Transformers Prime: Shrouded Truth (#4) [Completed]

Epilogue

3rd P.O.V.
Two years had passed since that day. Unicron's spark had once more been extinguished, and this time for good. There were no more back up plans, no more loopholes, no more escape hatches. The incarnation of destruction was truly and completely dead.

One year had passed since Rafael Esquivel, Miko Nakadai, Jack Darby, and Lora Creed had graduated. It had been an emotional day for them. All had chosen a career which kept them close with the Autobots they had grown so close to. June worried for them everyday, but she knew they would exceed at anything they put their minds to.

Lora stayed with the Darbys even after Smokescreen returned, and no one could deny that having a sense of normality in her life was a benefit for her. She finally had the life she wanted, with the two families she wouldn't change for anything. Despite being eighteen at the time, June still adopted the young woman. That had been another day filled with tears.

The Dinobots and Predacons had left shortly after the battle against Unicron. The Dinobots were out searching for their own once more, only checking in a few times each year. The Predacons hadn't been heard from since, only after telling everyone they were hunting down Decepticons. They promised that should them come across any Autobots hiding among the stars, they would direct them to Earth. None had arrived.

Now, standing on a rock cliff overlooking the deserts of Jasper, Nevada stood a young woman. Her blonde hair had grown through the years. It flowed in the gentle breeze, moving in soft ripples. Her leggings blocked the warm air, and the light shirt she wore let her feel the heat she had grown up in. It didn't bother her as it once had.

There was a bracelet around her wrist. It had gained two charms in the past two years. One, the number thirty-eight, and the second, a charm made to represent the amulet she had once wore. She never removed the bracelet, resulting in a subtle tan line, but it didn't bother her. The only thing that bothered her was the missing weight around her neck.

She had only worn the amulet for a handful of months, not even a year, but it still bothered her not to feel its weight. Often, she found herself reaching up to touch it, only to find empty air. The loss still pained her.

Footsteps echoed behind her. The young woman didn't turn around- she didn't need to. She already knew who was standing behind her.

His return had been a joyful day. It had taken hours to catch him up on everything he had missed, and no one left out a single detail, no matter how dark. Afterwards, he had returned to his normal duties and habits, filling the new base with the atmosphere they had all missed. No longer did his charge wake up screaming in the middle of the night and sit there alone in the dark. The nightmares still came, but he was always there to comfort her. That gave the young woman more reassurance.

Her guardian stopped a few paces behind her, watching the horizon just as she was. They stood in the silence for a bit, that was until he spoke.

"Alpha Trion found a reference to a Cybertronian relic in human mythology. He thinks he found a location."

Finally, the young woman turned around. She couldn't help but smile at her guardian. His return had given her nothing but joy, and every time she looked at him, she remembered that.

His Autobot symbols glowed in the sunlight. Though she never mentioned it out loud, the new paint job suited him much more than the old, but she still missed the thirty-eights that had previous been on his doors.

Her hand opened, summoning her weapon. The energon staff came to it, glowing with power as it rippled in her hands. Despite losing what had granted her the staff in the first place, she still retained the ability to summon it, much like Alpha Trion and his twin swords.

"Well. Shall we then?"

Smokescreen grinned, transforming into his dark blue and gold alt-form. Lora stepped into the passenger seat.

Together, they set off.

Happy.

Life rarely goes the way we expect it to, and the path it takes can never be foreseen. It throws us around, tests our limits and makes us question who we are.

My name is Optimus Prime, and I send this message to anyone willing to listen; even if we did not choose the destiny that was bestowed upon us, we must nonetheless embrace it. It is rarely a time of our choosing when it calls upon us, but we must make the moment our own. We must all be willing to answer its call, even if it means taking a step into the unknown.