Transformers Prime: Eclipse

Chapter 7: Shocking Truths

Trudging our way back into base, me and Bulkhead faced the angry and disbelieving glares of Team Prime and Agent Fowler, along with the somber but somewhat hopeful looks on Raf, Jack, and June's faces. It was a maelstrom of wrath and disappointment across the faceplates of the team.

Bee looked like he was ready to blow a gasket, beeping and waving his servos around frantically. Arcee was gritting her dentas together to keep herself grounded, and I knew she was one wrong step from pouncing on us with blades drawn. Ratchet just sent us a deadpan look of 'I told you so' before getting back to work, and Optimus refused to directly meet my optics, keeping his helm cast downward.

"Did you find anything about Miko?! Those Cons must have known something, right?!" 

Surprisingly it was Raf who had spoken the question looming on everyone's mind. I was always under the impression that the little guy was a bundle of nerves barely holding it together, but right now, even though he was clearly distraught, his eyes burned with a determined glint to them. 

That seemed to simmer some of the rage the rest of the team was directing our way, even Optimus was looking up now with hope in his optics. Clearly, the team was running low on motivation. Any knowledge that could help would be greatly appreciated.

"Our enemies were airborne, so we never got a chance to attempt an interrogation. Dreadwing was our initial target, he seemed undefended and if I'm being honest, I've got some unfinished business with him."

Bulk placed his servo on my shoulder to calm me down. Realizing I had started to drift off into a tangent again, I sighed and gave my best friend a smile, though it was filled with sadness. 

"It was when we caught sight of the secondary signature that things turned sour. The other energy signature looked like a giant flying bird with a massive reptilian tail trailing behind it. Its face was completely covered by a visor, but even without seeing its faceplate, neither I nor Bulkhead could recall ever seeing a Decepticon like it before."

Most of the team's expressions grew confused, but Ratchet's usually grumpy look morphed into shock while Optimus's lips smoothed out into a thin line as his optics narrowed. 

"That's impossible! Those creatures went extinct long before life as we know it existed back on Cybertron!"

"Ratchet, you know as well as I that such a beast is not a unique occurrence on its own."

"Excuse me, is someone gonna fill the rest of us in on whatever you're all talking about?! I'm not too keen on having to cover up more nonsense tonight, so knowing what we're dealing with would at least be a step in the right direction."

Ratchet and Optimus shared a look between the two of them as a silent conversation brewed. Eventually, the medic sighed and dragged a servo over his faceplate, conceding to Optimus before turning to address Agent Fowler.

"The beast Wheeljack and Bulkhead spotted is known as a Predacon, a race of prehistoric beasts from before our time on Cybertron, before the war and even the Golden Age. They were thought to have gone extinct in a mysterious event known as the Great Cataclysm."

"Then how would one of those monsters be up and running now? And why would it be working with the Decepticons?"

Optimus strode to the center of the room, where he proceeded to set a grim atmosphere over all of us. "During the war for Cybertron, our spies learned of a secret project known as the Apex Initiative, a series of Predacon cloning experiments sanctioned by Megatron. These experiments used Predacon CNA, or cybernucleic acid, birthing new life from the remains of the fallen." 

"These Predacon clones were dispatched to various planets that the Decepticons suspected we Autobots would be fleeing to in the future. It is how the Decepticons are able to locate energon mines so efficiently. Thought the beasts were lost to the sands of time, the locations of the energon mines were cataloged and transmitted across space while they still lived."