WHAT I'VE DONE

by CROSSOVER KING


And let go of what I've done

By the time, Ratchet finished narrating the story that Luna had previously told him, both Twilight Sparkle and Optimus Prime had become completely speechless. They just could not believe that their respective races could be connected to each other by such a tragic event. While Twilight was contemplating why this had to happen to her ancestor of all ponies, Optimus was beginning to doubt the AllSpark could still be the key to ending the war.

Even if it had the capability of healing the entire Cybertron and resurrecting its civilization, it was also capable of causing death and destruction wherever it was present. Considering all the damage the Decepticons had caused and all the innocent lives they had endangered just so they could get their hands on this cube, perhaps obtaining it was not the way to ensure the safety of this world, after all. Optimus had no idea how he was going to explain this to his fellow Autobots and how they would react to it if he did. So, for now, he had to concentrate on retrieving the AllSpark and decide what to do with it only after this objective was complete.

Twilight, meanwhile, was determined to find the AllSpark now more than ever. She had to know exactly what it was capable of doing. Optimus may had said that it had the ability to give life and restore civilizations, but after hearing that story regarding her ancestor's encounter with it and what the Decepticons had done to Equestria since they first arrived in order to obtain it, she now knew that this cube could also bring so much damage to everything and everyone around it. It was not that she distrusted Optimus or anything. It was just that she had to be sure that it could really be a force of good in the hands of the Autobots.

"I know this is all too much to take in all at once", Ratchet said, which snapped them out of their deep thoughts. "However, I strongly suggest that we re-focus our efforts on retrieving the AllSpark. The more time we spend here, the more probable it will be for the Decepticons to acquire it before we do."

"Agreed", Optimus and Twilight said at the same time, which caused them to briefly look at each other in confusion.

"Uhhh... Alright, then", replied Ratchet in an equally confused manner. "We leave as soon as Luna returns."

As if on cue, Princess Luna arrived only seconds after he finished his sentence.

"It is done", she declared. "The train carts are completely full of refugees. However, since there is not enough space in them to take every single one in the city, we have to come back here to pick up those who remain after we take the Cube. So, let us go while- AAARGH!!!"

Suddenly, a spear launched from a distance hit her in the back and caused her to fall down. However, Ratchet caught her before she hit the ground and gently removed the spear.

"This belongs to the royal guard", he said with a shocked expression on his face. "It doesn't make any sense. Why would they attack a princess?"

"Perhaps, we should ask them", Optimus said while pointing to something in front of him. When Ratchet and Twilight looked at that direction, they saw that a dozen of Princess Celestia's guards had taken a stand against them and were all glaring at them. Twilight then decided to confront them about this and proceeded to come right between them and the Autobots.

"What in the whole wide world of Equestria do you think you're doing?!", she shouted. "You just shot down the Princess of the Night for crying out loud! When Princess Celestia hears about this, you'll all be in big trouble. Now, I order you to stand down and offer an explanation for this offense!"

Just then, their captain stepped forward and said, "We do not take orders from repulsive organics like you. The only one worthy enough to command us is Lord Megatron!"

While Twilight and the Autobots were taken aback by this statement, the guards quickly shed their disguises off and transformed into a squadron of Decepticon Cloakers. As soon as that happened, Optimus and Ratchet drew their weapons and Twilight made her horn so that she could get ready to blast them with her magic. In response, the Cloakers transformed turned their right hands into plasma cannons and pointed them at the trio.

As the stand-off continued for a handful of seconds, Ratchet carefully placed Luna on the ground and said to Optimus, "At least now we know what was in those escape pods that hit this city. But, how is it possible that these Decepticons could disguise themselves as ponies?"

"My guess is that our old friend Shockwave played a role in their creation", replied Optimus. "However, I do not recall seeing him aboard the Nemesis during our visit there last night."

The Cloakers then snickered and their captain spat, "You Autobots are laughably short-sighted! Shockwave gave us the ability to scan and transform into organic lifeforms shortly before we left Cybertron in case Lord Megatron needed us to infiltrate planets such as this one. It seems that his genius truly knows no bounds. I mean, just look at what we managed to in the span of one megacycle or so! We succeeded where Commander Brawl and Sergeant Barricade failed. Wanna know what we did? We learned the Cube's location and transmitted it to Lord Megatron himself!"

Both Twilight and the Autobots gasped in horror upon hearing that while the Cloakers sinisterly giggled. The captain then continued, "Yes, you should definitely be scared! Lord Megatron has already acquired it and as soon as he did, he ordered us to annihilate you. A shame, really. You will not be able to see his glorious vision coming to life."

Just then, Optimus stepped forward and stated, "There is nothing glorious about his vision. He intends to make the entire universe submit to his will and destroy anything that stands in his way. As long as my spark keeps beating, I will not allow such darkness to befall to this or any planet!"

Right after delivering that speech, he fired his ion blaster at the Cloakers, who immediately dispersed and turned invisible. Though Optimus activated his scanners to find them, they were simply nowhere to be seen. Then, Ratchet worriedly asked, "I assume you have a plan, old friend?"

"Yes. Destroy these Cloakers, and regroup with Bumblebee and Spike in Ponyville", replied Optimus. "What is Princess Luna's condition?"

Ratchet carefully examined her before stating, "Thank Primus, her wound isn't very serious. I don't have to use my Energon Repair Ray, but I still need some cover in order to work properly."

"Understood", Optimus replied while reloading his weapon. "Twilight, you're with me. We need to protect Ratchet while he provides treatment for Princess Luna."

"Got it, but how exactly are we gonna find and defeat these Decepticons when they're invisible?", Twilight asked and her answer came in the form of a ball of pure plasma, which she deflected with her magic shield at the last second. When she looked at the direction that ball came from, she saw another ball smaller than the previous one but glowing brighter and growing bigger with each second. Just before it was fired, she sent a magic blast to its location, which hit and decloaked a Cloaker. Then, she immediately sent a much more powerful blast to the same spot and this one ripped a hole in the Cloaker's chest, killing him instantly.

"Um, forget I said anything", she said to Optimus while giving him a small nervous smile. He responded with a nod and the two began to take care of the rest of the Cloakers in the area. It turned out to be a rather easy battle as the Cloakers were immediately spotted when they charged up their plasma cannons, giving Twilight and Optimus the opportunity to take them down by shooting at them. Of course, since the Cloakers had spread out, they were able to fire from nearly all directions, causing the Autobot leader and the alicorn princess to barely dodge their attacks. In fact, Optimus had already taken three direct hits to his back and Twilight would have almost taken a direct hit to her back if Optimus had not pulled her out of the way. So, they decided to change tactics and started taking on the Cloakers back-to-back. In this way, they could shoot at their enemies from both sides, protect each other from plasma shots, and defeat them much more efficiently. Indeed, this strategy worked like a charm and in a few minutes, the entire squadron of Cloakers were in pieces.

The dynamic duo panted heavily for a handful of seconds before looking at each other with gratitude and determination. Optimus then made his left hand a fist and extended it to Twilight before she promptly bumped her right hoof into it.

"Wow! You were amazing back there!", she exclaimed. "But, I guess I shouldn't be that surprised since you've been in the fighting business for a few million years or so."

"That is correct", replied Optimus with a chuckle. "However, you also fought valiantly. Have you had any previous combat experience, by any chance?"

Twilight sheepishly replied, "Well, I did fight an army of Changeling invaders with my friends, a magic-sucking centaur all by myself while I had the power of three other alicorn princesses, as well as all sorts of strange creatures and monsters in a just a couple of years or so. That should be plenty of experience, if you ask me."

"Agreed", Optimus stated. "Yet again, I find a similarity between us, Twilight. We are both experienced combatants who only resort to violence in order to protect the innocent lives around us. I may have seen much more violence than you did, but I fight this war with the sole purpose of ensuring my people's survival. While peace and harmony are the most valuable virtues in existence, there will be times when they will be threatened. During these times, we must do what must be done and struggle against insurmountable odds in order to preserve them. Would you agree to that sentiment?"

Twilight quickly flew up to his shoulder and happily said, "Couldn't agree more."

"Good", warmly replied Optimus. "I knew I could count on you."

Right after saying that, he did something no one expected him to do: He gently stroked Twilight's mane. While she did not try to get away from it or anything, she also could not help but ask, "Um, what are you doing?"

Optimus instantly stopped and said, "Forgive me. I, uh, could not help myself. It's just... I did not realize until now how, um, adorable you really are."

Though initially surprised to hear that, Twilight eventually giggled and said, "That's okay. After all, we're friends now, right?"

"Yes, I believe so", Optimus replied with a little sadness. "It has been really pleasant conversing with you for these past few megacycles. You have taught me many fascinating things about your planet, including its history and current state. I must admit, it seems like a far more peaceful and prosperous world than Cybertron ever was. For eons, I fought and sacrificed many of my kind so that our world could live again. However, learning about the astonishing features of this world and reflecting on the events that has transpired today makes me wonder... Perhaps, Cybertron itself is not exactly what we should be fighting for, after all."

As soon as he said these things, Twilight promptly put her hoof on his face mask and determinedly said, "Hey, don't talk like that. You WILL see your planet come back to life. I'll make sure of it. If things don't exactly work out, though, you and your Autobots are more than welcome to stay in Equestria until you find another way."

This statement lifted Optimus' spirits a bit and he turned to Twilight before replying, "I... appreciate that."

Upon hearing that, Twilight managed to give him a small smile, in return. However, this sweet moment between them was suddenly interrupted when a letter appeared out of thin air above Twilight's head and once she read it, she let out a gasp out of pure horror.

"It's from Spike and Bumblebee!", she began to explain. "They found the AllSpark, but also ran into Megatron himself! It seems Megatron took the Cube and... and seriously injured Bumblebee in the process?! They're right beside the Castle of the Two Sisters! We must go there at once or he'll become offline!"

Right after hearing all that, Optimus' facial expression changed from confused to fiercely determined and he said, "Ratchet, we have to make haste! Bumblebee is in grave danger! What's your status?"

"Luna is completely healed", replied Ratchet. "She is able to fly, but I wouldn't recommend her straining herself too much."

"We have no other choice", Optimus firmly declared. "It is imperative that we reach Ponyville as soon as possible. TRANSFORM AND ROLL OUT!"

Twilight flew away from his shoulder as he and Ratchet simultaneously transformed into their vehicle modes, and once Luna was in the air again, all four of them went to the location of the train carts. Twilight quickly attached the carts to Optimus' rear and right after that, the group began heading towards Ponyville at top speed.


For ten minutes, the Autobots drove and the princesses flew in complete silence. They were all focused on reaching their destination and did not want to waste a single second talking to each other. All except Twilight, who was beginning to feel uncomfortable about the silence and worried about Optimus' new attitude. She had already seen that anger and frustration could lead to rash and dangerous actions, and she was afraid that Optimus would do something like taking on the entire Decepticon army all by himself just to avenge Bumblebee, and maybe get killed in the process. He could be a highly skilled warrior, but that did not mean that he was invincible.

When they were halfway to Ponyville, she decided to fly at a lower altitude in order to talk to him about this, but just as she was about to do so, Luna placed a hoof on her shoulder and sadly shook her head. Twilight immediately understood what that meant, nodded her head in equal sadness, and continued to fly at the original altitude while maintaining her silence, no matter how much she disliked it.

After ten overbearing minutes full of tension and discomfort, they finally reached the borders of Ponyville. At that point, the group split up with Ratchet and Luna going to the Castle of Two Sisters in order to heal Bumblebee, while Optimus and Twilight heading to the train station in order to drop off the homeless citizens of Vanhoover. As soon as they did that, Twilight decided to check on her friends and family to make sure they were safe, and Optimus gave her permission to do so while he continued towards the castle.

Meanwhile, Luna and Ratchet had already reached there and both of them were horrified by the sight before them. Bumblebee was laying heavily damaged around a pool of small white crystals with the CMC and Spike holding his fingers right beside a castle surrounded by giant mass of sharp purple crystals. Ratchet quickly rushed to Bumblebee's side while Luna fearfully stared at the condition of her former home.

"Bumblebee, are you alright?!", an extremely concerned Ratchet asked before taking a quick look at Bumblebee's injuries and then asking the CMC and Spike, "What in the name of Primus happened here?"

Spike worriedly replied, "Megatron brutally stomped right on his chest. He's been leaking those white crystals for several minutes now. Please... Please, tell me you can save him."

Ratchet then examined the wounds more closely and declared, "I believe so, but I need some space to work. So, please, take a few steps back."

Spike and the girls did as he asked and he turned his right hand into his Energon Repair Ray before speaking to Bumblebee in a firm tone, "Don't you dare give up now, soldier. I know there is still some fight left in you. Use it!"

Bumblebee giggled at that and said, "Well... it's nice to see you've improved... your bedside manners."

"Heh! You'd be surprised how much these ponies rub off on you", replied Ratchet. "Now, hold still and shut up."

"Just what I thought", Bumblebee muttered before doing as Ratchet instructed.

As Ratchet began his work, Spike and the CMC walked towards Luna, who was still gazing at the new condition of her old castle and trying to figure out what could be the cause of those ominous, Then, she heard the group calling out to her and shifted her attention towards them.

"Spike. Crusaders. Care to explain your presence here?", she inquired.

Spike nervously replied, "Well... Bumblebee was driving us to Zecora's, but then, he picked up a strange energy signature and it led us right here. We searched the castle and found the AllSpark at the bottom of a pit. Just after we got out, Megatron attacked us. Bumblebee tried to distract him to buy us enough time to escape, but... You can clearly see how that turned out. As for the AllSpark... Megatron took it. Now, he and his goons are somewhere in Equestria planning an invasion on Canterlot. After that, they'll destroy the whole planet before moving on to conquering the rest of the universe. We do have a plan to stop them, right? Because, if not, we're all pretty much doomed."

While Luna was trying to comprehend everything Spike was saying, she noticed that Apple Bloom was especially sad and nervous. In fact, she was looking down as if she was ashamed of something. Luna knew that expression all too well. It was the same one she had all the time when interacting with the staff of Canterlot Castle during the first few days after her reformation. Celestia had encouraged her to open up about these issues and it had really helped boost her confidence in herself. Now, she realized that she must remember her sister's methods and do the same thing for this child.

"Apple Bloom? You seem upset over something? What is it?", she calmly asked.

Apple Bloom became even more nervous and could only reply, "Well... Uhhh… I don't think..."

In response, Luna held her chin up and kindly said, "It's quite alright, child. You can tell me. There is nothing to be ashamed of."

Apple Bloom then took a deep breath and tearfully replied, "It... It was all my fault, Princess Luna. I gave the AllSpark to Megatron. I saw how much he was hurting Bee and thought I could save his life by giving up the Cube. Megatron agreed to the trade and even used the Cube to heal Bee's wounds. But then, he crushed his chest by stepping on it, created all those crystals around your castle, and left to begin his invasion. Bee said he was to blame for trying to fight Megatron all by himself, but I know he was just trying to protect us. I'm the guilty one here. I'm the one who caused all this mess! NOW, THE WHOLE UNIVERSE WILL BE HURT FROM WHAT I DID!"

Right after saying that, she laid her head on the ground and started sobbing heavily. She was not expecting anyone to forgive her for her actions, least of all, Princess Luna. In fact, she knew very well that the princess would punish her for such an offense and she had no problem with it, whatsoever. In her opinion, her friends, family, and the rest of Equestria had every reason to be mad at her, and that, she fully deserved to be punished for her stupid mistake. Therefore, she continued sobbing and prepared for the wrath she expected Princess Luna to unleash upon her.

However, what happened next was something she was not expecting to happen at all. Instead of getting angry and yelling, Luna gently stroked the crying filly's mane, instead. Then, the completely perplexed Apple Bloom looked up and saw that Luna did not have a single indication of rage on her face and that, she was actually softly smiling at her.

"Shhhh… It's alright, my dear", she said. "You have nothing to worry about. I completely understand."

"You... do?", asked Apple Bloom very curiously.

Luna gave her a small nod and replied, "Most certainly. I did many things in the past I am not proud of. However, the difference between my mistakes and yours is that I did them due to my pride and ambition. You, on the other hoof, did what you did in order to save the life of someone other than yourself. Someone you genuinely cared about. If anything, your selflessness should make you a hero, not a villain like I was."

Apple Bloom briefly contemplated what Luna said before asking, "But... But, what about Equestria and the rest of the universe? I basically doomed both of them by giving up the AllSpark. If I hadn't, none of this would've happened."

"Perhaps", Luna calmly began. "However, let us not forget that our fight with Megatron is far from over. We still have a chance to defeat both him and his vile Decepticon army with the help of our new Autobot friends. If we lose faith in ourselves at this critical hour, though, then we will truly lose."

Apple Bloom wiped a some tears away from her face and said, "I reckon we'll lose either way, Princess Luna. Megatron's way too strong for any of us to bring down."

"On our own, no, we cannot bring him down", Luna promptly replied while her smile disappeared. "If we work together as one, however, there is not a single challenge we cannot overcome. I have seen more than a few times how unity and friendship between ponies triumph over the forces of darkness. In my opinion, this circumstance is no different. All we have to do is have faith in both ourselves and our friends. So, what do you say? Will you just stay and drown yourself in despair, or will you take a stand against the Decepticon tyranny alongside your friends?"

Applebloom thought really hard about this for several seconds and in the end, she took a deep breath and determinedly declared, "I'm willing to do everything I can to make things right. A few metal bullies from outer space can't just destroy everything I care about simply because they see us as pest. Bee was right. They're all a bunch of insensitive cowards and I wanna show 'em that there's a lot more to us than meets the eye."

Luna began smiling again and said, "That's the spirit, dear. I promise that I will do everything in my power to help you on this endeavor." She then put her hoof on the filly's shoulder and continued, "We WILL get through this crisis. Together."

Applebloom began smiling and replied, "Thank you, princess. I'm... really glad you still believe in me", before giving Luna an unexpected hug. Though Luna was initially a bit confused by this, she nevertheless returned the hug.

Suddenly, to everyone's shock, Optimus burst through the woods in his vehicle mode, swiftly transformed back into his robot mode, and rushed towards Bumblebee in great concern. However, Ratchet stopped him from reaching Bumblebee by placing a hand on his chest and slowly shaking his head. From this motion, Optimus quickly understood that Ratchet needed more time to complete the healing process and so, he slowly took a few steps back and Ratchet got back to his work. Once Optimus was about a hundred inches away from his comrades, he fell to his knees and hung his head in sorrow. He even muttered to himself, "I am sorry, old friend. I should have been here."

Then, Luna flew to a spot directly above him and said, "Optimus Prime, thank goodness you're here. I have to show you something really important. I think it's- Wait, where is Twilight Sparkle?"

Optimus slightly looked up and replied, "After we dropped off the refugees at the train station, she stayed in Ponyville to check up on her family. She will arrive shortly, though."

Sighing in relief upon hearing that, Luna continued, "I see. Well, in any case, you must see what I intend to show you. This way, to my old castle."

Despite his overall sadness and concern for Bumblebee's survival, Optimus managed to stand up and followed Luna, who brought him near the chaotic mass of purple crystals. As he continued walking, the Crusaders could not help but be awed by his size and appearance. However, he paid no attention to them due to having too many thoughts in his head. Upon seeing the current state of he castle, his facial expression changed from sad to frustrated while Luna continued to be worried from the sight before them. She then asked Optimus, "Do you have any clue regarding the cause of this phenomenon?"

Optimus somberly explained, "I do. In fact, I know this all too well. It is called, 'Dark Energon'. An unstable and highly destructive form of energy that had caused the decimation of my home world in the first place. Megatron harnessed its power during the final chapters of the war on Cybertron and introduced it into the planet's very core. As a result, the entire world became corrupted by this substance, which forced us to initiate a mass exodus to the stars. Megatron is the only Cybertronian in existence who have mastered Dark Energon and he had undoubtedly conjured up these crystals before us with his bare hands. Simply put, the power of Dark Energon is polar opposite to that of the AllSpark and in Megatron's possession, it is the most dan-"

He left his sentence unfinished as he came to a stunning realization. Luna, who was slightly spooked from his narration, became puzzled by the sudden change in his facial expression. She could not help but ask, "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

Optimus turned his attention to her and replied, "I now understand what must be done. If what I am about to suggest works, then we can put a stop to this senseless conflict once and for all. We can finally create peace between our peoples."

Becoming even more confused than before, Luna inquired, "Really? What is this new plan, then?"

"I shall explain everything as soon as Twilight arrives", answered Optimus. As if on cue, Twilight suddenly came out of the forest while sweating and heavily panting. Once she managed to calm down and catch her breath in a handful of seconds, she gasped in horror at the sight of the Dark Energon crystals.

"Please don't tell me Megatron found a way to bring back King Sombra and that they've teamed up to conquer Equestria!", she said to Optimus and Luna, who proceeded to briefly look at each other in puzzled expressions.

Optimus then turned back to Twilight and replied, "What you see is entirely Megatron's doing. He most likely sought to demonstrate the full extent of his Dark Energon abilities in order to intimidate us. However, he did not realize that this had actually taught us how to strip him of his power. Now that you are here, I can explain our new strategy. Ratchet, have you finished healing Bumblebee?"

"Well, he still needs to rest for a few additional megacycles, but he should be strong enough to get back on his servos, at least", declared Ratchet. Then, he stood up and helped Bumblebee do the same. Though Bumblebee had to lean on Ratchet at first, he eventually managed to stand upright and walk towards Optimus, who sighed in relief and placed his hand on his young friend's shoulder.

"How are you feeling, soldier?", he asked.

Bumblebee sadly replied, "Some of my parts still hurt, but I'll be fine. At least, that's what doc told me. Anyway, that's not the real problem here. Our worst fear's been realized, Optimus, and it's all my fault. I should've obeyed your orders and stayed put in Ponyville. Instead, I ventured on my own and the result was catastrophe. I deserve every bit of punishment you deem necessary."

"That will not be necessary", stated Optimus, much to Bumblebee's confusion. "The injuries you have sustained during your fight with Megatron should count as more than enough punishment for your recklessness. Besides, I cannot exactly punish a soldier like you for making an effort to speed up our search for the AllSpark. Just remember to report directly to me anything unusual you come across from now on. Is that clear?"

"Absolutely, boss bot", Bumblebee declared before saluting his commander who then saluted back. "Now, what's this new strategy I heard you talking about earlier?"

"Gather our friends beside the Dark Energon crystals and I shall answer", Optimus replied and Bumblebee immediately proceeded to carry out his order. Soon enough, everyone was standing right in front of the crystals, impatiently waiting to hear what Optimus had to say. Optimus then cleared his throat and began to speak in a very serious tone.

"You are all aware of the danger we will soon face", he began. "Megatron and his vast army are coming bring about the end of this world. Although me and my Autobot brothers have sworn to never let another planet fall to his evil, I doubt we can keep our promise this time. We are severely outnumbered and unable to contact our allies hiding across the galaxy. To make matters worse, Megatron has the AllSpark in his possession and will, no doubt, use its power to make the upcoming battle even harder for us. In short, this is going to be a battle we may not win."

Though he noticed everyone's facial expressions turning sad and hopeless, he nevertheless continued, "However, we still have one glimmer of hope. You may find it radical and irrational, but this new strategy of mine could be the only way we can defeat the Decepticons and restore peace to this world."

When he saw that everyone was looking at him in great intrigue, he knew that he had their full attention. He then took a really deep breath and announced, "We must destroy the Cube."

Needless to say, they all gasped in pure shock.