Transformers Prime: Stay Tuned

Chapter Eight: Old Enemies

 Optimus didn't think he had ever cried this much. Even when Megatronus betrayed him, even when he lost Alpha Trion. War had done a number on him, but it had never been this personal. His spark was being ripped from his chest.

The first deadline was approaching quickly. Every day, Optimus prayed that a signal would pop up, that one of the sites they searched would be the one. His prayers were never answered. Every single attempt was met with failure.

Five days before the first deadline, Optimus caved. He had paced in his quarters for hours prior, deciding if he was really going through with this. He just had to buy more time to find Ratchet.

Bitter with defeat, Optimus called together a group to return to Earth and begin gathering dark energon. The volcano where he had battled Megatron, just before Unicron's awakening, was teeming with the dark substance, and he was certain there would be enough there. It was decided that they would keep this discrete, the new habitants wouldn't know that tons of dark energon were being transported to Cybertron to be processed.

Ultra Magnus led the expedition, gathering the strongest they could that could handle the exposure. They took shifts harvesting it and sending it home, where Optimus personally assisted with processing and counting.

It took two days of hard work, and every mech involved spent the night in the infirmary, where Knock Out tended to them. The heavy exposure had caused dizziness and nausea, and they couldn't stay on their pedes for long. Optimus visited them and thanked them for their service profusely.

Optimus had to be drugged to sleep every night. Rest was impossible. He would pace and cry for hours on end in the privacy of his quarters on the Nemesis, drowning in his hopelessness.

Every morning, the datapad would light up with videos and images and voice recordings. They hadn't tortured Ratchet since the failed rescue mission, but had made sure to let the threat linger in the air. Optimus received many pictures of Ratchet, bound tight, with a blade to his throat. The seekers liked to pose with him. They would wrap chains around his neck, force him to beg for mercy, threaten to burn him again. Every morning, Optimus would grow sick and purge his tanks. They weren't hurting Ratchet, outside of striking him whenever he fought back, but they were horribly mistreating him. They were scaring him.

Optimus hadn't been able to speak to him. He missed hearing him laugh and seeing him smile. He had taken to flicking through pictures of him every morning before he left his quarters, it motivated him for the day.

Three days before the deadline, Bumblebee called a meeting.

Optimus was the last to join them at the table. The scout had a look of stress. "We have a problem." He looked at the Prime, round optics whirling. "Megatron's signal has popped up again, and hasn't disappeared. He's closer than before." Everyone exchanged looks of surprise. "The dark energon. . . He must have felt it's presence. There's a lot of it here now, it has to have attracted him. He's probably here to investigate."

"Frag!" Wheeljack cursed.

"That's a problem." Arcee sighed. "We can't have him near the city."

"I'm sure he doesn't want to be found. He could easily be warded off, if we send a group to scare him away." Kickback offered, turning to Optimus. "We ought to chase him off, right?"

Optimus' processor was racing. "If he is involved with Rumble. . ." He began slowly.

"I highly doubt it." Knock Out said skeptically.

"But if he is," Bulkhead was anxiously tapping the table.

"We can get all the information we need to save Ratchet from him." Wheeljack smirked a little. "Cortical psychic patch is still on board. All we need to do is catch him."