The Day We Hailed The Heavens

Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Pyrocumulus

Optimus couldn't help but flinch when he heard that dark, terrible voice calling his name.

As the last member of the Prime dynasty, his ancestors had told him many things about the so-called Lord of Darkness. As a younger mech, he had been warned by many of his seniors of the danger that lurked on the edge of the universe - the indestructible chaos bringer; the master of iniquity; the very reason that there was malevolence in the world - but he, like Arcee and the younger 'bots, had never taken those cautions seriously. At least not until he had been taken to commune with the spark of Primus, deep in the core of Cybertron... Vector Sigma.

All those who would have the Matrix passed onto them had been required to enter the chamber and connect with their creator - Primus, after all, knew everything about their race, and could give the most valuable advice to a young mech taking on the burden of leadership. On that day, the Lord of Light had told him many horrifying things about his counterpart... and now that was finally here, in the spark chamber of Unicron... he believed it entirely.

Alexis was breathing harshly on his shoulder, and Optimus's spark ached for her. They were so close, now, to their end... and she was so very, very young. Even for a human.

... and Rose... unpredictably brave, selfless Rosa Connelly... had been just the same age.

His CPU still could not accept the fact that Ratchet's spark partner was just... gone. Ratchet was the oldest mech of the Autobots but for Ironhide, and had been without a mate for so many millennia that Optimus had long since lost count of them - he had never seemed to prioritise the matter, and had never shown any concern over it until Rose had come to the base. And yet now, she had been stolen from his medical officer by some dreadful error of destiny... some ghastly slip-up that he could never have foreseen.

But then... he had never foreseen... would never have even attempted to comprehend...

Oh, Elita... my Elita... why you?

A low, pitiless snigger suddenly jerked him back to the hideous reality of the situation, and he felt Alexis's tiny hands tighten around his shoulder components as her heart rate spiked alarmingly.

"So this is the great Optimus Prime," Unicron boomed almost pityingly, his thunderous voice sounding as if it was coming from every direction possible, passing through the ground, walls and ceilings of the tunnel at once as Optimus clenched a fist tightly. "The one that has been sent to defeat me... the bearer of the great Matrix of Leadership."

It took a moment for Optimus to recover from the shock of hearing that horrendous, low-pitched tone again... but when he did, he spoke to the monstrous entity with far more courage and certainty than he felt on the inside. He was the Autobot commander... he had to be strong, and do this for his soldiers... they needed him.

"Yes, Unicron. It is I," he announced firmly. "I have come."

Unicron laughed: it was a harsh, discordant chorus of sound that made Alexis cover her ears again, her face twisting in aversion. Optimus, too, was tempted - if only for a moment - to cut the power to his auditory receptors in order to block it out. "Good... yes, good... it has been far too long... far too long since I have had a victim to torment in these passageways."

Raw, blinding pain suddenly arced through Optimus's spark chamber and he took a step forward, blinking back the memories that were resurfacing in his central processor and flashing, like repetitive lightning, before his optics. "You cannot torment Elita now," he growled, drawing his energy sword in spite of how useless he knew it would be against this fiend. "You have taken my mate, and threatened our planet - and now you will suffer the consequences, Lord of Darkness."