Eventually, the Decepticons struck, destroying an Autobot diplomatic shuttle. The Autobots, being the largest faction on Cybertron, began forming a militia to help protect the city-states from increasing Decepticon predation. Nobody knew that they had witnessed the beginning of a civil war that would grow into an ethnic war that would last several million years.
The First Great War had begun.
[Cybertron Alliance Citadel]
(Note: Translated from pre-Earth Cybertronian dialects.)
A stern face, the optics betrayed the hardened wisdom of leadership. He sat at the head of the Cybertron Alliance council, blue head, ornate cloak fastened securely to his shoulders. A hard smooth faceplate guarded and concealed many facial expressions he might have. He would be recognizable to the Transformers of this era as the leader of all Transformers, but later generations would only remember him through his progeny. He held the Transformer Matrix of Leadership in the safety of his chest cavity, the first Matrix bearer to ever hold the honor. But he knew a great secret about the orange-shelled orb, which it wasn't really the Matrix of Leadership but the token of Primus' promise to always watch over his children. Alpha Prime knew it was the Covenant of Primus, not any mere badge of office. Yes, Alpha Prime knew many secrets, many that not even his successors would learn.
As he listened to the Lithone representive's reports of casualties from the ongoing war, he hoped his son was not one of them. Optima would never forgive him if their firstborn's spark left this world because he sent him into the militia. The Decepticons were getting out of hand. Damn Straxus.
The Lithone continued. "We have intelligence reports indicating that the Decepticons are preparing for a large-scale assault. They've developed a new weapon apparently and plan to unleash it soon. Our operative was killed before she could discover exact details, so we're operating in the dark, Prime."
"Do we even have a hint, Kranix?" Alpha Prime inquired.
"The report says that it is, and I quote; 'an engine of destruction'."
[Decepticon Underground Headquarters]
Some would claim that the most twisted individuals crave the darkness, even bathe in it. The Decepticon Leader was one such individual. His appearance was unlike the rank and file Decepticons; he was different. Straxus looked the part of the Grim Reaper, sans cloak of course. His face was a stark plate of metal with holes cut out for the eyes and sharp protrusions near his chin that could have been fangs. Dissenting faction members accused him of being a small-minded tyrant, which could have been true. But here in a dark recess on Cybertron, Straxus would be more comparable to Genghis Khan for his accomplishment of unifying the fractious Decepticons. Except for Liege Maximo and Liege Centuro, who rivaled him and had similar origins.
He looked at the super warrior before him, the massive engine of destruction laid out on the table before him. Shockwave, that smug logical cyclops, gestured with his one hand at the inert form before him.
"The six individual units show genius intellect, sir, which was why they were selected. However, the combined form displays symptoms of mental retardation and is prone to fits of berserker tantrums. But, my research indicates that some modifications to the unit's command protocols will render it easier to command. For future implementations of this technology, I recommend that one member of such groups be selected as a commander." Shockwave stated.
Straxus nodded slowly. Science was beyond him, he only cared that it worked. "We'll attack Marhex tomorrow then. Make sure the Constructicons are ready by then or I'll have your head on a platter." Simple threats were best, Straxus thought. A dark glee filled him as he thought of Marhex being reduced to rubble. Teach those peace-loving Autobots a lesson. He turned to leave the room to go to his command room and sit for awhile, look menacing for the troops and calculate strategies to destroy Autobots.
He was getting into the plans involving him and the absolute control over Cybertron when his runt of a son Megatron came into the room. Although Megatron was no runt by Decepticon standards, by Straxus' standards, he was a runt. He would never succeed Straxus as the leader of the Decepticons, or so Megatron's siblings thought. Straxus thought Megatron would never earn the right to bear the mantle of leadership when he was gone.
"Sir," Megatron began in his smooth voice, following the rules of conduct, "Shockwave reports that the Constructicons suffered a major malfunction and will not be available for several weeks."
Straxus' reaction was immediate and explosive. He shot Megatron in the chest at close range with his cannon. It spoke volumes about both Straxus' temper for shooting his own son and Megatron's inherent ability to take punishment. The blast threw Megatron through the wall of the command chamber and left a smouldering crater in his midsection. Megatron lay sprawled on the corridor's floor, unable to get to his feet because his gyroscope had been destroyed.
Straxus stood over Megatron and intoned, "Your mother would be very disappointed you didn't see that coming." Then he marched off to revise his plan of attack. Something new would be required. Straxus would use his way; the Destron way, whether his subordinates liked it or not. He reached the communications room and barked orders at the technician, standing at the doorway to the small room because his bulk would never fit without severe and sudden modifications to the door.
"Get me my little brother, now." he hissed.
[Marhex Garrison Rec Room]
Kup grumbled as he looked at his squad. There was that kid Optimus doing what he always did, sitting and thinking about something. Feh, couldn't be easy, being the first son of the leader of Cybertron. Kup didn't like how the other members of the squad would resent Optimus, how they said he was only promoted because his daddy was Alpha Prime.
"No," Kup thought to himself, "Optimus is sergeant because he's got the potential. I said so myself to Commander Deicon. I says 'Look you rust-brained desk jockey, I see him day in and day out, I -know- he can handle this. I've seen lots of kids come in, turn their CPUs off cuz they think they're hotshots, and get killed. This Optimus has his noggin wired right, he can do it.' to him. Of course I know Deicon trusts my judgement. Humph! Not wanting to promote him cuz he's the Prime's son." Kup scowled outwardly as he spotted a young squad member dozing off. He woke the lazy mech up with a rough kick to the side. Just enough to wake him.
"Hey! This ain't some training assignment, rookie! If this was the Liberation War, you'd be Transorganic chow!" Kup rebuked the recruit because he hated seeing young transformers die from stupidity. Even the hardened veteran had a heart. He wondered what his old sergeant was doing, what that brawler Ironhide was up to. Young and brash, these new Autobots, they had never seen what the Quintessons forced transformers to do. Slaves they all were, and didn't know any better because they were, as Ironhide might put it in that mid-Vircon drawl of his, "dumber than a sack of scrap". Kup himself probably owed Alpha Prime his life. Up until Alpha Prime and Optima broke open the barracks he was assigned to, all Kup had known was hauling freight from one place to the next. Then it all changed one day. He was discontent and unhappy at being caged suddenly, as if a new light had shined into this ignorance he once called life. But he wasn't a combat model, so he could do little more than make sure the shipments were late. Man, those lashes with the energy whip were brutal, but Kup felt his resolve grow with each one. And then, just as suddenly as the light peeked into his life, it turned into a spotlight of hope when the wall of the barracks came crashing down.
"But", Kup thought, "That's a story for another time." He looked at the wall chronometer and saw it was almost time for their shift. So he made a motion to Optimus, the one that was a subtle one that meant get the men together it's time to move out. So Kup started jogging up the stairs as Optimus made sure everybody was prepared. Kup grimaced from a twinge of pain in his reconstructed knee servo. He knew that signal when he felt it. It always meant battle was ahead. He should really get that thing fixed.
"I'm getting too old for this." He muttered. Little did he know.
It all looked quiet from the city-state's wall-top guard posts. Nothing but the empty Plains of Glass with filament grass swaying with solar winds under the starry sky. Kup kept a close eye on the nearest neighboring city-state, which was Decepticon-held. His squad jogged the perimeter, keeping an eye out for any signs of attack.
He squinted his optics, thinking he saw something. What exactly was that structure doing out in the middle of the Glass Plains? It hadn't been there yesterday. Kup's optics widened suddenly, realizing who, and what, the structure was. Tapping the autobot logo on his chest, he radioed it in to the Marhex Command Center and on general Autobot frequencies.
"We have contact! Wall section 213 west. It's a Destron!" Of all the things on Kup's "Things I Don't Like" list, a Destron was on the bottom of Kup's list. It was right below suicide mission. Kup was one of those few Autobots who survived the small war against the Destron. He had seen the insanity and the immense firepower that the monsters possessed. He had known that a few had escaped incarceration with Dezaras and his followers by hiding in the ranks of the Decepticons and being granted amnesty by them. But now, he was facing a barrage of missiles, lasers, and cannon fire as the Destron opened fire on Marhex as the sirens went off inside the city. Kup hadn't survived two wars already by being dumb. He ran, since he knew under that kind of firepower the section of the city wall he was standing on would be toast. Just for good measure he snatched a grenade from where it was tucked away, pressed the primer button, and chucked the thing at the Destron. It landed some distance away, and five seconds later it blew, sending glass-like shards of shattered filament grass flying into the air and leaving a smoldering blackened crater.
Kup barely escaped the blast resulting from the missile swarm the Destron had launched. The section of the city-state wall that Kup had just vacated was so much rubble now. Kup turned his gaze upward quickly, hearing the telltale signs of incoming Seekers, that queer sort of high-pitched whine that their subsonic thrusters made as they flew through the thin Cybertron atmosphere. He clutched his gun tight and scrambled to his feet and made a mad dash to the Militia Garrison, shouting.
"This isn't a drill! Get out here now and bring the long rifles! We have Seekers and Primus knows what else coming in fast!" He shouted. There was only a moment's pause between receiving the order and acting on it. The young Autobots snatched up their normal weapons as explosions began to thunder outside.
"Hardhead, Crosswind- You shoot down the Seekers with the long rifles. The rest of you, cover them." The sniper experts nodded and grabbed two of the huge anti-aircraft guns that Kup was talking about. Autobot energy weapons weren't worth much against the aerial Decepticons. The magnetically propelled heavy ion bullets were, though. The long rifles fired with reports worthy of a thunderclap. A seeker was shot through the underside and clean through, and began to fall, transforming and firing his rifle as he did.
Optimus pointed at the approaching fortress, shouting. "Shoot the turrets!" amidst the barrage of weapon fire and explosions. With an appearance of ordered chaos, the squad began firing their weaponry at the mobile battle fortress' many turrets and cannons, in some attempt to disable the weaponry. More reports from the long rifles sounded, and somewhere above a Seeker cursed the Autobots and made disparaging remarks about their parentage.
Kup looked around. "Dammit, where's the calvary?" he muttered. He glanced over at the battle fortress. Thing was a juggernaut, very little was going to stop it. He saw the missile batteries come to bear on the section of wall they were positioned. Kup didn't have to wait to know what was going to happen next.
"Fall back into the city!" he ordered the squad. They began retreating, taking potshots as they did. Kup glanced back to see what was going on, and saw the Decepticon troops marching behind the battle fortress. Then the fortress unleashed the full fury of the missile batteries against the wall. Overhead the Seekers swooped in close and dropped bombs. And it was all coming to bear on the city wall.
Kup shoved some of the laggards off the wall and into the city, jumping off as he did. He hit the ground running. They had precious little time. "MOVE!" He bellowed, his vocal unit threatening to overload. He didn't have time for embellishment. They ran. And behind them, Hell's own was coming to pay Marhex a visit.
The wall exploded in a hurricane of fire and flying chunks of wall, sending reverberations throughout the entire city wall. Cracks formed for half a kilometer in each direction as the force shattered the entire wall segment. Debris the size of aircraft was sent flying through buildings, and even more fiery garbage showered down upon the city streets. Billowing clouds of smoke and flames rolled along the street and clouded the sky. Somewhere, the sound of somebody massive transforming rang out, and behind the wreckage loomed a great figure, laughing.
The voice bellowed over the din of battle, some looming shadow hidden by the smoke and burning wreckage of the wall segment. "Foolish Autobots! Fall before the might of the Decepticons! Face the wrath of Overlord!"
[Marhex Control Center]
Inside the control center, sirens were blaring and panic was ensuing. The situation was quickly getting worse. The Decepticons had breached one wall, and it appeared as if they were working on another.
"Guardians activated! They're moving to intercept the Destron in the northwest breach."
Deicon looked at the escalating casualty reports. The Decepticons were beginning to swarm through the city. He thought briefly as the reports simply kept coming in. The garrison wasn't meant to handle this kind of concerted attack. It had always been assumed that the Decepticons would lay siege to Marhex. He made his decision. He should save as many civilian lives as he could.
"Give the order to evacuate." He finally said.
[Marhex]
It fell to the garrison to help get everybody evacuated. Worst part was that right behind the garrison was the Decepticon war machine leveling everything they could see. Overlord was laughing, the eerie sound seemed to be audible over all the commotion. Mechs and femmes were fleeing for their lives, and all the garrison could do was provide cover fire.
Kup and his squad ducked behind a fallen column, firing back from cover. Ironhide and his squad were doing the same.
"Just like old times, right Kup?" Ironhide asked.
"Yeah, just like fighting the Sharkticon Horde at Kwai 18." Kup snapped. "Now stop jaw-jacking and shoot some Decepticons!"
A little distance over, Optimus saw a civilian femme carrying a young mech between the oncoming rush of Deceptions and the holding line the Autobots were about to be forced out of. Out of impulse, Optimus leapt over the column, drawing protesting shouts from Kup and others. He ran hard towards the civilian, who was taking fire and shielding his cargo with his own body. Finally, Optimus reached the civilian and was attempting to help the femme get to cover when she shoved the young mech into Optimus' grasp. There was fear in the mech's optics. He must've almost been eleven, almost an adult.
"Come on." Optimus stated, grabbing the femme around the waist and hauling the two back to cover. He winced as a few Decepticons hit their mark and scorch marks appeared on his back. He dove over the fallen column and set both his charges to the ground.
"You're safe now." He looked over at the femme, but the light in her optics was gone. Death had claimed another innocent life. The child pounded his fists against a twisted piece of a building, clearly full of mixed emotions.
"Mother!" cried the youth.
Overlord was having a great time. Death, destruction, mayhem, this was all a symphony to him. A glorious orchestra of chaos raged all around him. For fun, he fired a missile volley at a building, sending plumes of dust and ash into the air. He furrowed his brow as he realized he was hearing a 'whump whump' sound like somebody's huge footfalls getting closer. He turned around to see a Guardian unit charging him. He laughed and fired off a volley of most of his weaponry, enshrouding the Guardian in a haze of smoke from the missiles and weapons fire. Much to his surprise, the Guardian kept going, charging through the smoke. Clearly the attack had damaged the Guardian on a large scale. Holes were everywhere and mechanisms exposed.
"You will not succeed", the Guardian stated, in that stereotypical monotone they possessed. And then Overlord was struck with the massive claw arm, and, much to his surprise, forced to take a few steps backwards from the momentum and force of the blow. Overlord could feel his jaw servo had been torn from its anchor in his skull, and an optic had been shattered.
Overlord smiled, putting his jaw back into place and wiping the leaking mecha fluids from his chin. Already the Guardian was preparing to fire the blaster on his arm. "I have to ask one thing before we battle, my worthy foe. What do they call you?"
Tersely, as if to say that small talk was irrelevant, "Omega Supreme." And then blasted a large hole in Overlord's side with the blaster. Overlord had dodged to one side to avoid the most of the blast, and returned the favor with a kick to the legs. Guardians were notorious for being unable to keep their balance. True to their reputation, Omega Supreme fell backwards onto his back with an earthshaking thud. Like the consummate predator he was born as, Overlord jumped onto Omega Supreme and attempted to rip the Guardian's living spark from his body.
Kup blinked as he saw Omega Supreme charge Overlord, take a missile blast, and keep going. He mutter something and shouted to his unit. "Let's haul aft out of here. What do you say, Ironhide?"
Seeing as how morale was probably falling, Ironhide shouted his agreement with that sentiment, but, there was a problem. "Fine with me, Kup, but we got a problem. Most of the gates are being used by the civilian transports, so we got to go out that way." He pointed to where the breach in the wall had been made by Overlord. Overlord and Omega Supreme were still fighting, shaking the ground as they did so.
"This just isn't my day", grumbled Kup. He turned to the kid Optimus had hauled out of the firezone and handed him a spare pistol.
"You know how to use it, right?" The kid looked cluelessly at the gun. Kup sighed.
"You point this end at the enemy, then pull this thing here" Kup showed him. Considering for a moment how impersonal he must be right now, Kup added "What's your name, kid?" The fighting in this region had died down now that the Decepticons that had poured in from the breach had spread through the city. There were some still remaining, however.
"Bluestreak, uh, sir."
Kup slapped Bluestreak's shoulder. "Well, we're getting out of here, and to do that we have to run across that mess. If you see a Decepticon, shoot 'em with that popgun I gave you and we'll do just fine." The squad members belonging to both Ironhide and Kup were taking potshots, waiting for the order to run.
Kup turned to Ironhide. "Let's go."
"Let's MOVE!" The Autobots leapt over their impromptu cover and started running across the no-man's land.
Omega Supreme caught Overlord's forearm with his claw and clamped, pulling it off at the elbow with some effort. Overlord got back up, clutching the stump of his arm and grimacing. The stalwart Guardian took advantage of the lapse in Overlord's attack to get to his feet. Overlord snarled and backhanded Omega Supreme with his good arm, striking the transparent face shield that covered the Guardian's face. "Die Autobot lover!"
Omega Supreme was forced to lean to one side, his face exposed to open air and his tactical HUD shattered. He got a brief glimpse of the Autobots huddled behind chunks of debris and his determination to do his duty as a Guardian was bolstered. He had guarded this city-state against onslaughts of Transorganics and Sharkticons, he would not fail in this duty.
He caught his balance and swung his gun arm around, firing. Overlord twisted as his good arm was blown off. He retaliated by launching all of his remaining missile payload at the Guardian. Trying to hold his ground, Omega Supreme slid backwards from the kinetic force of so many impacts. He could feel them ripping into him, damage being dealt on a grand scale he had never experienced before.
The smoke cleared and Omega Supreme was still standing. The dense, thick armor that covered most of his body was gone, blown away by the missile barrages. Of his face, only one optic remained unscarred. One of his wings lie on the ground some distance behind him, the other hanging off his back by some thin shred of metal. His gun had been blown to pieces, exposing the perfectly normal hand hidden underneath it.
Omega Supreme took a shaky step forward and grabbed Overlord around the neck with his claw.
"You." He punched Overlord in the gut with his hand, grabbing something inside there.
"Will." Omega Supreme's servos protested as he lifted Overlord's considerable bulk over his head. His systems were redlining, complaining. All over the giant's body were sparks and hydraulic lines bursting. He turned slowly toward the breach.
"Not." With as much might as he could muster with his heavily damaged body, Omega Supreme threw Overlord. Overlord landed just outside the breach, causing a small earthquake with it. The cracks and fractures in the city wall surrounding the breach shattered from the shockwave. Worse yet for Overlord, he hit the ground with his shoulders and the back of his head and tumbled a short distance before coming to a rest.
"Succeed." Omega Supreme moved to the outside of the breach to guard it against further incursion.
Everybody was running for the breach, now guarded by Omega Supreme. The fight seemed to be taken out of the Decepticons after seeing the Guardian's defeat of Overlord. So at least the Decepticons weren't shooting at them too much while turning tail. Finally after what seemed like the longest time, they made it. They stood around Omega Supreme's legs, taking a breather. Ironhide was listening in to the Autobot communication channels, and clenched his fists in rage.
"Primus damn them! They're destroying the transports as they come out of the gates." Ironhide said. Yes, the Seekers were bombing the gates as the civilian transports were coming out of the gates, killing the fleeing civilians.
Overlord got up slowly, using his stump of an arm to prop himself up. The toss had hurt a lot. Oh well, time for revenge. He turned his radio on. "Decepticons, fall back and leave the city as quickly as possible. Skywarp, plant our little surprise and set it for three minutes. We'll have the last laugh after all."
Overlord stood up and laughed, turning to face Omega Supreme. "You can say goodbye to Marhex, Autobots!" He laughed at them. "And I wouldn't stand too close to the fire if I were you." The air above Marhex was slowly becoming filled with Decepticons leaving any way they could. The more wounded ones were carried by their air-worthy brethren via tow cables and such, not wanting to risk their lives for this endeavor. Overlord began walking towards the nearby city-state of Polyhex, from whence he came.
[Marhex Control Center]
Deicon was very surprised when a dark blue Decepticon Seeker appeared out of nowhere with a large device with a boom and rush of air. Right in the middle of their command center.
The Decepticon punched some buttons on the device, chuckled to himself. He then took a few steps backwards, mocked a salute. "Give my regards to the Abyss, Autobot." And with a crack, the Decepticon was gone again and Deicon was left alone in the command center with the device. Everyone else had been evacuated. So Deicon rushed over to the device and tried to disarm it.
He had no training in such matters, and he knew it was a bomb. The countdown ticked like a horrible heartbeat as he furiously tried to disable it. He sighed as it counted down to five seconds and tried make his peace with Primus.
[Marhex City Wall]
The Autobots and Omega Supreme had chased Overlord as he made his way back to Polyhex. But then Overlord turned and laughed maniacally. "You're too late, Autobots. Look."
And they turned to look, seeing Marhex go up in a bright flash as a cataclysmic explosion incinerated it. It hurt their optics to look at it, actually shorting the delicate visual sensors for a moment. A wave of heat washed over them as the shockwave of highly compressed air struck them, swaying them. Shards of filament grass hit then slid off their bodies.
"No!" Bluestreak screamed, starting to rush towards the newly created ruins of Marhex. But Optimus grabbed him and held him back.
"It's over now, there's nothing we can do for them, Bluestreak."
[Decepticon Underground Base]
Straxus shot Overlord again. "I ORDERED YOU TO CAPTURE MARHEX, NOT DESTROY IT!" the tyrant bellowed. Overlord was cowering before Straxus, not having any means to fight back with. Otherwise he would, despite the face that Straxus was his older brother. Destrons were notoriously violent. "Get him out of here." Straxus hissed to minions nearby. The lackeys helped Overlord off to the repair bays for a long recovery.
Straxus stormed off to his command center and contemplated the next move. Now that the Autobots were demoralized by the destruction of Marhex, he should hit them right where it would hurt most. Their capital; Ikron. Chuckling to himself, Straxus turned to his communication officer. "Call Maximo and tell him I have a little job for him."
[Ikron Barracks, Autobot Central Command]
"I don't want the medal." Optimus said, busy checking his weapon.
Kup sighed. "Why not, Optimus? I mean, you saved that kid's life, and they're giving you a medal for it."
"Because I was doing my duty, Kup. Death's just another way for the Decepticons to take away somebody's freedom. And as a soldier, I've been entrusted to guard others' freedoms." Optimus stated, eyeing the barrel of his weapon critically, inspecting for pits and other malformations that would affect the accuracy of the weapon.
Kup muttered under his breath as he walked out the door. "Now I see why your father stuck me with you." Kup had realized that Alpha Prime had placed his only son under the crotchety veteran to show Optimus how to be a leader. Kup was quite proud of how Optimus was turning out.
[End Transmission]
Author's Notes
I obviously watched too many war movies as a kid. Then again, Kup is a lot like my grandfather. Grumpy old war veterans who love telling kids the more glamourous things they did in the war. Of course, what veterans rarely ever talk about are the horrors they saw. My grandfather helped liberate several internment camps in Europe, and he doesn't talk about what he saw there (not that I can't blame him).
'Sorrow' (c)1987, 2001 for the world by Pink Floyd Music Publishing Inc. Transformers and all related characters (c) 1985, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Takara. Written July 25, 2003.