Cybertron
342 years earlier...
Shockwave slid his finger down the sickening blade, enjoying the noise it made.
After a full day’s worth of surgery, the scientist longed for an Energon cube to restore his weakened circuits. But that would have to wait for at least a few more cycles. He had one more patient left that needed tending to. The liquid Energon painted across his claws and chest would keep him focused on just what was waiting for him after the final operation.
Seeing past the darkness in his observation post, Shockwave turned back towards the flickering light above his head, his only source of light. Usually, the computers would’ve offered some life to the shadow-engulfed room, but with the lack of proper Energon and power supplies Shockwave was left with only a few working lights.
He punched the wall to his right. The light above him stopped flickering.
“Excellent,” Shockwave mused, bringing his face down to stare at his prize.
He hung from his own two limbs, the rest of his body limp and lifeless. Shockwave made certain that all the Autobots he scavenged were broken and nonfunctional. He didn’t want any surprises during the surgery. Shockwave didn’t want the Autobot leader to wake up during the middle of it all.
Yes, Optimus Prime hung just like a victim from Shockwave’s past operations. The chains rattled quietly as Prime’s lifeless body swung back and forth ever so slowly. Just watching the last Prime at his complete mercy gave Shockwave a reason to continue. It’s not like he needed that anyway. Shockwave would’ve gone through with the plan no matter what.
Shockwave gave the fallen Prime a once over. He shook his head, muttering to himself, “You were truly meant for great things? Not in this life I’m afraid.”
He remained silent for seconds he refused to keep track of. Shockwave reared forward and jammed the blade he held in his right hand into the slit in-between Prime’s chest. The sound of the dagger against the metal made a horrifying screech as Shockwave dug even deeper to find what he was looking for.
The scientist found it rather easily. He quickly snapped his wrist sideways, earning a satisfying pop from the Prime’s chest.
Being familiar with the other patients and their inner components, Shockwave found that opening the chests of Autobots to be quiet easy. He backed off from the silent Prime, watching as his chest broke off into three separate pieces. Inside the darkness of his open chest cavity, a light shined.
A light shined so strong that soon Shockwave was engulfed in it. The scientist brought up his good hand to block out the bright rays. He didn’t have to hold it there for long. The light dimmed after a few seconds had faded away, leaving but a blue glow in Prime’s open chest.
With his one light source above him, Shockwave approached the last Prime, his purple eye gazing into Optimus’ chest. Inside he saw his one true prize, the relic he had been imagining ever since he first found Prime’s body hidden in the rust. The light he had felt before was not just from Prime’s spark, but it was from the artifact he earned so long ago.
The Matrix of Leadership.
To many, it was a beacon of hope and peace, the very spark of Primus himself. Optimus Prime had carried it through the Great Exodus to the battle for Equis. Never once had it failed him, never once had it not saved all who fell to war and turmoil. Whenever any eyes were capable of grasping the Matrix’s light, it would immediately fill the watcher with hope to carry one, to fight to the bitter end.
Shockwave felt nothing as he stared into its light.
Just like how he felt nothing when he reached forward and ripped it out of Prime’s chest.
Nothing happened, just as he expected. Shockwave gave Optimus one last look before he brought his attention to the relic resting in his hand. It was slightly heavier than he expected, but not too heavy to where he couldn’t hold it with one hand. The Matrix itself didn’t truly catch Shockwave’s attention that much. For a spark of Primus it didn’t seem so interesting now that it wasn’t in Optimus’ possession.
Something did catch Shockwave’s interest, though. The blue light in the center of the Matrix dimmed lower and lower until it faded completely dark.
“Curious,” Shockwave told himself as he looked over the Matrix for a few more seconds. He placed the ancient relic down carefully on the nearest surgical table, liquid Energon dripping down the sides. “One down…” he muttered quietly, turning back towards Prime’s chest.
It was dark, as expected, but wouldn’t be for long. Shockwave knew of this since it already happened with the others he worked on. He mentally counted down…
A dim blue light suddenly appeared in the darkness.
“There we are.”
Shockwave turned around back to the surgical table. Gently caressing the tools with his good hand, the scientist found what he was looking for rather quickly. He remembered placing it there from last time. The sickening tool had two edges, each one sending little volts of electricity through Shockwave’s hand once he picked it up. He didn’t mind it. He plugged the device into his wrist, feeling the electricity course through his circuits.
Facing the fallen warrior once more, Shockwave approached Prime with the tool in hand, his purple eye gazing into the lonesome light in Optimus’ dark chest. He made sure Optimus was raised higher above the ground so he didn’t have to bend down to do his work. He’d rather stand for what was coming next.
Shockwave stopped right in front of Prime’s open chest cavity for several seconds. For that long time, all Shockwave did was stare into the dimly lit hope of life Optimus had beating inside of him. It was all he had left from falling to death’s cold grasp. Though that would give Shockwave a tremendous amount of relief to be rid of the Autobot leader, he had a different plan for Prime’s fate that would benefit in the suffering of many, many others.
He gripped the tool in his hand, lifting it up towards Prime’s chest. Once the device was inside of the darkness, Shockwave gently impaled the device inside of the light, watching as it amplified even larger, giving Shockwave a bigger picture of what the device found.
The information captured from the light soared through the device and into Shockwave in a matter of milliseconds. Out of all the others, Optimus held the most information, the most history, and the most knowledge. Once again, he expected it from the Autobot leader. Optimus was certainly wise, having gained that knowledge from the Matrix of Leadership. But with it now gone, Shockwave could feel those lessons and strengths fading away.
What he found next was what Shockwave was hunting for.
The happiness. Not the same happiness Optimus once had before the war, but a happiness…that was quite recent. He could see it now. Prime’s vision was Shockwave’s. He could see their smiling faces, their laughter, and their friendship. It was absolutely disgusting. Just like all the others, Prime was just as weak having befriended such creatures.
“You bring great shame upon us all, Optimus Prime,” Shockwave told him, his cold tone tearing deeper into Prime’s spark than his device was currently doing. “These memories will have to go, I’m afraid. Surely you understand? I cannot allow such filth to exist inside my brother’s mind, now could I?”
As expected, Prime remained unresponsive. His dark eyes remained without life.
Shockwave didn’t speak to him anymore. He remained silent throughout the operation, his device tearing apart Optimus’ spark, ultimately destroying all of his memories. His rise as Autobot leader, the skills he learned after millions of years on the battlefield, the Great Exodus, the Equestrian War, the friendships he made…
Gone.
_______________
Unknown region
June 27, 1985
The dust picked up rather quickly when a Datsun 280Z police car came roaring by. Its engine could be heard from miles away, probably because it was in the middle of nowhere. Mountains and prairies stretched as far as the eye could see. Even with the rough terrain, the police car zoomed right on past the hills.
It drove so precisely, so coordinated. On first glance, one would think the driver was secretly a professional just spending his or her vacation out in the blazing hot prairie. That, however, was not the case, nor would it ever be the case when the police car stopped right in front of a mountain, dust quickly overcoming the vehicle.
With the dust keeping the vehicle hidden, a strange nose erupted inside the fog. It was a sound not heard before on the planet, a sound that was completely alien.
When the dust and sand had settled, a towering giant stood proudly on two legs.
The giant gave the entire area a clear sweep. He was alone, not a being in sight, presumably…a human being.
Prowl faced the mountain, the dust in front of his face completely fading away to reveal the Ark. For now, the Ark was his only home in this world he didn’t belong with a war that was far from dying. He could remember the Ark’s glory back on Cybertron, how it could harbor hundreds of Autobots inside. Sadly, only he and his crew were the only ones to escape the forgotten planet.
Now with the Ark merged inside of a mountain, Prowl still didn’t know how he could be living in this thing. That mountain looked like it could crush the entire inner structure within seconds. But thinking that logically wasn’t his duty. That was mostly Ratchet’s job.
He didn’t want to stay out in the open for too long. Without any reason to keep standing there, Prowl walked inside of the darkness the Ark’s opening revealed.
His footsteps could be heard throughout the walls and corridors of the Ark’s inner sanctums. Barely any lights lead him forward, but he didn’t really need any lights. By now, Prowl could walk throughout the entire Ark with his optics deactivated. He’s been in and out of the ship too many times to keep that memory sealed away.
Thankfully, the lights that were once dim were now full and gave the next room plenty of life. Prowl already knew which room he had stepped into. The bridge.
Several jagged rocks stuck out from the ceiling and shattered windows that once showed the glories of endless space. Rust had pretty much rotted most of the computers, leaving the entire Ark dysfunctional for all time. However, Primus seemed to be watching over them that day they were all awakened. Teletraan 1 was still operational.
He wasn’t alone inside the bridge.
Three taller beings stood in front of Teletraan 1, their bodies hunched over and whispering words not even Prowl could hear. The two smaller ones to the sides of the giant one seemed to do most of the talking. Prowl didn’t know this from what he could hear, he knew this because those were two of the most well-known scientists in the Autobot ranks.
Ratchet and Wheeljack.
They seemed to be discussing a serious topic with their leader, his heavy shoulders sagging and his massive head as low as can be. Prowl did the polite thing and waited by the exit, his back pressed against the nearest wall. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes.
As time went on, Prowl still questioned their fates. Their lives were permanently grounded on this world, and while most of the humans have accepted them to their home…others haven’t. As if they didn’t need any more troubles, they still had Megatron and his forces to deal with almost every single day.
Prowl didn’t know how much longer he could keep on going in this unending cycle. The Decepticons would attack, they would rush in with guns blazing to save the day, and Megatron swears vengeance, yada, yada, yada. The Autobot only feared that one day…everything would suddenly turn. He prayed to Primus that day would never come, but he knew it was inevitable.
“Good to hear, Prime. We’ll see ya outside.”
Prowl opened his optics, his blue eyes landing on the two scientists walking right past him. Ratchet offered a friendly smile to his presence. Wheeljack did the same, though Prowl couldn’t tell since he didn’t really have a mouth. He sent each of them a nod in return, his head turning back to watch them disappear into the dark corridors.
He brought his gaze back, nearly falling backwards when Optimus Prime was standing in front of him.
His first instinct was to salute his superior. Being the uptight bot he was it was only the respectful thing to do. So he did. Optimus looked up from the object he held in his hands, his blue optics showing signs of true dread and terror. He observed Prowl’s stance, knowing he wouldn’t stop saluting until he was addressed properly.
“At ease,” Optimus muttered.
Prowl relaxed. He reached out his hand, his mouth opening to tell Prime what he found while on recon, though he couldn’t seem to get the words out. A purple mist was emanating from Optimus’ hands. Prowl brought his gaze downwards to see what was causing it.
He was…bewildered.
Sitting in Prime’s hands was a replica of the Matrix of Leadership, or what appeared to be the exact opposite of it. Instead of its orange paint and glowing blue heart, this device was colored light silver, a heavy purple light doused within its center. With the purple light came the fog that floated from its heart. The fog gently hovered close to Prowl’s face. The Autobot was smart enough to back away rather quickly before the fog could reach him. The fog faded away, though it looked like it retreated back to the device.
Optimus watched as his fellow Autobot pointed a shaky finger at the relic in his hands.
“Um…Prime…what is that you’re holding exactly?” Prowl asked, his voice uncertain as if he really shouldn’t be in the same room as it.
Instead of feeling the same uncertainty as Prowl was feeling, Optimus merely switched the device to his right hand, his other pointing to it.
“You have nothing to fear, Prowl,” Optimus assured him. “Ratchet and Wheeljack have concluded that the Dark Spark wasn’t at full power, so its corruption would not be dangerous…at least for now.”
“The Dark Spark?” Prowl asked, taking a step forward with his optics locked on the condemned relic. Optimus nodded, holding the device up a little higher.
“I’m afraid I haven’t discussed this with any other Autobots. Honestly, I’d rather have this be kept a secret, especially from Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Knowing them, they’ll probably spread the word of the Dark Spark’s power to the others before I can even hope to stop them.”
Prowl’s optics widened. He pointed back into the dark corridors and said, “So…I should probably leave now since you don’t want anybody else knowing about the…”
Optimus raised his left hand, silencing Prowl’s sentence before he could’ve ended it.
“It’s quite alright, Prowl. You might as well see what we plan on doing with this…” his blue optics slowly attached to the darkness resting on his right palm, “…sickening weapon. I can trust you won’t reveal this to the others…?”
The white Autobot nodded, offering a little smile.
“You have my word, Prime,” Prowl told his superior, earning a nod of appreciation.
“Good,” Optimus said, walking right passed the smaller Autobot, “ follow me, please.”
Prowl spun around and hurried his footsteps so he could catch up to Optimus. Once by his side, Prowl continued to sneak a few peeks at the Dark Spark residing in Prime’s grasp. He went back to where the fog fading off of it almost reached his head, as if it was trying to grab him. Prowl had no idea how Optimus could hold it without being harmed. Then again, Optimus did have the Matrix…and this thing did look like the Matrix. Maybe there was something deeper to this than Prowl wasn’t hearing.
And he was about to be told everything.
“Long ago, long before the war that crippled our very race, the Dark Spark existed,” he began, more purple fog fading into the air from the relic. Prowl’s eyes looked up towards Prime, watching his faceplate move up and down. “Its origin remains unknown, though its legend is feared throughout the lands of Cybertron. The Dark Spark’s power is beyond our comprehension, so far in fact that in the wrong hands…it could cause great disorder in the universe.”
“What do you mean…‘in the universe’?” Prowl asked.
The flickering light above Prime’s head covered the two in shadows for a brief seconds. When the light returned, Optimus’ voice returned, darker and even more urgent.
“The Dark Spark has the power to rip planets apart,” he whispered, earning a terrified gasp from the Autobot to his left. “It arrived to Earth during one of my own recon missions. I followed the crash site and recovered this relic before any Decepticons could see me. For if any Decepticon were to find this relic before me…”
“It would be the end of the world,” Prowl finished Prime’s statement with a breath of fear.
Optimus nodded, turning his head back towards the light at the end of the tunnel. “We cannot allow Megatron to discover the Dark Spark’s presence on planet Earth. It would surely put the humans at risks far greater than anything they’ve dealt with in the past. That is why I’ve arranged Skyfire to send this weapon to the darkest edges of the galaxy, for it to forever remain lost.”
Prowl nodded, but stopped when he turned to Prime and asked, “Wait! Why don’t we just destroy it here?”
Saying that caused Prime to stop dead in his tracks. Prowl stopped as well, just a few feet ahead of Optimus. He instantly noticed Prime’s shoulders shudder, his blue eyes shutting tight as his right hand gripped the forbidden item tightly.
“Optimus…?”
The Autobot leader didn’t answer for the longest time. Right before Prowl could act, his leader looked up at him, his blue eyes taking a darker turn.
“We cannot destroy the Dark Spark here. The aftermath of its demise would be catastrophic if it were to melt down,” Optimus muttered, every breath being rasps of terror. Prowl began to feel himself shudder as well. He looked Prime dead in the eyes as he asked the question he really didn’t want to know the answer to.
“How catastrophic are we talking?”
Optimus Prime held the Dark Spark with his two hands, the dark presence trying ever so hard to break through to his spark. He wouldn’t allow it. The Matrix would protect him. Knowing Prowl wanted an answer soon, Optimus looked up at him, his optics narrowing.
“Global extinction.”
Prowl almost fell flat on his face.
The Autobot leader rushed forward and caught his brother before he could fall. With his hand holding Prowl up and the other gripping the Dark Spark, Optimus looked into Prowl’s eyes and saw something he wished he hadn’t. Fear.
“Come, my friend,” Optimus assured him, bringing Prowl back to his own two feet. “It is time we deal with this wretched item appropriately. It cannot remain here on Earth where Megatron can find it. We also cannot hope to ever destroy it without destroying ourselves and this planet. Our only hope is to send it to the stars…and let it forever remain hidden in the darkest portions of the galaxy.”
Prowl said no more words and simply nodded in understanding. Optimus nodded back, his main focus brought to the exit of the Ark closing in.
As the two stepped outside, they were greeted by the presence of the two scientists from before as well as a much taller Autobot standing by them. Prowl knew who it was immediately. He needed no introduction.
With Prowl deciding to stand back, Optimus walked forward with the Dark Spark in his grasp. Wheeljack and Ratchet noticed their leader coming. Their eyes grew wide when they saw him wielding the Dark Spark so easily. Ratchet stepped forward, his uneasy eyes continually shifting to the Dark Spark and back.
“Uh…Skyfire’s ready for you, Optimus,” Ratchet addressed, earning a nod from Prime. “Also, I contacted Cosmos just like you asked. He said he’ll keep a sharp eye out for the Dark Spark whenever he’s flying by.”
Optimus could only nod, a great sigh escaping his heavy bulk. “Good,” he muttered. Ratchet nodded and slowly began to back away, his terrified eyes still glued to the weapon of mass destruction in his grip. Optimus turned towards the towering Autobot.
“Skyfire,” the Autobot leader announced loudly. Skyfire bent down so he could hear every word Prime had to say. Optimus continued, his hand reaching up to show him the Dark Spark. “Take this relic far beyond Earth’s location, as far as you can go…and release it.”
The massive red and white Autobot reached forward and plucked the item carefully from Prime’s hand. He stared at it for several seconds, eventually saluting his commander. Optimus and Wheeljack both backed away when Skyfire transformed into his alternate form, his rockets blasting to life.
He took to the skies as fast as the Ark did during takeoff back at Cybertron. Instead of the occupants being robotic beings searching for peace, Skyfire’s occupant was a device that would end all life. Optimus couldn’t stop praying to Primus.
_______________
This’ll do.
Skyfire’s rockets died down, though he kept his speed with the lack of gravity. Slowing down with his backup boosters, the Autobot jet hung there in the darkness of space, large and colorful galaxies painting the twinkling canvas.
The Autobot transformed, the Dark Spark itself floating right off of his chest once it popped out. Skyfire reached forward and grabbed each end of the relic, feeling a new shock roll through his limbs.
It was exhilarating. Nothing the Autobot ever felt before could reach the amount of strength of power he felt at that moment. Skyfire looked down at the Dark Spark with wide eyes. It shined a bright purple in the darkness that surrounded the two. It was as if the device was tempting him with the one thing no one can refuse, a thing Skyfire felt as he first grabbed it: Power.
The fog began to return, reaching forward and surrounding Skyfire’s chest.
Skyfire knew better. He relaxed his grip around the edges of the Dark Spark, though a small voice in the back of his mind begged him to hold on. He ignored the voice, knowing it was trying to do nothing but deceive him.
Alone, in the darkness of the endless void, Skyfire watched the Dark Spark float helplessly away from him and into the sea of dying hope, an endless maze with no chance of escape. He watched it until the purple light disappeared among the stars.
“That’s that,” Skyfire told himself, transforming back into his jet form and blasting off back home. Earth, the world he and his brothers forever resided with the humans.
The Dark Spark floated aimlessly in space, its destination known.