Orchid seems happy. She has everything a Tibaksi Prime could want: friends, a Sparkmate, and a home. But all of that changes once Optimus brings Sentinel Prime back.
Something isn't right about the Prime.
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I drove towards Sentinel's signal, and prayed to Primus I wouldn't be too late. My sister followed me closely and pulled up beside me. "Are we close?" she asked "Closer, but it's only a matter of time before he activates the portal, we must hasten," I replied. ****************************** We drove up to Abraham Lincon's momunent of freedom, where Sentinel had set up the four pillars and was getting ready to activate the fifth. "No, Sentinel!" I cried, transforming and rolling to a stop,"No! No!" "Forgive me, Optimus," Sentinel sighed and activated the pillar before running off. As I chased him, the portal appeared with blue lightening creating ladders between the pillars. Decepticons leaped out from who-knows-where in the hundreds. So many I couldn't even count them all. And I knew we couldn't fight them. As I chased after Sentinel, dodging shots as I did, I shouted,"Autobots, retreat!" Aura repeated my order and they all fell back to the base. I growled and tackled Sentinel, but I knew it was hopeless. Sentinel was a much better and stronger warrior than me. Within moments my back-plate was against a statue and it took all my skill to counter his blows. "Why, Sentinel? Why?" I asked. "For Cybertron! For our home!" he replied,"What war destroyed we can rebuild, but only if we join with the Decepticons." "No, it's not the only way," I protested,"This is our home, we must protect the humans!" "So lost you are, Optimus," Sentinel sighed, standing up and leaving me,"On Cybertron we were gods, and here, they call us 'machines'." Sentinel whirled on me, stabbing the tip of his blade into my neck-cables, drawing a drop of energon. "Let the humans serve us...or perish!" Sentinel threatened before walking away. "You're lucky I didn't kill you," he told me,"In time...you'll see." "It's not over," I growled as I got up. ****************************** When I got back to the base, I went straight to where I knew Orchid was abiding...at the burial site of Ironhide. I walked up behind her and watched her for a moment. She looked so sad and depressed. It always broke my spark to see her hurting, physically and emotionally. Still, through the sadness shone a brave light that I knew nothing could extinguish. That light was what I had fallen in love with first. It radiated hope and love, even for her enemies. Except maybe Shockwave. But, I had seen her battle an honorable Decepticon warrior, win, and allow him to be free willingly. Orchid judged by spark, not appearance...sometimes. "Are you going to stand there staring, or talk to me, or leave, or what?" Orchid suddenly asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. I walked up next to her and set one servo on her shoulder-plate. "Orchid, I need you to come with me," I said softly. Orchid simply nodded and stood, following me deeper into the forest. We stopped by a flat pond with a small waterfall feeding it from a nearby river. The ground around it was covered in soft moss and the trees let in shafts of sunlight that glowed golden. Dragonflies danced across the pond's surface and birds sang. But Orchid merely looked at it all with dead, sorrowful optics. "Optimus, this is beautiful," she began, then sighed,"but I find no joy nor hope in it." I pulled her into a loving hug and rested my chin on her helm. We gently rocked from side to side and I sang a song. It was Orchid's favorite from "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey".
Orchid pulled away slightly to give me a look of surprise,"I didn't know you could sing." I smiled slightly,"I do it all the time...just...not when anybody's around. When Megatron and I weren't rivals, I would sing to him, and he was the only one who could listen. I have never sung for anyone else...until now." To my delight, Orchid smiled. "You have a wonderful voice," she said. "As do you," I smiled back. I touched my fore-helm to hers and bumped my nose against hers,"I love you." Orchid's breath was warm and sweet against my face-plates as she spoke. "I love you more." I grinned and snorted, making her giggle as my breath tickled her face-plates. "I just want you to be happy and healthy and safe," I whispered,"Nothing more...nothing less." Orchid wrapped her arms around my neck-cables and leaned against me. "I need you here for me, Optimus," she sighed,"You are the only thing keeping me here. Otherwise I would've gone rogue and become a bounty hunter or something like that...only...you save me, every day." I rested my servos on her waist,"Orchid..." "Yes?" came the soft reply. "When this is all over, and life goes back to normal..." I broke off, too bashful to continue. "Yes?" "Would you grant me the great pleasure...of being my Sparkmate for life?" I asked. I felt her sharp intake of breath...then she laughed and kissed me over and over again saying 'yes.' I felt a huge weight lift off my shoulder-plates as I kissed her back. I actually...for some reason...thought she would refuse. But she hadn't and had accepted, and that was all I wanted. Now, we needed to take out Megatron and Sentinel...and a whole lot of Decepticons. ****************************** "Optimus," Lennox called me,"you've gotta listen to this." He pressed a button on a computer and Sentinel's voice began speaking. Sentinel was threatening to kill the humans if we...the Autobots...were not exiled immediately. My previously enlightened burden settled back on my shoulder-plates as I meditated on this obvious order. I did not wish to endanger the humans...so I made up my mind we were leaving. Not that my choice mattered, many humans had voted for us to leave anyway, so even if I had wanted to, there was no way we were staying on Earth. I went to break the bad news to the others. This was going to impact them heavily, and after the loss of Ironhide, it would be a double-sorrow blow. Everyone looked at me when I entered and judging by their expressions, I knew they had heard the message. "Brother," Aura said softly, approaching me,"do we really have to leave?" "We have no choice in that matter, Aura," I replied sadly, unable to look at my sister from the burden on my spark. I heard everyone's silence like a cannon blast. For a moment I thought I had gone deaf, but then Kamicazii choked back a sob and I knew...it was the bad news sinking in. "Then it's settled," Blue Moon said suddenly,"Optimus, Aura, come with me please, I have a plan." ****************************** Hours later, we were at the launching pad. The Wreckers had been there all night getting the ship ready for departure at sundown. I supervised them, after all, they were an unruly bunch. Sam and Simmons arrived with Charlotte and I knew they had come to say their final good-byes. Sam approached me, yet there seemed something...off...about the human boy. Something that had to do with the way he gripped his pant leg and how his red face reflected pain. Or maybe it was the new watch on his wrist. I didn't know. "So, this is it?" he asked,"You're just going to leave us?" "It was not my choice to make, Sam," I replied. "But how can we just sit here and do nothing?" Sam asked. "You are my friend, Sam," I said, kneeling down to his level,"You always will be...but your leaders have spoken. We are no longer welcome on your planet." I stood up to walk away, but Sam stopped me with another question. "You're coming back. I-I know there's a plan, there's a strategy, I-I...you can tell me no other human will ever know." I turned to look at the boy,"There is no plan." I walked away. Bumblebee gave me a pleading look. "Make it short," I said and the boy's guardian went to say good-bye. We were all about to board, when three strange cars pulled up. Decepticons!
