Twist

Chapter 9: Mine!

Temptest wasn't entirely aware of what was going on around her. She could hear muffled voices, neither of which she wanted to hear, and then the pressure of a spacebridge. Her body was out of her control, but she could feel an arm under her knees and back, while her helm leaned against a warm solid.

Someone was screaming now; a deep, masculine roar of fury. The voice was oddly familiar, but Temptest couldn't put a name to it. Eventually, the screams were muffled and Temptest was carried in silence.

Within her, her spark ached and clenched in a painful way that could only translate to her as grief. Was Optimus terminated?

At the thought of the Prime, Temptest felt the urge to get up. She worked on the muscles of her digits, which twitched at first before flexing.

Someone hummed in satisfaction.

Temptest slowly rolled her helm back and forced her optics to online. They flickered in and out of focus, but eventually settled on a dark silver face, outlined in purple, with gleaming red optics. Menacing. The face of a warlord known throughout the universe.

Optimus.

He glanced at her before focusing on the path ahead of them, his derma twisted into a permanent smirk. "I'm glad to see that you are waking up."

Temptest didn't have the strength to speak.

"I am truly sorry about your new friend, but it's your fault, honestly. He wasn't part of the original plan until you forced him to join you and Megatron on the flight, so..." Optimus shrugged. "But don't worry. I forgive you. We can't all be perfect."

The Prime pushed open a set of doors with his shoulder and strolled inside. Temptest couldn't see much of the room until Optimus sat down on a chair with her in his lap. He began to stroke her cheek gently.

"Now that our enemies are take caren of and our planets are secure, we don't need to fight anymore. I can create peace on Cybertron and Earth. You can help me do it."

Temptest's throat dragged as she attempt to speak, but her answer to that was clear.

"No."

Optimus tilted his helm. "But isn't that what you want? No more fighting? No more dead friends? Peace and prosperity for all of our people?"

Temptest stared at the ceiling hard. Of course she wanted that, she just didn't want a psychopath to be writing the laws, she didn't want Decepticons as slaves, or–

"Think of all the good we could do. Our planet could be restored and it's people reunited. Sparklings would be born without war or violence, only hearing stories of the great war," Optimus paused, his smile warm and hopeful. "I will make sure that future generations get to see the beginning of a true golden age."

"You are..." Temptest glared, "a monster."

Optimus frowned. "This war started because Cybertron was corrupt. I tried to stop that. Megatron? He was my friend, and I respected him, but he was raised in the pits. He didn't know how to lead our planet into salvation. He started the war."

"And you took it too far."

Optimus shook his helm. "Can someone really go too far when they're trying to save an entire planet? If Megatron had been named Prime, all of Kaon, all of the oppressed would have crushed the rest of Cybertron. I couldn't just stand by and watch as my home and my friends were killed simply because they were born into a higher status. We would have all suffered in anarchy."

The Prime moved her off of himself and into the chair. Temptest watched as he paced back and forth across the bedroom, his red optics bright with passion.