The Guardian (Reader x Optimus Prime)

7 - Tyrest

I stopped in my tracks as the big yellow Legislators swarmed and fell around me. Something was tugging at my spark, pulling me towards the smelting pit. The others are in trouble.

"Cyclonus, Whirl, I've got to go. The others need me." I said and suddenly took off, flying towards the hanging structure above the smelting pit. The guards I dismantled earlier were still dead on the ground as I kicked in the doors and flew down the hallways. I could smell something awful in the air, like burnt energon but with a twinge of sulfur. I followed the scent and quietly opened a door, listening to the voices on the other side of it.

"I told you, the killswitch can't be turned off!" Someone shouted. "Tear it down, blow it up, doesn't matter, the damage is already done!"

I pushed the door open slowly and crept into the room. There was a big green bot next to a portal and everyone else was there, on the ground. Ratchet was the most mobile one, going from bot to bot. Brainstorm, Chromedome, and someone I didn't recognize were writhing in pain whilst screaming. Their optics were smoldering, that's what the smell was. Death.

I looked over to the large green bot, noticing he was holding Tailgate by the head.

"Shoot him Rodimus! Shoot him!" Tailgate screamed. "I don't have long to live anyways! I've got cybercrosis, the big C! I've only got a day and a half!"

I watched as Rodimus' face fell, but his optics flickered for a moment before snapping to look at me. I had already gotten out the Talisman blade and I held it at the ready.

"Tailgate, I don't think I need to," Rodimus said with a nod and I took that moment to stab the green bot through the chest, allowing him to fall to the ground. I dove quickly and caught Tailgate before he slammed into the ground.

"Gotcha," I said to him. Tailgate looked up at me and I could tell he was smiling.

"Once again, you've saved our lives." Someone else spoke. I turned around to see a familiar green and white minicon.

"Son of a bitch. I knew it!" I said.

"Knew what?" Rodimus asked.

"That Magnus was Minimus. It all makes sense. The preconditioned reflex, that's how you got up and walked out of the medbay." I said. "You sly dog, you gave us all a heart attack."

"H-how wha? How did you know about me?" Minimus asked.

"I knew you very well in my universe. You were our second in command, no secrets were withheld in Team Prime." I explained. "Even though I was the one who stumbled upon your secret on accident. I was fairly new when I found out."

"Both of you focus! They're dying!" Ratchet shouted and I raced over to him after setting Tailgate down. My hands flew to Chromedome's face and I ran a diagnostic on him. His spark was fading and fast. There's a frequency, a matrix code, that's killing them.

"Perceptor, quick! Change the matrix code! You have five minutes and twenty-seven seconds!" I shouted, standing up and rushing over to help him. I grabbed Rodimus by the collar and shoved him on the table, strapping him in with the cables around it.

"Woah, what the hell are you doing?!" Rodimus yelled.

"Saving them. You'll be fine, relax." I said to him. "Open your sparkchamber."

"What are you going to do?" He asked.

"We're going to make a new copy of the matrix code. The killswitch scrambles the spark code of bots that were constructed cold. The new copy will save them." Perceptor said from beside me as we finished hooking Rodimus up. Rodimus opened his sparkchamber and I gasped when I saw the matrix.