#Mine was Transformers: Cybertron

[sparkleresthold]

Brothers from another batch

[bambeebirdie]

There are two things involving Shockwave and Elita-1 I’d really love to see in a transformers series (they are not compatible):

1. Them being absolutely enemies. Elita and Shockwave hate each other. They got like 4 billion years of extra war between them and they cannot stand even the sight of one another. Optimus and Megatron wish they hated each other as much as Shockwave and Elita do. They should get to be silly, terrible rivals at least once, please <3

2. Shockwave and Elita-1 ending the war on Cybertron and for a more crack version of this getting together too. Genuinely I’d be so into a series where like Optimus and Megatron establish communication back with Cybertron and the war is just over. Even funnier the war is over and their respective romantic partners are now married

[scribe-of-planes]

Headcanon that, alongside romance and friendship based movies similar to Earth, Cybertron has movies based on the forming of trine relationships. Obviously they're more popular among seekers, but they aren't unenjoyable for others, including humans.

Now imagine Starscream in continuities where he's without his trine mates. Watching old sappy trine rom-coms by himself and remembering the time the other two begged and dragged him to the theatre to see it when it first came out.

[lets-try-some-writing]

Do you have any headcanons about Megatron when he was a miner? Specifically about disability? Also do you have any headcanons on the workings of Cybertronian mines?(mining ethics are one of my special interests lol)

I have spent the past hour reading about mining operations and overall functions. And yet I can't even bring myself to be mad about it because it was so interesting. With that said I hope you enjoy this little bit of writing! I really love world building!

Mining Operations on Cybertron

Recruitment

D-16 was picked up and sent to the mines the moment he emerged from the well of allsparks and was unable to provide the guardian his name. There was no welcome package or even any explanation as to what was going on. He was just shoved into a large transport alongside the other unfortunate mechs who came out of the well without names and ferried off.

He arrived at the mines confused and innocent, however that swiftly changed after his recruitment. D-16 was put into a scout group composed of other freshly forged mechs and one to two older mechs used to the job. He spent the first couple years of his life in this group, scouting the surface for possible energon deposits and climbing into treacherous pits to examine them for his "employers". After watching several members of his scouting group die to accidents and natural hazards, he quickly learned that his life was worth next to nothing and that he and his brethren were seen as tools, easy to replace and disposable.

It was during his time as a scout that he learned about the castes and the functioning of Cybertronian society. During one of the few times he was allowed to enter into the city for some purpose or another, he was enlightened to the true difference in lifestyle for those above ground. He saw mechs living on the streets, stealing and scavenging, but at least still able to retain their freedom. He witnessed nobles parading around doing whatever they pleased and indulging in every luxury. And then lastly he saw the average middle caste mechs, working day in and day out just to live a reasonable life but never achieving anything notable for the most part.

He saw the huge gap between the elite, the middle caste, and the low caste bots and he despised it.

Open Pit Mining

After proving himself capable through training several batches of new recruits, D-16 was "promoted" and sent to work with the pit mining crew. His job essentially amounted to digging out the hole in the ground that the more experienced miners would then use to construct a proper mine.

It was dull work. Day in and day out he would swing his pick and use his saw to chip away at the metal of Cybertron's soil and haul it away to be processed. The dusk clogged his vents, making it hard for him to cool off properly. There were several occasions where other less sturdy mechs outright died due to overheating. D-16 very nearly died himself, if it weren't for an older miner taking him out of the sight of their overseers and cleaning his vents for him, he would have perished.

The energon rations were also subpar. The quality of the energon was absolute rubbish and exchanged any form of pleasant taste for nutrient value. Still, as a large mech with rations containing not nearly enough energon for a mech of his size, he consumed his rations as quickly as possible to avoid the very common fights that broke out. More often than not, the larger mecha were given rations meant for bots half their size, often leading them to fight and steal others rations. D-16 abstained from such things, even stepping in at times, but the sight did serve to further cement his distaste of the caste system even further.

Thankfully D-16 was never seriously injured or suffered from any noteworthy energon deficiency during his time as a pit miner. And by Primus is he thankful for it. He saw what happened to mecha who had a health problem that couldn't be fixed with a weld, patch, or small energon transfusion.

As the overseers of the mining operation still had to adhere to some basic laws, a medical team was called in every few weeks to look over the miners and tend to any injuries that were worth being seen to. D-16 quickly came to the conclusion that anything that cost more than a handful of credits to fix was something that medics were ordered to ignore. He could only watch in horror as one of his fellows, an unfortunate mech who had his leg torn straight off in an accident, was left to bleed out.

When he tried to help the dying mech he was pulled away by some of the older miners who hushed him and pointed out other younglings who were attempting the same thing. D-16 was once again left horrified as the mecha attempting to help the suffering miner were beat for their efforts and ordered away. There was nothing D-16 could do as his fellow miner died right before his optics even though there were medics less than a few meters away.

Underground Mining

After yet again proving his worth by working hard and training up the newbies who came from the scouting groups, D-16 was "promoted" once more and joined the ranks of the elder miners. He really wasn't all that old, but often life expectancy within the low castes, especially the mines, is not exemplary. Not only that, but if he thought that being a pit miner was dangerous, then his new station as an underground miner was infinitely more so.

Underground miners died to accidents, cave ins, injury, and any number of others things regularly. Some were even grabbed by creatures in the deep and others straight up vanished after falling into particularly large crevasses. There was no guarantee of survival, not even for miners with centuries of experience.

Thankfully the elder miners were kind and put D-16 on excavation duty until he was accustomed to the darkness and the dangers of the underground. And soon enough he learned what was required of him and joined his elders in mining away.

During his time as an underground miner he was made aware of some of the more intimate customs of his caste. He was taught to listen to the hidden songs of his comrades and swiftly figured out how to add to them. He learned how to snatch small portions of unprocessed energon and how to not get caught with it. And later, one he had lived more than a few years underground, he was invited to join his elders in their small celebrations and story telling sessions.

Through all this he really began to feel like he was part of a family, an odd family, but a family all the same. Hence he started doing what his elders had done for him, teaching the younglings and protecting them until they understood what was required of them. And against the better wishes of his peers, D-16 silently began planning for change.

Processing

Eventually D-16 became trusted enough to be "promoted" to the processing division. A function that was considered a great "honor" among miners due to how reading and writing were a skill taught upon the "promotion" being given. And while innocent enough for other miners, ones complacent with their place in life, for D-16, learning to read and write was a game changer.

During his working hours he would crush the energon crystals collected and send them through the purifier. But when off the clock D-16 watched, listened, and asked questions. He would talk with the dock workers and haulers that came to collect the energon, and through them he gained some contraband reading material. By working hard and winning a few card games against the shuttles that came by occasionally, D-16 was given the tools needed to write. With these two things, D-16 wrote his first set of poems, ones depicting his life as a miner.

Under an alias D-16 started to stir up the masses with his works that slowly stopped being poems and instead turned into controversial essays on the working of Cybertron. It wasn't a grand following by any means, but he was getting the average mecha to begin asking questions. And while he didn't know it at the time, his writing became the foundations of his revolution.

His peers kept his writing habits a secret, but eventually word got out to the overseers and D-16 knew he was done for. He was hauled out of his quarters and had the life beaten out of him. He expected death, but instead the overseers saw his build and had another plan in mind for him.

Before D-16 could even process what had happened to him, he was already on a transport to the Gladiatorial arena.

Extra

Long after his time in the mines, Megatron's vents still ache on occasion due to the constant abuse they suffered during his early years. He also feels phantom chills where old wounds he had carefully hidden from overseers once burned. And on top of that, he regularly finds his joints flaring up in pain from his time doing heavy labor nonstop.

He takes pain suppressors when he it becomes unbearable but his aches and pains are lingering scars from his origins.

[roxistic]

World is his 👑

[dividedsingularity]

Time for some cassette love to shine through! With a guest Laserbeak doodle courtesy of @happy-duckie = ] it's the pencil one.

[earthspark-shockwaves-reduction]

I'm still fuckin mad over the ending for cyberverse cheetor and I will be forever

[unstablequeerbitch]

Okay so have a tiny Soundwave. My favorite thing so far, treat him as a cassette and put him in my overalls

My precious

Mine

[transingthoseformers]

Been doing a head story that What if Megatron was prescribed psych meds at one point and just. Threw them out the second that the medic turned their back.

"Frag that those taste like chalk"

[grimxark]

I wish Cybertronians had scars. Like they can change their body however they want and it’s natural so when people like bee, Optimus, rodimus, etc, get a deadly wound or straight up die, they don’t really have anything physical to remind them of that. And they don’t even seem to, like, dwell on it. Ever. No mending scars, nothing of the sort. Just smooth plating. Would some folks pride themselves in wounds and ask medics to not completely make the mark go away? Would there be healing stages of metal? I think I’d need to look up properly how dents and scratches etc are treated in cars because I know after a crash cars need a shit ton of replacements and still they’re not quite the same. Like all Cybertronians’ reminders of their troubles are completely and utterly mental. Would that not damage your psych a bit because there’s no story to really. Tell? Maybe some people paint where a wound was to represent it like a tattoo? Sorry I keep going back and forth between my points but I have so many thoughts

[beesantennas]

interesting how they didn't spend much time at ALL focusing on human relationships in the last season (especially with the team changing so much with the additions of smokes and mags and sometimes jackie) so like. how are we really supposed to feel the impact of them Leaving For Cybertron........

[astraerystarr]

Optimus Prime x Megatron fic recs!!

HII AGAIN, I had to delete my old account @numbraerys so I'm reuploading this rec list, sorry about the mess but I'll make the rec a little prettier this time ^^

Homesick For A Memory by Eisengrave, Maelikki [M, 9k w., Bay Movies]

Even Primes can lose their faith. But sometimes, their failed Protectors make good on their word given long ago.(weird little fixit for AoE because we stan a protective Megatron and an Optimus who is finally tired of his human hamsters. Also, homecoming.)

~ugly crying, screaming on my pillow, rolling around on the floor

The Silver Lining by GeminiWishes [Teen and up, 38k w., Transformers Animated 2007]:

After Optimus was expelled from the Autobot Academy, he had no sense of what to do or where to go. Desperate for purpose, he ends up on a mining crew that travels the galaxy. But when their ship is attacked, Optimus' life will change forever.

Whether or not he'll be able to handle those changes is yet to be determined.

~I ran around my room on all fours reading this

Some Kind Of Forever by auri_mynonys (FAVE) [E, 8625 w., TFP]:

A chance meeting in a bar near the Pits brings Orion Pax and Megatronus together.

~I freaking love this fic, I'm so glad it was one of the first I ever read

Adeste Fideles by Legitconcrusher (FAVE) [Teen and up, TFP, 57,632+ w, ongoing]:

“Oh, indulge me, Optimus. How many times have you answered your desire’s calls to walk among these pitiful creatures…in the flesh?”

In which Optimus shares with his greatest foe, and former friend - Megatron, the one time a year he allows himself to feel amid the throes of their War within a Christmas market.

The angsty slow burn Christmas AU no one asked for.

~absolutely wonderful to read and incredible writing♡♡♡♡

Gaining Perspective by Dragonlingdar [Teen and up, BayVerse, 105,732 w., Ongoing]:

Megatron and Optimus are turned into humans by a prototype weapon Starscream uses against them. In order for Megatron to get his revenge and Optimus to free himself of Megatron, they must reclaim their original bodies. However, will they still be Optimus Prime and Megatron by the time they do?

~I hyperfixated on this fic for a whole month after finishing it

Contact by auri_mynonys (FAVE) [E, 98,747 w., TFP]:

Orion Pax knows there's a word for what Megatronus means to him. He just can't quite put his finger on what it is.

Which is probably how he missed the moment where he asked Megatronus to marry him.

~Slow Burn♡♡♡♡♡

Plus One by auri_mynonys [E, 64,631 w., TFP]:

Megatronus has a party to attend. A high-caste date will lend him status in the eyes of his fellow gladiators, and Orion Pax is all too happy to play the part…

~this fic was infuriating to read, I loved every second of it

Songs Of Metal And Sparks by EbonyAura [Teen and up, 58,741 w., Rock n' Roll AU, TFP]:

Imagine the Transformers Prime universe where war is nonexistent, and instead of the Autobot and Decepticon factions, it's the Autobot and Decepticon rock bands.

Imagine that both bands are nearly world famous, yet have no idea the other exists.

Imagine that Cybertron's festival of music is approaching, and with it, the chance for a lucky upcoming band to go on a world tour.

Imagine that both bands, ecstatic for the chance to finally reach world fame, are going to the festival.

~this cured my teenage heart that didn't get to read nice cute stuff like this

Optimus Prime Is Destined To Die!! by Chuzilllaa (FAVE) [G, 169k+ w, ongoing]:

Orion Pax is your typical archivist from a functionalist free universe and lives a peaceful life, but after dying tragically in a transport incident he’s reincarnated as Optimus Prime of the hit action novel Songs of the Spark, the beautiful but aloof eldest prince of the Prime lineage…who is a pathetic side character doomed to die a tragic death at the hands of the tyrannical Duke Megatron.

Of course his darling little brother Rodimus Prime is the precious hero and puts an end to Megatron’s reign, but Orion has no intention of dying a pathetic death! No! Not again! He wants to live damnit! So begins the attempts of a pax-turned-prime turning over a new leaf in the hope of living another day. Little does he know there’s a bit more to Optimus than a pathetic side character…

~I love this fic so. damn. much.

Lunch Date by Chuzilllaa [Teen and up, 6,000+ w, Earthspark, crack]:

With a new cafe opening at G.H.O.S.T headquarters, Optimus invites Megatron to try something new.

~fluffy and funny♡♡♡

At First Sight by Lyricality (FAVE) [M, 27,000+ w.]:

Optimus is the last of the Primes; Megatron is the greatest of Kaon's gladiatorial warriors. Their shared destiny - Optimus is certain - just needs a push in the correct direction.

~help I got obsessed with this fic and I can't get out

To give (in) by 0 (only_elsewhere) (FAVE) [M, 10,000+ w, Earthspark]:

After the war, Optimus confesses.

~aaashhksdkkklkosljdhjh

Victory Condition by astolat [E, 37,000+ w, TF Gen1]

“Do you want me to tell you a story?” Megatron said mockingly. “You won’t like it, Prime. It’s not a very nice one.”

~cave in fic with poetry and the heart wrenching story of Megatron's origins - my beloved

Cooking Off by zuzeca [E, 2000 w., IDW G1]:

Megatron and Optimus find themselves in an awkward position and learn some extremely personal information about each other.

~ Good reading ;3

[in1-nutshell]

Hello, how are you? Can I request a Nightlight application in Transformers One? Nightlight works for Sentinel Prime. In this universe, she sympathizes with the lower classes and is dedicated to trying to convince Sentinel Prime to improve things. Nightlight becomes friends with D-16 Orion Pax Eliata One and Bumblebee?

I definitely want to do a longer version of this later in the future. Or possible a part 2, which ever comes first.

Hope you enjoy!

TF1 Version of Nightlight

SFW, Platonic, Cybertronian reader

TF1

Nightlight considered herself one of the luckier bots in Iacon.

She had a stable job and got to work under most of Sentinel Prime’s direct orders.

Not many bots could say they often talked to the Prime on a daily basis.

He was the bot everyone wanted or wanted to be.

She could only hope the mech that seemed larger than life could get behind her ‘passion project’.

Nightlight straightening her backstruts, puts on her best smile and salutes to the incoming Prime. Nightlight: “Good morning, Sentinel Prime, sir.” Sentinel smiles at the detective. Sentinel: “Nightlight, my friend. How’s my best detective doing today?” Nightlight passing him some data slugs. Nightlight: “The missing archive collection has been found and safely put back in its rightful place, sir. Also the missing bot cases have been solved and filed.” Sentinel: “And the—” Nightlight: “The cargo hold carts are still under repairs and under investigation as we speak.” Sentinel: “Good, good, take the rest of the day off then, you earned it.” Nightlight: “Actually sir, I was wondering if we could talk about the conditions of the miners—” Sentinel puts a servo out motioning her to be quiet. Sentinel: “Nightlight, Nightlight, Nightlight. How many times do we have to go through with this little ‘passion project’ of yours? The miners will get more accommodation when they reach more of the energon goals set. It’s only fair, no?” Nightlight: “But sir, wouldn’t they work better, faster even, if they had better conditions or equipment—” Arachnid suddenly appears on their right. Arachnid: “Sir, it is time to go.” Sentinel gives the detective a ‘sorry’ smile. Sentinel: “Its time for me to leave. Keep up the good work Nightlight!” Nightlight was about to protest when she was cut off by Arachnid staring at her as the pair left the room.

Her project started the day she met a peculiar pair of miners.

She was responding to an alert of an unauthorized miner entering the Archives.

Nightlight watched from afar Darkwing and another guard chasing this one cogless miner bot.

And quite frankly, he was giving the guards a run for their shanix.

She noticed another miner causing a distraction with his cart while the other escaped the guards.

The pair then met up in one of the train stations, probably to go back to work.

It was quite entertaining honestly.

Later, she went back to the Archive’s to see what exactly the miner was looking through.

It surprised her the number of data slugs he had gone through in relation to the Matrix.

One of Cybertron’s biggest mysteries.

She needed more answers.

Eventually, Nightlight got clearance to ‘supervise’ some miners for a shift.

That’s where she met Elita-One

Elita saluting at the taller bot. Elita: “Nightlight ma’am!” Nightlight: “Oh, just Nightlight will do… umm…” Elita still saluting: “Elita-One ma’am—I mean—” Nighlight: “Its all right. Do you mind giving me the tour then?” Elita: “Of course! Follow me!”

While doing the tour, Nightlight was making a mental list of things to improve.

She hadn’t been down in the mines before and already couldn’ imagine working down here for long hours and with rusting equipment.

Out of the corner of her optic, she spotted Darkwing punching two familiar looking miners.

When the tour was down and Elita had to go back to her team, Nightlight slipped into the miner’s medbay.

After scaring some bots, she finally found the two miners.

D-16 and Orion both looked at her in shock and amaze. Orion: “You’re Nightlight!” D-16: “The Nightlight! You solved several cases and foiled several assassinations attempts of several bots, including Sentinel Prime’s!” Nightlight feels a bit flustered by the sudden fan behavior. Nightlight: “Yeah, that’s me. And you two are the sneaky miner’s who snuck into the Archieve’s and got away with it.” Both mech’s suddenly looked frightened. Nightlight: “Relax, I’m not taking you in or punishing you two. It was actually the most entertaining things that happened on my shift in a while.” Orion and D-16’s optics widen. Orion: “You saw all that? But from where? The crowds weren’t that busy and there was no hiding places nearby?” D-16: “Do you have any cloaking technology?” Nightlight: “What? No, and to answer your question, I was simply observing from afar.” Nightlight shows the pair some grappling hooks in her arm plating. Nightlight: “These come in handy when you don’t have a flying alt mode or jetpack nearby.” D-16: “Primus…” Orion: “Wait, wait, if you’re not punishing us, then what are you here for?” Nightlight slips into a grim expression. Nightlight: “I originally came in to ask you about your snooping around for data slugs on the Matrix… instead I just found out today your working conditions and I don’t like it one bit.

Nightlight explained that she would straight to Sentinel himself and talk to him about getting them better working conditions.

 Truthfully D-16 and Orion thought this was a lie… but his was Nightlight they were talking about.

Maybe a little bit of faith would help.

Surely enough the miners started to notice some of the older equipment getting replaced with new ones.

They even had an extra hour of sleep and a bit more rations.

This did not satisfy Nightlight though.

She wanted more.

The detective started taking on bigger assignments in order to get on Sentinel’s personal circle.

She might have better luck in getting the miner’s more things that way.

Soon Nightlight started making her way into the mines without authorization.

Something was up, she could feel it.

Not only did she find out that the improvements had halted, but Sentinel was making more and more trips to the surface.

It was enough bells to set her off.

Especially hearing about 10 more sublevels under waste management.

So, Nightlight did the thing she did best, investigate.

Nightlight enters one of the waste trains cargo carts. Suddenly gets her blaster out hearing yelling behind her. The door opens revealing Orion, D-16, Elita and B-127. The detective looks at them in surprise. Nightlight: “What in Primus’s name is going on! Orion! D! Elita! B!” Elita:”Ma’am! I caught these bots trespassing!” D-16: “Wait, how do you know B?” B-127 waves at the detective. B-127: “Hi!” Nightlight: “He gave me some information on the sublevels under waste management. Now someone explain what—” Elita sprints past her. Elita: “Sorry ma’am! I need to turn this train around!” Orion and the others run after her. Nightlight blinks a bit before joining the chase. Nightlight: “This is what you get for making friends who are younger than you Nightlight… always running off… I swear… I need to listen to Ratchet next time I go out without my long-distance com link…” Nightlight starts climbing the trains railing to reach the others. Nightlight: “The one day I don’t bring my extra long grappling hook… I won’t be surprised if I see Alpha Trion at this point…”

[earthstellar]

Currently combing through the Transformers Exodus novel, as I often do.

Some notes, by which I mean, this is going to be long:

Using an Abandoned Hydraulic Mining Facility as a Battle Arena: This Sort Of Happened in Real Life -- Know Your Labour History

The building in Kaon that is used by Megatron for gladiatorial battle is an abandoned hydraulics works, and on the page prior to this it refers to extremely deep slag pits, which indicates this hydraulics facility was almost certainly used for mining. The location is given specifically as "to the south of Kaon's centre".

This makes me wonder if the now-abandoned Orgreave Coking Plant may have been some inspiration to someone somewhere in building the backstory; A coking plant uses massive amounts of hydraulic machinery and components, and the location of this specific facility is to the south of the centre of Rotherham.

Plenty of Brits work on Transformers, and I wonder if any English people who may have been on the team for developing the Aligned Continuity bible/character backstories might have thought of Orgreave as some kind of inspiration.

It's worth noting Orgreave Coking Plant was famously the site of a huge labour dispute which turned into a borderline Battle of Harlan situation, called the Battle of Orgreave in 1984.

Which makes it excellent potential inspiration, both visually and in terms of historical significance in union/labour and working class struggle against the oppressive upper class- A significant theme in Transformers.

Nearby, there is also the abandoned Orgreave Colliery, and while all abandoned collieries would fit the mechanical and dark, heavy design of Kaon, Tarn (the location, not the bot) and so on, it's still worth pointing out that Orgreave has plenty of industrial ghosts (abandoned industrial facilities).

That having been said, hydraulic mining works could also refer to actual hydraulic mining methods rather than just any hydraulic machinery present, which would also explain the large pits that Orion Pax sees at the site in Kaon, and would add another level of horror: Using fluids to carry out this type of mining would be a huge hazard to bots. I'd imagine rusting was a common problem, not to mention gradual armour/frame wear, increased fall/slip hazards for most frame types, etc.

CONTENT WARNING: Here's where some medical conjecture begins, you might want to skip this section if you're sensitive to medical discussions! There is no detailed comparison to any particular real world cases in this segment, however there is brief mention of ableism in a fictional context.

This would also account for the description of optics and audials needing more frequent repair even prior to suffering any gladiatorial damage--

--In some frame types, these components/sensory systems may be more exposed to the environmental pollution as mentioned in the text, but also, would be sensitive to abrasive damage from spray back/high pressure soil/stone/crystal like particulate materials present in Cybertron's surface and sub-surface layers acting essentially as sand paper against their bodies as they worked in any such hydraulic mining sites.

This is the type of shit Kaonite workers in these mining facilities were likely exposed to on a regular basis, because they are Cybertronians and could physically tolerate this kind of thing without dying-- At least, not right away.

A combination of repeated extreme wear, chronic overwork, likely poor medical resources, and complicating factors like questionable access to healthy fuels etc. would have inevitably resulted in a generally very unwell population with high workplace casualty rates.

This was the type of life most low class/caste heavy labour designated frame types were assigned to, under the Functionist system.

I've talked about my headcanons re: hearing disabled Megatron before, and it's kind of interesting to see that canonically here, that's very much possible. Audial damage from mining, audial damage from the fighter's ring.

But in general, the Kaonite population is seriously at risk, especially medically. Same deal with other low class/caste designated regions across Cybertron. Much like many Appalachian mining populations, where COPD is as common as flies in summer, the chronically poor health of this population would be staggering in comparison to better-off polities like Iacon.

Rust in their optics, rotting their optical components from within, likely leaving many workers sightless--

--At which point they were probably deemed "useless" under the ableist Functionist system, as they would then likely be unable to work their prior jobs or would only be able to work in limited or different capacities; Any system that determines worth by perceived functionality is inherently ableist, and Primus knows there were almost certainly no disability accommodations provided or available potential repairs/treatments in places like Kaon on Cybertron.

As a result, these newly disabled bots were likely left unemployed and therefore without any income source for Shanix, therefore left to their deaths via fuel deprivation etc.--

--Unless they fell in with mob-controlled sources of materials or aid, as a last resort...

Apparently Megatron Displaced The Local Kaonite Mafia: Pit Bosses Could Be Mob Bosses Too

This is also a real thing, as a lot of productive industrial facilities (not just mining, but textiles etc.) were often tied into in local black market raw material goods and organised crime shit, owing to less than moral site owners and company bosses. (At least in the USA, it may have varied in other countries or from region to region.)

This is because if you have a productive facility, you can make a fuckload of money bypassing any common sense safety rules or proper waste/product handling or disposal protocols etc. and skip the whole regulated market and just go right to making a fuckzillion moneys from whoever will buy this shit illegally.

(This is part of why a lot of Appalachia is polluted to hell and back-- Even at the time, a lot of these industrial works and companies knew perfectly well that dumping coal ash and other horrible shit into every single river and creek available was a bad idea. They did it anyway. Why? It saved money overall and they didn't have to pay for more long distance drivers to reach actual approved waste sites etc.

For those of you who may not be familiar with this USA specific shit, let me introduce you to the concept of a Superfund Site. It's depressing. Most are former industrial illegal waste dumping sites. These places are so fucked up that even the American Government was forced to acknowledge how bad it is. Some of them are straight up literal nuclear waste sites.)

This has been a huge problem in American industrial history, because America can turn out some very, very productive sites using very, very unsafe and cruel means to force workers to work. Paying in scrip etc. were all methods to ensure a workforce could not leave. And so on.

Not to mention the horrendous impact on Native populations, the poor in general, immigrants in general, etc. who were all subject to the worst possible treatment throughout.

And there are many modern examples too-- Not just in the USA, but in many places around the world, such as Peru. Note that capitalism is often the facilitator of mistreatment, pollution, etc. and serves as the motivating factor for much of this fuckery worldwide. This also includes factors like western companies wanting to appear more "green", so they simply go abroad to abuse people in other nations and exploit their labour and raw labour products instead.

Capitalism is the root problem, on Earth and evidently, likely on Cybertron as well.

Can you imagine the amount of Shanix these fucking Kaonite mob bosses were making, possibly from selling raw materials and energon crystals mined in Kaon to other polities with fewer natural resources, arranging illicit under the table deals with large energy distributors etc. in other regions? Depriving Kaon of its own natural goods and stealing the near-entirety of their labour, constantly, endlessly?

(If this all reminds you a bit of Marx's Theory of Alienation, you are correct.)

Much of Kaon is, essentially, a Superfund Site. Dangerous industrial waste, materials, and abandoned facilities, all affecting the population in all sorts of ways into perpetuity even long after one industry dies and another rises-- Or a new industry never comes along, and you end up with even worse off sections of an already brutally deprived area, living in the remnants of an equally hellish past that was just marginally better enough to make some bots yearn for the good old days of having a job to be worked to death at.

If this is relatable or frustrating to you, you are correct. These are all real world problems. It's easy to relate to the plight of the Kaonites-- Megatron, at this time, is still largely a sympathetic figure to many.

Because of course, even from the outside, it is clear that this degree of suffering cannot be sustained. Even Orion Pax recognises this, despite his own total lack of exposure and lack of class awareness at the time in which he initially starts speaking with Megatron.

Anyway. Briefly back to our real world example, because it's important here:

All of this capitalist corruption is another example of systemic level rot; A lot of the time regulators knew that facilities were engaging in illegal dumping and worker rights abuses etc. but couldn't do anything about it due to a lack of federal involvement and lack of means or resources to raise a larger case or investigation on the scale that would be needed.

And of course, some regulators and investigators were paid off. Sigh.

It's genuinely impressive that Megatron was able to run off an industrial crime syndicate, because that shit goes very deep and has lots of tendrils that tie into pretty much everything else going on in a given area, especially in towns or regions where only one or two industries make up the entirety of everything.

It doesn't surprise me at all that Megatron gained such a large following so quickly.

Nobody else in Cybertron was willing or able to acknowledge (let alone try to address) the horrible abuses going on in Kaon.

Endless, brutal labour, often resulting in horrible deaths. No reward for any of their work, with much of their meagre pay going to the mob and likely to companies based in other polities around Cybertron, so none of the materials or money ever stayed local. No care was put into their living conditions or standard of living, with most bots being used up and worn down with nothing to show for it but the industrial hell that consumed their own region.

And by getting the organised crime rings out of the local industries and community, by turning this abandoned facility into a gladiatorial ring, that provided both a more personally rewarding use of their physical skills developed through hard manual labour and gives an opportunity to gain legitimate funds and potentially fame-- Granting a social status previously completely unattainable to Kaonites, while clearly being built up on the legacy of all of their prior labour.

No wonder the appeal to follow Megatron was so strong, even in the early days.

Not even Primus helped these people, none of the Primes helped these people--- But Megatron did.

And that is powerful, to be liberated by one of your own, someone you know truly understands the difficulty and suffering and misery of a cruel, unending grind.

All that most of these bots could ever look forward to previously was dying in a hopefully not-as-painful way.

Now, there is potential for a genuinely tangibly better future, quite possibly for the first time in Kaon's history. Certainly for the first time within living memory.

Megatron turned an immiserated local population with no hope and no prospects beyond being worked to death into up-and-coming athletic stars with a burgeoning sports industry, using their local culture and previously disparaged frame types to prove the inherent wrongness of the class/caste system to a literal mass audience.

Megatron essentially took waste from the Cybertronian equivalent of colliery spoil tips and used it to forcibly create some kind of real hope and better future for every Kaonite, both individually and gradually on a larger regional scale, while living under an oppressive system that was just as likely to kill him in the same way as it had been killing everyone else around him his entire existence.

Megatron turned an industrial hell into a revolutionary city-state.

And he started local, he started with the injustices closest to him, what was visible rot to him in the environment he grew up in. Start small, strategize, your morals are your fuel-- In part because they keep stealing the fuel we mine. Does that seem fair? Does that seem just? What sense does it make, to have a system in which your most important workers are kept deprived and struggling into perpetuity?

He is the perfect Cybertronian revolutionary, he is the figurehead the people of Kaon needed, and his words were heard planet-wide from an arena he facilitated the building of himself, that he reclaimed from decay and loss.

From the bare frame structure of an abandoned mining pit, Megatron spoke words that inspired the downtrodden and lifted up countless impoverished populations through solidarity, the collective power of the working class, the low caste bots, the low class frame types.

The people that were previously discarded, were now using their means and their frames for their own purposes, gradually weakening the grip of the Council, gradually proving to more and more bots that this system is broken and this world can be better and we deserve better, and by any means, we will obtain better. We will make it better, with or without your permission.

No wonder Megatron became so powerful, so quickly.

He appealed perfectly to his people and others in similar living conditions, he articulated perfectly the flaws in oppressive Cybertronian society, he showed that different frame types can and do have multiple uses beyond the classist interpretation of their build schematics--

--All Megatron did, fundamentally, was care.

He cared about what was happening around him, he did not buy into the idea that life has to be miserable and this is the way things are and it can never change or get better, he saw and lived the awful conditions and suffered discrimination and understood that working together for each other would improve things for all.

And he acted on this understanding. There is always someone who is first to act, because there must be.

And Megatron does not act in half-measures.

I like that they mention him getting rid of the crime syndicates, here; It gives you a good idea of his morality pre-war.

It would have been easy to collaborate with these crime syndicates for some time, to secure funds for a new gladiatorial ring.

But instead, he took out the crime syndicates entirely and opted to build his arena inside an abandoned facility.

No capitulation to capital.

No money was exchanged, not a single Shanix, no deals made. No fucking around. This is Kaon, and you are no longer powerful here.

Megatron is increasingly powerful, however, because he embodied to the people the collective power of the people; He reflected themselves and their experiences back at them. But actions like this also played a large part in gaining that trust, in proving his skills and worth as a revolutionary and potential leader. It's not enough to be like everyone else. You have to prove you're not just another asshole looking to exploit everyone for influence or other personal benefit.

If you want a collective movement, it has to be about the collective. And for Megatron, it very much was. And things like this helped him prove that from very early on.

The Council and the mobs effectively have no authority anymore; They are losing control. Megatron, very quickly, becomes the accepted authority. Kaon becomes a freed city-state, it escapes the grasp of Functionism.

Standing up to one crime syndicate may not seem significant in the grander scheme of things, knowing how things occur in the story from this point onward.

But it is hugely significant-- It is a very important thing to highlight.

Because it is "smaller" things like this which are actually massively important and impactful.

And each "smaller" thing built up, and improved things for people to the point where Kaon could function entirely independently with a better off population of previously severely oppressed peoples.

Every "smaller" thing counts. Every "smaller" thing is the entire world to someone, or to a lot of someones.

How many lives were saved and debts erased, when Megatron took out this one crime syndicate?

How immediately did that improve a lot of lives, how quickly did that endear those people to him, to his ideology, to his plans for their collective future? How fast did they start listening, when he started speaking?

This is how revolution happens.

--

Anyway, thank you as always if you read any of this-- I know this got very long and it is nearly 2 AM now where I'm at, so it may have lost a bit of coherency here and there.

tl;dr labour history is important, fuck capitalism (this includes fictional capitalism), and intersectional solidarity is key to collective survival in general but especially among the working class and all groups subject to systemic oppression/discrimination in various forms

[tinydefector]

Enjoy some of the stuff I like writing of the transformers/ the history, mentality and personality I like writing into the characters. Let me know if you would like some other characters and I'll make another.

Characters breakdowns

Megatron

Megatron, despite what continuation I enjoy as a sappy poet who loves writing. Pre-war, he was actually a very sweet and caring mech who had high hopes from changing cybertron. He wrote as a way to show people the horrors that were happening in the mines. Trying to make people feel on a personal level 'humanize' the lower class cybertronains and make people empathise and see through their eyes. During the war, Megatron makes so many mistakes because at the time, he is still young, and he doesn't know anything else outside fighting, mining, and writing because he never had the luxury of living. And when you're living in an oppressive regime, there is going to be rebellion, when the only way you can have your voice heard the only way to change things is to fight. That's what Megatron does. At first, it's noble, but over time, it wears down his morals. There is only so much death you can see before it destroys your mind and changes you. He gets into a mind set of 'it's either you or me' and self preservation will kick in and despite all his sacrifices he has done for the greater good of cybertron he still wants to live, and the only way he can do that is to make himself into a monster for his own protection, he finds it safer to become a warlord, and a usurper but as time goes on his midn finally caves and he doesn't care for the consequences anymore, becuase the war has been going on for so long. He knows the only way this war ends is with his death, and he is a selfish bot who never got to live freely. He's going to hold onto that, even if he puts others into the position he was once in, he wants to be able to live and he's going to do everything he can to have that freedom of never being under someone's rule again, yet it leads him into becoming what he sort to destroy.

Depending on what continuation I'm working with depends on how he is after the war. Mtmte IDW continuations I love that he ends up with the lost light. Not for the reason that he got his freedom. He got what he had been fighting so much for, but he isn't the one in charge anymore. He has to relearn how to live and relearn how to be civil, which is hard when everyone there is a victim of your war. Rodimus original hates the fact he's there, Megatron is the reason Rodimus became who he is, and he hates it. He hates it and blames Megatron for nyon, for him having to become a prime. But over time, he realises just how lost Megatron is on the ship. He doesn't know how to be just another mech in a group. And I love the idea of Rodimus letting him be co captain as a way to give him some semblance of control over his life again. And Megatron is an amazing captain, he loves working, he loves reports, loves checking machinery and making sure it is still functioning and it leads him to also becoming Ratchet's apprentice with medical becuase he never wants to be helpless to save someone he cares for ever again.

Earthspark continuation Megatron lives with alot of guilt and regret over so much, some days he still wonders if it was the right decision to join Ghost but each time he sees Dot with her child both human and Terran it makes him feel it is all worth it. He never got that as a young sparkling, and he would lay down his life to make sure those children never have to be in his position ever. Megatron was a warlord with a spark too big, and in the end, it got broken too much to the point that he felt safer becoming something else to protect himself. And I can't blame him, I've made decisions I never would have before because of death, it changes you breaks you and turns you into something you would hate if you saw yourself in a mirror.

I actually happen to like the idea of Megatron being younger that Optimus by half a century or so

Optimus

Optimus is one that depends on continuation a lot. Becuase it's either I like writing him as this feral goblin from the Rust sea who Codexa took one look ad and went. 'This little rustlet is my son' and teaches him everything she knows, and Orion is all too happy to learn. He loves the archives, history, and preserving it. And he is very much Codexa, a little rust goblin who goes to protest and everything because he sees it unfair for so many to suffer. She is very proud of him despite fearing deeply for him because he is a young spark, and she doesn't want to lose her son to propaganda.

Or we have Orion as a law enforcer who was trained under Alpha Trion, he's a stern bot but he does care for people, taking Drift to Ratchet, caring very much about shockwave and trying to protect him as much as he can from the council. He follows the rules but will bend them when it comes to protecting people and he's a bit of a hot head, snarly and tempered.

Becoming a prime either makes him bolder or more mellow tempered, but he still caring and willing to fight for his friends and loved ones, watching cybertron fade breaks his spark so much becuase he never wanted to see this happen, he never wanted to watch Megatron become corrupted by the thing he sort to change. But war has that effect on all of them. The war wages on and each century it just makes Optimus more tired. He is actually a very depressed mech, but he puts up the wise and friendly facade. But he misses so much of his culture, and it hurts even more if he is the archivist continuation becuase he has all of these documents and he re reads them and some nights he will cry himself to sleep becuase he wishes he could have changed to path of the war. And in truth, if it came down to it, he would go back and give his life to prevent cybertron from falling. He was made into a prime he wasn't chosen to be one, and he's constantly at war with the matrix because of that. And when the matrix bonds with Rodimus, Optimus is selfish and relieved. If he had his choice, he would never touch that cursed thing ever again. To him, being a Prime isn't a gift. It's a curse.

Ratchet

Ratchet, in his younger days, was a big partier, but as he gets older and does more surgery, it starts to chip away at him. Watching how if a mech of a higher class was brought in, they got fast charged in front of other patients. He had to watch mech he had known and grown a bond with shut down because he was forced to work on another mech because they were of a higher class than others. So when he opens his clinic, I. The dead end asap way to help mechs of lower status he never would have thought it was what would lead him to hsi further Conjunx, at first Deadlock wasn't anything special to him, just some poor bot who had hit the lowest of lows. So when this mech keeps coming back over the centuries to check on Ratchet and make sure he's alright,it amuses the older medic over this speedster.

But when the war breaks out its Deadlock who's the first at his door, telling him he needs to leave becuase it's not safe, a large sum of money transferred to him, and a pleading look from Deadlock. That's how Ratchet ends up at Optimus' side throughout the war, he's dedicated to keeping as many bots functioning as possible, and he sticks by medic law, he will help anyone, Decepticon, autobot and unlined bots without a bat of an optic. And little does he know that He is on a list of do not harm. Deadlock pulls a lot of strings as Decepticon. Ratchet is one of the most well-known medics due to being the Autobots HMO, but also because he is on a protective list, he is a to be captured only, killing him is an automatic execution. Ratchet himself is quite the rule breaker. He meets up with Deadlock multiple times, fixing him and snarking him, calling him a stupid kid for getting himself so beat up. But over time, Ratchet becomes rather smitten with Deadlock, and all it takes is Ratchet asking him to leave the Decepticons and Deadlock does without argument.

Drift

Drift, he's one who I want to write more because I love him alot, he's a mech, which started out with nothing and is now one of the most wealthy bots to still be alive. From a junkie to one of the Decepticons' most feared assassins. Meeting Ratchet changed his life around, I like the idea when Ratchet was saving him. Deadlock literally saw Primus that day. And he doesn't know how to repay Ratchet. He tries to better himself get off the circuit boosters, but that falls in with the Decepticons and makes a name for himself as an assassin after he and Hotrod go to a rally, Hotrod took one look at Megatron and walked away, but Megatron caught Deadlocks attention. He makes a name for himself working with Mixmaster and a lot of money off it, but he refuses to go back to using, so his wealth just slowly accumulates. And when cybertron falls and the war continues, it's something he doesn't pay attention to. But Ratchet is, he makes it very clear to every con that Ratchet is off limits, and many think Deadlock has a personal vendetta against the medic. And a few bots learn what happens when they lay a hand on the medic. So Ratchet becomes the infamous medic not only because of his skill in the field but because Deadlock literally has him on a can't touch list that even Megatron respects.

When Deadlock becomes Drift he gets a full cosmetic surgery done by Ratchet, and the medic vouches for him making it very clear to everyone that Drift is off limits, that's when Drift and Hotrod finally see each other again, it's a reunion and a half. Once the war is over and cybertron is slowly being rebuild is when Drift realises the fortune he has amassed over millions of years. He's the one who funds the lost light expedition as a thank you to Rodimus for everything he has done for him. Both he and Ratchet join the lost light as a way to get away from cybertron and the names they have made. And it's only on the lost light that Ratchet actually finds out Drift is older than him by a good few million years. And it leads to quite some funny situations because no one knew Drifts age. Rodimus is shocked, and so are many other bots. But I also have this very funny little thing in my head of an interaction with Drift and Rung. Of Drift doing a therapy session with Rung, sitting there meditating when he suddenly just goes. "I know you're Primus, I don't know why, but thank you for leading me to Ratchet," and Rung is sweating coolant like. 'How does this fragger know who the fuck I am!?!"

Rung

Many of you know I love writing Rung as Primus in hiding. And I love the idea of him making himself this tiny mech who collects spaceships from over millennia, and they are his most prized possessions, he learnt many skills but became a therapist becuase he wanted to help people, it was always in his natural to help those he could. He gave up his original form, creating cybertron. He was there for the first sparklings created. He was there throughout everything. And when the war started, he evacuated a lot of young sparks, wanting to protect them, but it broke him. Watching that shuttle get shot out of the sky. Rung has been there for everything, he cringes away when people pray to him, he despises the cults made in his name, the depictions of him as this selfless warrior, he wasn't a warrior, he was a scared bot with no choice but to stop Unicron, he's a selfish bot who wanted to enjoy the life that his original form has gifted.

He enjoys being a therapist, but after the war he realises all the trauma so many bots have and he tries to ease it to help them throught it the best he can, but when he's doing a session with Drift and the mech turns to him looks him dead in the eyes and says he knows Rung is primus it spooks him. No one could know that Rung was older than this bot, so how could he know that he had never done anything that could have made Drift suspect him. And it is left as a mystery as Drift never brings it up again, never tells anyone else, but Drift is the only mech he fears more than Unicron because he knows who he truly is.

Rodimus

Rodimus/Hotrod was originally a mech on the streets, he had multiple run in with the law due to illegal street racing. Prowl was originally trying to recruit him as an undercover agent, he meets Deadlock by chance while bootlegging energon. They become quick friends when Deadlock gets him out of trouble quickly, they begin hanging out alot and are nearly inseparable, Hotrod helping Deadlock with his withdrawals, keeping him busy and never taking it personally when Deadlock lost his temper from the withdrawals. When they went to one of the Decepticons rallys, Hotrod was tempted to join but it was when he met Megatron it changed his mind. In truth if he had met Megatron before he had started becoming the paranoid mech, Hotrod most likely would have been friends with Megatron. But seeing the crowd of angry mech following Megatron's every word has Hotrod ready to get out of there.

He stays an unaligned bot for quite a bit. But eventually joins Optimus begrudgingly. He doesn't agree with either side of this war, but to him, the Autobots are the most moral at that time. But when the burning on Nyon happens, he hates himself, he hates both the Autobots and Decepticons, and he despises the matrix of leadership more than anything. He hates what he's been made to be. He lives with so much guilt, and he doesn't know how to deal with it, Drift can see it, and he organises the ship. Rodimus finds it easier to run away from cybertron, so he does. But when Megatron joins the crew, it throws a wrench in the works. Rodimus wants to scream at Optimus at Megatron. He doesn't want to be near the mech who shoots him through the spark. But over time he comes to realise how lost Megatron is, it takes alot of time for either of them to be comfortable near each other.

It's a day Rodimus is struggling with reports. He wants to scream t his own prosessor for not being able to focus. Megatron drops something into his servo to fidget with before sitting at the other side of the table as he works quietly on reports. And it's the first time Rodimus says thank you to Megatron,it takes both of them a moment before they settle back into quietly working.

Here's a list of oldest to youngest in my headcanons

Rung - old as fuck, he is god

Drift- this man is old, no one knows just how old tho

Ratchet - he's not as old as drift but still pretty aged

Optimus, Rodimus, Megatron - all around the same millennia, Optimus being older that Rodimus and Megatron, Rodimus only have a decade on Megatron.

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