Finding a Way

Chapter 13

Optimus POV
No one spoke to me as I laid Solus back on the medical berth. Megatronus came around and held energon tears in his optics. He cast me a glance before settling beside Solus's form. I stepped away and looked at my sister before walking away. I sat on some metal crates furthest away from everyone. All of the remaining Primes found spots far away from each other but still near Solus or at least so they could see her.
She's not going to return, not this time. I looked at her prone form and almost released a portion of static from my vocalizer. You helped me remember. I looked at those under my command, the Decepticons and also the humans. I noticed how still the humans were, truly. June and Miko had their mouths covered and a few tears fell. Rafael looked sick and turned away from what was happening. Jack held his head low with shaking fists by his side. Realization hit me then. They have never truly see a death of someone they knew. I thought back at when we all first met the children, how shocked they were with how we felt physically and emotionally, but especially that we can die.
I tore my gaze away and looked at the two sides of the war that would have normally attacked each other by now. Ratchet helped Knockout and Shockwave with repairing torture inflicted wounds on the Decepticons. Arcee relaxed on the floor and was evident she was in light recharge. Bulkhead and Wheeljack rolled back and forth a miniature version of their lob ball. Bumblebee and Soundwave seemed to be have some sort of conversation. Ultra Magnus looked at the Solus's forge with deep respect and something unreadable.
"Credit for your thoughts," I flinched slightly hearing Megatron and turned to look at him.
"Leave me alone Megatron," I muttered without any force.
He sat down anyway and rested a servo on my shoulder. "You're not acting like yourself, none of you are." He motioned to the other primes. "I know that we have our different ideals but seeing all this," he looked at Solus and those under our command, "I'm willing to negotiate a peace treaty after we figure out a way to defeat Unicron and the Shadow Assassins."
I looked at him in shock. "After all this you still have hope. You saw how they could control me, what's to stop them from doing that to everyone else?"
"A bizarre statement from you. Your answer is simple, you fought back against the control place over you. As for everyone else, she is a great Protector." I followed his gaze as it landed on Solus.
"What do you mean by great protector?" I was getting confused more and more by his statements than I have been in a long time.
"You can't seriously be that oblivious. Solus saw the Shadow Assassins before they shot. She moved to protect you. In my optics she's a great Protector perhaps even apart of the Ignis Militis." Megatron stated.
"The what?" This was getting me nowhere.
"You never heard of them? I thought you were suppose to be the history mech. Ignis Militis is an ancient group that believes in equality between good and evil. Said they follow the path of Primus and Unicron's sister or a dear friend of theirs from when they were younglings. Many of the gladiators learned about them and contribute them to the equals of the Primes." He explained.
"There is nothing about them that I can recall from the Hall of Records's archive." I state.
"How about we ask the others if they heard of them." He suggested rising.
I joined him and we both walk over to Alpha Trion. He was looking at his Quill with a longing look as I remembered Solus forged a lot more than just weapons. "Alpha Trion," I began to catch his attention.
He looked up with a fairly faint smile, "Yes, Optimus?"
"Megatron has brought to me a fact that I never recalled from the archives. That there was a group equal to the Primes called Ignis Militis." He looked shocked as I stated the name of the group.
Alpha Trion looked at the two of us before sighing. "Yes they did exist but died out eons before the primes were even created. Primus has told the thirteen about them but no one has ever proved they existed all except for Primus's word on them."
"What happened to them?" Megatron questioned.
"They were trapped within a place called Mortis Renasci. Though most refer to it as the void. Of course very few know it's real name." Then he looked at Megatron completely. "Where exactly did you learn of them?"
"The gladiator pits also had them as a legend but no one ever figured out how it started."
"Interesting," Alpha Trion hummed.
"But there is something else." I started.
"What is it?" Alpha Trion tilted his head to the side confused.
"What if Solus wasn't a Prime or a Shadow Assassin but a Protector from Ignis Militis?" Megatron finished.
Alpha Trion looked between the two of us before looking down. " The odds of that are 1.1%. I'm sorry but if it is true that Solus is a Protector then she wouldn't be in the Well or the Pit but the Mortis Renasci."
"And she can never return." I sighed.
"Now I never said it was impossible but there is very little chance." Alpha Trion smiled. "It is risky but then again almost all of the weapons the Primes have are at high risk of exploding."
"Wait what?!" That gathered attention as the other Primes looked at Alpha Trion.
"None of you were listening when Solus told you. You were all too busy going to try them out." Alpha Trion cracked a smile as everyone looked at the weapons they possessed. "Though not likely, we can try to by entering a state where you would see your worst fears and regrets and conquer them or they conquer your mind, destroying it."
"But if Solus is at Mortis Renasci, then we must try." I state.
Everyone shared a look before nodding in turn. This was the time to get Solus back.