Transformers: New Generation -- Pt 1

chapter 23 -- a new plan

✔️ Rewritten & Edited!

Elita was incredibly tired. She barely got any recharge over the last three solar-cycles, and it was getting late. The meeting with the Unit had been going on for almost four breems, mostly because Zeta and Ultra Magnus decided to join in. They were making things difficult, as an idea would be introduced, the Prime would find a flaw or the second-in-command would point out that it was too dangerous, and they would have to scarp it. Repeat that for four breems straight. The group of 'Bots consisted of herself, Zeta, Magnus, Chromia, Mirage, Moonracer, Equinox, Arcee, and Warpath. She chose the last two to be part of the mission, despite them not being part of the Spy-Unit. She deemed them fit for this particular one. Once again, Chromia, who had been supplying the group with ideas, spoke up.

"Why don't we use the tunnels?" She suggested.

"We already ruled out the idea of digging underneath the Decepticons." Ultra Magnus stated.

"I meant them to get into Crystal City and attack the 'Cons from behind." The light blue Camian said.

Elita looked down at where the Prime and his second-in-command sat, not bothering to straighten her posture. The two higher-ups looked at each other, like they were considering the idea. They looked back up at Chromia after a moment of exchanging hushed words.

"It sounds like a good idea," Zeta said, "but we can't risk it. There are Predacons crawling all over Crystal City, and the outpost is pretty far out."

"We'll invade at night." Chromia persisted, "The hatch is at the edge of the city, so we'll be out of their territory quickly."

It was obvious that everyone was tired and wanted the meeting over with. Elita thought this plan wasn't all that bad, even with the danger the Predacons presented. Zeta and Ultra Magnus spoke to each other for a moment, with a finalizing nod from the second-in-command and a sigh from the other. They looked back out at the Spy-Unit lieutenant.

"Chromia, I will allow this plan." Zeta said.

Many Autobots in the room breathed a sigh of relief, Elita among them. She was just so tired that she barely had the energy to care about anything.

"Elita-one." Ultra Magnus called, prompting the commander to look up again, "Plan your route."

"Yes, sir." She said.

"You're all dismissed." The Prime announced.

The Autobots stood, making their way out of the room and to the elevator. Elita waited at the back, allowing the others to go before her. When she was finally able to go in and down to the first floor, she trudged to her cabin. She rested her servo on the panel outside her room, which beeped and the door slid open. She padded inside, the door closing behind her, and she trudged to her berth. Being a commander, Elita had a cabin to herself, and it was pretty spacious, though she didn't fill up much of it. She flopped onto her berth, faceplates down, and almost immediately fell into recharge. However, she wouldn't be able to stay that way for long. Only a few cycles later, she awoke to someone knocking on her door. She wondered who in the name of Primus would need her at this time, and groaned. She slowly stood up from her berth, optics heavy, and walked to the door. Before opening the door, Elita straightened her posture, and allowed the door to open. On the other side was a certain Autobot with red and blue armor, warm azure optics, and a small smile on his dermaplates.

"Optimus?" The commander asked, surprised.

Optimus's smile grew at her surprise, and he chuckled. Elita jumped up and hugged him, kissing his cheekplate. The larger Autobot hugged her back happily.

"I didn't know that you've been discharged!" The Camian exclaimed, lowering herself back to the ground.

"I wanted to surprise you." Optimus explained.

"Well, I'm thoroughly surprised." Elita said.

The Cybertronian's optics sparkled happily. It looked familiar, but she didn't know from where.

"Elita," He said, "can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course." She said, then stepping to the side, "Come inside."

The larger Autobot nodded and padded inside the room, followed by Elita. The door slid closed behind her, and she walked over to where Optimus stood. He seemed to be looking around the room, which wasn't saying much, as there was barely anything on the walls or tables. The only thing that was really there was the piles of datapads on the desk, a framed photo on the berth-side table, and a few stacked boxes in a specific corner. He turned upon hearing the commander approach, and looked down at her.

"What did you wanna talk about?" She asked, moving to sit down on her berth.

Optimus looked at the floor, as if thinking about bailing out. His servos were clasped together, thumbs up and tapping against each other. Elita thought it was cute.

"Primus, this is a lot harder than I thought." He said, chuckling nervously, "I have no idea where to start."

"It's okay. A lot of 'Bots have trouble communicating with commanders, or just others in general." The commander said, smiling encouragingly.

Optimus nodded, but didn't continue. After a few moments of silence, he sighed.

"All right, I'll just say it, then." He said, servos visibly tensing, "I'm... Orion Pax."

Elita's optics widened and her intake gaped open. The red and blue Cybertronian rubbed the back of his neck with one of his servos, adverting his optics away from the commander.

"At least, I was Orion Pax." He continued, "I... was rebuilt in this body. My memory is mostly shot, but I'm starting to remember."

The Camian was still silent. She closed her intake, and slowly looked over at the framed picture on her berth-side table. It showed herself — younger, innocent, and new to Cybertron — standing between a tall blue Cybertronian and a shorter dark red and gray one with a big gunmetal-gray Cybertronian next to them. The dark red and gray Cybertronian's helm, alongside most of the top portion of the picture, had been corroded over time, blacking out those areas. It had been vorns since the photo was taken, and the image of the Cybertronian in her memory banks had started to fade. All she could remember is their bright baby-blue optics and their friendly smile. They were simply perfect in her optics. Elita looked back up at Optimus, seeing that he had taken interest in the cabin floor. The commander stood from her berth and padded to the larger Autobot. He looked up at her.

"I believe you." She said, "But, why did you tell me now?"

"We have a connection, Elita. We both feel it." He said, taking one of her servos in his own, "I'm... unsure what our relationship was the past, but I know that, right now... I love you."

Those words made Elita's Spark soar. It had been many, many vorns since she had heard those three words from her lover. Now, here he is, standing right in front of her. He was alive.

"Optimus... I love you too." She said.

The commander raised herself up and planted a kiss on the larger Autobot's dermaplates. She lowered herself, smiling as coolant gathered in her optics. Optimus frowned, cupping one of her cheekplates and wiped the tears the tears away.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing." She said, wiping the coolant in the other away, "I'm just... happy."

Optimus's optics brightened happily. He wrapped his arms around the smaller Autobot in a hug, and she quickly returned it. Elita wanted to stay here, forever hugging her lover as if they lived in the pre-war times. The larger slowly pulled away, and Elita, reluctantly, followed. She knew that they both had their duties that needed attending to.

"I think I should be returning to my cabin." Optimus mumbled.

Elita nodded. The larger Autobot left the Camian by herself in her cabin, the door sliding closed behind him. The commander sighed, flopping back onto her berth. She shuddered her optics, a soft smile on her dermaplates at the interaction. It faded after a moment, remembering that she still needed to plan a route for their mission. She slowly sat up, then stood, and trudged to her desk. She sat down, and prepared for another breem of thinking.