1 month later
Helios stood in one of the last spires of Crystal City, looking out over the landscape of Cybertron. The phrase "landfill with patches of fire" came into her mind. Staring at the planet, she rewound her mind back to the beginning.
One week into the war, and they had taken over most of the planet, thanks to their immense numbers.
Then came the massacres.
Cybertronians were given a choice. Join the Prime's troops, named the Autobots, or die. After a few weeks, only a fraction of Cybertron's population remain.
Now they had to resort to guerrilla warfare, attacking convoys and stealing resources, then running away before backup came.
The sound of the door opening knocked her out of her trance.
"Report," she said, trying to feel a sense of control in such an uncontrollable situation.
"Turn around, look at me," the voice behind her said. "I'm not Starscream, sister."
Helios spun around, her hammer materializing into her raised hand. Standing behind her was a mech. The first thing that struck her was his armour. It was ancient. No one has armour like that anymore, and it was more for show than defense, like the cape he had. He looked familiar too. She searched through her memory, but nothing matched except mythical characters, but somehow, she trusted him. She relaxed, and she lowered her arm. With him being an entire head taller than her, which doesn't happen very often, she looked up at the mech and asked, "who are you?"
"Liege Maximo. Do you not remember me?"
"I... think so?"
"Never mind. You're getting your report: The reason Optimus can destroy your army is because of the Matrix of Leadership. To win this war, you and Megatronus must get your hands on the Matrix, and your old weapons back. Tonight, Solus, we shall go to Iacon."
"Who's Solus? And you're telling us to go infiltrate the most secure fortress on all of Cybertron?"
A corner of Maximo's mouth raised in a half-smile. "Now you're getting it."
*************
"Soundwave," Megatron called. The communications officer turned his head. "Hack and Span," their leader ordered.
Soundwave turned back to the dashboard, tapping a few holographic keys. He placed a hand on the central red circle and a whooshing sounded as the Stellar Spanner's portal expanded into existence.
"Stay here and monitor the situation," Helios told Soundwave. She stepped through the portal, followed by Megatron and Liege Maximo.
*************
They stepped out of the portal and were immediately greeted by gunfire. A blast grazed Megatron's shoulder and another hit Helios's chest.
Megatron fired back, each of the shots from his fusion cannon blowing apart the Autotroopers' heads, slamming their bodies against the vault doors.
Liege Maximo crouched over their corpses, then straightened and entered the password as if he had done so a million times before.
The door opened.
The trio walked through. "The artifacts of the Thirteen," Liege Maximo told the other two. "Among other things. Get the Forge of Solus Prime, the Requiem Blaster, and the Matrix of Leadership."
"Who put you in charge?" Helios asked.
"I know what they do, and that they should be yours. So get them."
"Not the time, Helios," Megatron said. He walked over to the Requiem Blaster, a larger version of his fusion cannon with Primal Vernacular etched onto the sides. He detached the fusion cannon on his arm, replacing it with the relic. It fit snugly on his arm.
Helios let out a quick huff of air. She reached out for the Forge, holding it in both her hands. It was extremely well balanced for a mere tool. "But it's not a mere tool," she reminded herself. The supposedly mythical Thirteen Primes have used them.
Liege Maximo looked at his siblings-in arms with pride. By giving them their weapons back, he gave them a chance against Optimus.
He turned around, preparing to look for the Matrix.
And stared straight into Optimus Prime's red optics.
*************
"So you thought you'd find the Matrix in the Vault?" Optimus Prime said.
They were in Optimus's throne room. The three were in stasis cuffs standing in front of the Autobot dictator on his throne. The Forge and the Requiem Blaster were placed just out of their reach, taunting them with their closeness.
"So near, yet so far, eh?" Liege Maximo whispered to Megatron and Helios.
Optimus Prime's chest opened, parting at the middle and sliding back to reveal the Matrix. Its core glowed a dark purple. "It's mine now," he growled.
In response, Liege Maximo disappeared into thin air, allowing the chains on Megatron and Helios to fall to the ground. The Matrix detached from Optimus's chest and floated lopsidedly, as the two no-longer-captives grabbed the artifacts. Optimus brought his sword down near the Matrix, which moved away.
Megatron fired the Requiem Blaster at Optimus, and the dictator held his sword to block, deflecting the beam which made a hole in his ceiling.
::Soundwave! Spanner, now!:: Helios said into the comm. In response, a Stellar Spanner opened right underneath them, allowing them to fall through. The Matrix fell into the Bridge as well. Optimus leaped at the now closing Spanner, managing to get his legs in before it closed completely, severing them from the Autobot tyrant.
