Transformers Prime: Fractured Futures (#3)

Chapter 20

Arcee immediately stepped in front of me, her cannons primed and ready. Bumblebee and Smokescreen tensed, their optics focused on Megatron. The room crackled with tension, the air thick with the weight of the past.

"You've got some nerve showing up here again," Arcee growled, her optics burning with fury. "Whatever game you're playing, it ends now."

Megatron raised his hands, palms open, showing he wasn’t here to fight. "I expected your hostility. But I’m not your enemy anymore. I came because I can help you."

"Help us?" Smokescreen scoffed, unable to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. "Since when has Megatron ever wanted to help anyone but himself?"

"I understand your skepticism," Megatron replied, his tone steady, almost patient. "But this isn’t about me. It's about Cybertron's future, and the legacy of the Primes. That language—the one inscribed here—is lost to most. But I’ve studied it, learned it during my time as leader of the Decepticons. Solus Prime left something here—something that even the Thirteen didn’t fully understand."

Bumblebee shook his head, clearly struggling to make sense of it. "Why would we believe anything you say?"

Megatron's optics softened slightly, a glimmer of something—regret, maybe?—flickering in his expression. "You don’t have to believe me. But if you want to uncover the truth about the Fourteenth Prime, you’ll need my help. There are no tricks, no hidden motives. I’ve already walked that path and paid the price."

I stepped forward, instinctively drawing the attention of everyone in the room. He’s right, I signed. Whatever else Megatron may be, he knows more about this than we do. We don’t have a choice but to trust him, at least for now.

Arcee shot me a look, a mix of concern and frustration. "Erin, you don’t understand what you're asking."

I do, Arcee, I insisted. But this is bigger than any of us. If we’re going to solve this mystery, we need every advantage we can get. If that means letting Megatron help, then so be it.

Smokescreen looked uneasy, but he finally nodded. "I hate to say it, but Erin's right. We’re out of options."

Arcee’s optics flickered between the three of us before she let out a sigh, lowering her weapons. "Fine. But one wrong move, Megatron, and I won’t hesitate."

"I wouldn’t expect anything less," Megatron replied calmly. He then turned his attention to the ancient Cybertronian script floating in the air, the symbols swirling and shifting like they were alive. "This is the key to understanding the Fourteenth Prime," he said, his voice filled with a strange reverence. "And to the true purpose of Cybertron."

He stepped closer to the beam of light and began reading the symbols aloud, his voice deep and resonant, each word carrying weight. As he spoke, the ground beneath us trembled, and the walls of the chamber glowed even brighter.

"The Fourteenth Prime," he murmured, almost to himself, "was not like the others. This Prime was hidden, kept secret even from most of the Thirteen. Their purpose was not to lead, but to guard. To protect something far more powerful than any of us could comprehend."

The room was now shaking, the energy within the temple building to a crescendo. The key on the pedestal began to glow brighter, the light intensifying until it was almost blinding.

"Whatever this Prime was guarding," Megatron continued, his voice steady despite the chaos around us, "it wasn’t just for Cybertron. It was for the entire universe."

Suddenly, the light exploded outward, filling the chamber with a brilliant, blinding radiance. I felt Smokescreen tighten his grip on me, holding me steady as the energy surged around us.