#Morgan Primus

[zagreus-eats-your-bread]

[waitingintheskyyy]

I was on Una's Memory Alpha page and found this:👇

So I HAD to investigate and found out more

WHAAAAAATT????

I checked Robin's page👇

Thoughts???

[curator-on-ao3]

Do you think Deanna Troi ever looks at that Starfleet recruitment poster and has the sudden and overwhelming urge to call her mother?

[semioticapocalypse]

Barbara Morgan. Pearl Primus - Speak to Me of Rivers. 1944

Follow my new AI-related project «Collective memories»

[thresholdbb]

ROMULAN SESKA

[nepenthesmira]

you know how tool is always touring with Primus. i want a relationship like that

[vintagegeekculture]

Because she was an intentionally mysterious woman initially only seen in a single episode, and before she got an on-air backstory in the recent streaming series, Star Trek supplementary material developed contradictory information on who - or what - Number One, the female first executive officer of the Enterprise, was. To my count, she has four different, completely incompatible backstories in the comics and novels, and this is absolutely unique in Star Trek, which usually keeps it consistent.

Peter David, in his New Frontier novels, identified Number One as a long lived immortal human mutant (like Flint from the original series) named “Morgan Primus” who was an early genius in cybernetics and artificial intelligence, which is why the Enterprise computer has her voice. One of the names Morgan Primus assumed to hide her immortality was Morgan Lefler, and one of her daughters was Robin Lefler, Wesley Crusher’s love interest from the Next Generation Series played by Ashley Judd. Robin Lefler did not inherit her mutant ability to heal all injuries.

Alternatively, the DC Star Trek Comics of the early 1980s said that Number One was from an obscure planet of peaceful, open, friendly telepaths who resemble humans exactly, and that she was present at first contact with Starfleet. They explained that her blunt, direct, undiplomatic manner is due to her being from a telepathic culture that values total honesty. This would make her the first telepath on the Enterprise, with Spock and Arex coming later. Her planet was created before the Next Generation, but her species being a peaceful, open, telepathic race resembling Mediterranean humans who are not well known or commonly encountered in the original series era….well, that certainly sounds an awful lot like Betazoids to me. If this backstory is true, she may have been the first Betazoid seen on screen, in much the same way fans generally believe Trelane was either Q or a member of the Q Continuum.

D.C. Fontana’s only Star Trek novel, “Vulcan’s Glory,” was one of the earliest attempts to give the character a backstory, and was the most consequential long term. The first novel set in the era of the first Star Trek pilot with Captain Pike and a young Spock, "Vulcan's Glory" identified Number One as being an Illyrian, a race of human-like beings who specialize in species wide breeding programs and genetic improvement. This genetic superiority is why she was cool, intellectual, aloof, and a bit arrogant. Her nickname “Number One” came from the fact she was the supreme product of the hyper-competitive Illyrian system, and won at everything from academics to athletics. According to DC Fontana, her actual Illyrian name is impossible to pronounce, so when dealing with humans, she assumed the human name “Una Chin-Riley.” Una of course, being “Number One” in Greek.

As DC Fontana is such an important figure in Star Trek history and only actually wrote one Star Trek novel in her life, many future materials used the backstory established in “Vulcan’s Glory,” like the David Stern Pike-era novels of the 2010s....but more importantly, the Discovery and Strange New Worlds series, which canonized the “Una Chin-Reilly” name by using it on screen (I remember gasping when Pike called her Una in a Discovery episode, meaning they were going with the Fontana backstory, a detail that may not have been significant to the casual viewer). Since DC Fontana wrote “Vulcan’s Glory” in the 80s, a lot more information was learned about the role of genetic engineering in the Federation, however, and interesting things were done in that series to bring her in line with everything we’ve learned since in Deep Space 9 and Enterprise about augmentation and the society wide prejudice against it. For example, they established that the fact Number One was Illyrian was not public knowledge, but that she pretended to be human her entire life.

The one person who didn’t see fit to give her a backstory or even a real name was John "Johnny Redbeard" Byrne in his comic series about the Cage era Enterprise, who thought the mystery of the character was the most interesting thing about her, and he was deliberately cagey about any details. To Johnny Redbeard, she was just “Number One.” There was a running joke that every time someone says her actual name, or when we see her personnel file, it was blurred out, or somebody’s thumb was over it, and so on. It was rather like the running joke where Mr. Burns never remembers Homer Simpson's name. Johnny Redbeard loves mystery men and women who don't talk about their past, since that was the characterization he famously gave to Wolverine in his X-Men comics.

The one detail of Number One's past that is clear is that Number One in Byrne's comics is competent, mysterious, and has mystique, certainly, but she is completely human, without any powers. Byrne always got exasperated that his X-Men co-creator Chris Claremont added fantastical and far out details to the background of X-Men characters (like how Nightcrawler's girlfriend Amanda turned out to be a sorceress) because he felt "some people should just be allowed to be normal." Byrne always said his original idea for Wolverine's "true" backstory was that he was a Vietnam veteran in intelligence who volunteered for bionic experiments that wiped his memory, and disliked the idea he was immortal, and vetoed the very, very early Dave Cockrum idea Wolverine was an actual mutated wolverine who achieved sentience and a human shape (which early X-Men comics hint at). Byrne was reportedly enraged that they gave Moira MacTaggart a mutant power, as he saw her as just being a scrappy Scottish housekeeper.

Johnny Redbeard didn’t give Number One a past (other than to show she was on the Enterprise's shakedown cruise with Robert April as a rookie officer), but he did give her a future, as he showed an older Number One as a starship commander in the Kirk era (aging gracefully with a white tuft like Tongolele), and later, a flag officer in the Motion Picture era.

To what extent are these backstories compatible? Well, with what we currently know about Number One, that she hid her true species and status to avoid prejudice, it could be that some of the other versions were tall tales she spread to obscure her true origins. The John Byrne idea she served as an Ensign with Robert April in the Enterprise's very first mission hasn't been confirmed, but hasn't been denied, either. The Peter David "Morgan Primus" backstory is completely incompatible, but perhaps there are some elements to it that are true, like the idea that the early part of her career involved working as a computer engineer in artificial intelligence, which is why the computer has her voice.

[maswartz]

My ideas for voices for the 13 Primes if they ever get a series of their own.

Prima, the first Prime- Peter Cullen/Garry Chalk (because duh)

Vector Prime, The guardian of time- Richard Newman/David Tennant (because doctor who)

Alpha Trion, keeper of knowledge- Chris McFeely/George Takei

Solus Prime, forger of artifacts- Marlene Aragon/Susan Blu (who better to voice the first female transformer than the voice of the first female transformer)

Micronus Prime, the first Minicon- Johnny Yong Bosch

Alchemist Prime, master of the elements- Thew Adams/Jack Black

Nexus Prime, the first combiner- Scott McNeil (especially if his components get into arguments)

Onyx Prime, the first beast form transformer- David Kaye

Amalgamous Prime, the first to transform- Frank Welker (who better for the bot with a thousand modes than the man with a thousand voices)

Quintus Prime, seeder of life- Clancy Brown

Liege Maximo, the manipulator- Tom Hiddleston (again because duh)

Megatronus, The Fallen- Keith David

The Thirteenth, The Arisen- Judd Nelson (a twist on the theory that they reincarnated as Optimus, this time they reincarnate as Hot Rod/Rodimus) Primus, The life giver- Morgan Freeman/Peter Cullen (I honestly want Peter to voice Primus at some point) Unicron, the chaos bringer- Lee Tockar

[thebeautifulbook]

AULI GELIL NOCTORUM ATTICARUM COMMENTARIL LIBER PRIMUS [aka THE FIRST BOOK OF AULI GELIL’S COMMENTARY ON THE ATTIC NIGHTS (1485) Calf binding

Held by The Morgan Library and Museum.

[stra-tek]

Never forget that in Peter David's New Frontier novels (and comics), the ancient immortal character Morgan Primus is vaguely implied to be every single one of Majel Barrett's onscreen Trek characters.

And she's the mother of Robin Lefler.

And then the immortal is finally killed and... actually ends up becoming the ship's computer consciousness, after an earlier Peter David novel established that the Majel computer voice was in fact Number One programming the Enterprise computer with her own voice.

Obviously it doesn't work in a modern Trek world where Number One and Nurse Chapel definitely aren't the same person and are on Pike's Enterprise crew together

But still, just a weird 90's thing that happened

[annabelle-creart]

The 13 Primes Au

The Malto family finding out Nightshade was Quintus Prime was something like:

Nightshade: Guys! Mom! Dad! Look at my new friend!

Dot: Aw, how cute!

Twitch: Isn´t that the training gadget you did but with antennae and claws?

Nightshade: Is actually the Emberstone! I found some of her dust in the mountain and kept it to study it, and then, she took control over it

Alex: Did you say Emberstone?

Hashtag: What do you mean with 'her'?

Emberstone, in a robotic voice: Greetings, Maltos, I am what remains of the Emberstone, but my dear Prime call me Ember for short, you can as well, and also I chose the she/it pronouns for fast identification, but any kind or none pronouns are also okay

Nightshade: Isn´t Ember super cool?

All: ...

Trash: dude, what the-?

Jawbreaker: COOOOOL!!!! So, the Emberstone has a conciseness?

Ember: I always had, but only reveal to the ones I trust the most, and due to my trust to my Prime, I trust in you

Mo: Who´s supposed to be "my Prime", did you talk with Optimus?

Ember: I pay no service or hint from any other living being except from Primus and my Prime, Quintus

Robby: ...and that means...?

Ember: ...Nightshade, dear, you said your family was smart

Nightshade: Ember!

Ember: Sorry, dear.

---

Bonus:

Nightshade: Can you tell us more of Quintus? Pleaseeeeeeee?

Ember: Sure, what else do you want to know?

Mo: I have a question! If Nightshade is Quintus incarnation, then, that means indirectly that Quintus died at some point, right?

Ember: That´s correct, Morgan

Mo: In that case, how did he died? Because, what can kill a Prime?

Ember: ...that´s a conversation I will have with my dear Nightshade first when they´re ready

Robby: and when that will be?

Ember: Not today

Hashtag: Oh, come on!

Twitch: but, why?

Ember: as a Prime Relic I don´t only care for my function but for my Prime´s integrity and protection, keeping some information until the right moment is part of this function

Jawbreaker: it was that bad?

Ember: ...

-- Ember never answered that --

[zagreus-eats-your-bread]

In what they call "beta canon"*, every Star Trek character portrayed by Majel Barrett is actually the same person, an immortal being called Morgan Primus, who also will end up being the Federation's standardized computer voice (of course). And like what does this imply, man. Could Lwaxana even really read minds? Did Morgan just make that all up for shits and giggles? Why did she serve on the same ship with Spock as Number One and later come back blonde as Nurse Chapel and NOBODY NOTICED IT? It has so many holes and is so stupid, it can't be anything but canon to me

* because star trek fans have not yet embraced the doctor who way of thinking (everything is canon if you set your mind to it)

[playlistjunkie]

The 99 Best Halloween Songs Your Party Playlist Needs ASAP

Cosmopolitan - 8/3/23

Bloody Mary - Lady Gaga

I Want Candy - Bow Wow Wow

Superstition - Stevie Wonder

Werewolves of London - Warren Zevon

Halloween - Misfits

Highway to Hell - AC/DC

Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) - David Bowie

The Number of the Beast - Iron Maiden

Dracula's Wedding - Outkast

Is It Scary - Michael Jackson

Cemetery Drive - My Chemical Romance

Dracula - Gorillaz

Paint It, Black - The Rolling Stones

Heads Will Roll - Yeah Yeah Yeah

Unholy - Sam Smith ft. Kim Petras

Goo Goo Muck - The Cramps

Haunted - Taylor Swift

I Love the Dead - Alice Cooper

There Will Be Blood - Kim Petras

Nightmare - Halsey

Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites - Skrillex

Monster - Lady Gaga

Take What You Want - Post Malone

Disturbia - Rihanna

Feed My Frankenstein - Alice Cooper

Everyday Is Halloween - Ministry

She Wolf - Shakira

Bury a Friend - Billie Eilish

Dracula’s Wedding - Outkast feat. Kelis

Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jr.

Monster - Kanye West feat. Jay Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, and Bon Iver

Spellbound - Siouxsie and the Banshees

Season of the Witch - Donovan

All Around Me - Flyleaf

Tombstone, Baby - Peaches

Somebody’s Watching Me - Rockwell

Monsta’ Mack - Sir Mix-a-Lot

Witchy Woman - Eagles

Enter Sandman - Metallica

Love Potion No. 9 - The Clovers

Black Magic Woman - Santana

Suspiria - Goblin

I Was a Teenage Werewolf - The Cramps

Debaser - Pixies

Rhiannon - Fleetwood Mac

Time Warp - from The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Release the Bats - The Birthday Party

X Files - Génération TV

Dead Man’s Party - Oingo Boingo

Howlin’ for You - The Black Keys

Shadows of the Night - Pat Benatar

Cold - The Cure

Ghost Ride It - Mistah F.A.B.

I Put a Spell on You - Screamin’ Jay Hawkins

Hungry Like the Wolf - Duran Duran

Halloween Theme - John Carpenter

Monster Mash - Bobby “Boris” Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers

Bela Lugosi’s Dead - Bauhaus

Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby - Cigarettes After Sex

Night - Zola Jesus

The Haunted Man - Bat for Lashes

Red Right Hand - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Never Land - Sisters of Mercy

Tainted Love -Soft Cell

The Devil Went Down to Georgia - Primus

Psycho Killer - Talking Heads

Werewolf Bar Mitzvah - Tracy Morgan and Donald Glover

(Don’t Fear) The Reaper - Blue Öyster Cult

Turn Off the Light - Kim Petras feat. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark

Ghost Town - The Specials

(Ghost) Riders in the Sky - Johnny Cash

Are You Ready for Freddy - The Fat Boys

Living Dead Girl - Rob Zombie

Devil in Me - Halsey

Zombie - The Pretty Reckless

Seven Devils - Florence and the Machine

Black Magic - Little Mix

Kill V. Maim - Grimes

Brujas - Princess Nokia

Mothercreep - FKA Twigs

Hang Me - Tancred

Haunted - Beyoncé

Bring Me to Life - Evanescence

Stranger Than Earth - Purity Ring

Bitch - Allie X

Roses - ABRA

Chimera - HANA

Gemini Feed - BANKS

Baby You're a Haunted House - Gerard Way

Zombie - The Cranberries

Spooky Scary Skeletons (Dma Illan Remix) - Andrew Gold

The Monster - Eminem feat. Rihanna

This Is Halloween - from The Nightmare Before Christmas

A Nightmare On My Street - DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince

Antichrist - The 1975

I'd Rather Be Burned As a Witch - Eartha Kitt

I Was All Over Her - Salvia Palth

Baby One More Time - The Marías

Thriller - Michael Jackson

[imagine-the-energon]

PRIME DIRECTIVES, CHAPTER 3

She fiddled with her shirt sleeve as she sat on the porch, waiting for the yellow Camaro to finish pulling through the driveway.

It had been a week, and she was okay to move around the house so long as she didn’t harm herself. Which she wasn’t going to do, at all! She was rather happy with going over her documents and sorting through what she knew could wait, what she had to talk about with the others, and what had to be fixed immediately.

In her room, beside her bed, was a half-built cylinder composed of nanites from the six Cybertronians who were lingering somewhere in the forest. It was generating slowly, all of them expecting it to finish in roughly three or so months. And for some reason, it needed a vial of her blood, which hadn’t been a fun experience when she was stuck in bed, already feeling woozy every time she caught a glance at someone’s exposed chest and got an eyeful of the dissection scars.

So, yeah, she really didn’t want to be near the thing until it was time to get the Allspark in it so Alchemist and Amalgomist could find a safe place to put it until after Mission City.

“He is less than five miles away,” Stormdrive announced, shifting from where she was standing in her bipedal form, still smaller than the giant trees around the cabin. “Are you certain you wish to do this? You are still recovering.”

“I reached out to him,” she sighed. “And if it helps the timeline by getting him to Sam sooner, then we’ll have to take it. Besides, with the bank accounts Primus gave us, it’s safe to say we’ll be able to live anywhere and be set no matter what.”

“It’s good to know a god,” Nathan joked from beside her, making her roll her eyes.

“He’s, like, your father,” she frowned. “Doesn’t that make you a demi-god or something?”

“Most Primes are,” he shrugged. “Or, at least, that’s what their Caste wants you to believe. Sentinel was the worst at it. Optimus is the best example of a Prime without the divine heritage. But, yeah, we’re technically demi-gods.”

“And you and Storm…” she trailed off. “Like, siblings? Or?”

They both laughed. She felt ridiculous for asking it. “No, we were made to be a pair,” Stormdrive answered. “Us two are the only two not actually related to the other Thirteen. Well, aside from Morgan and Shadowburst.”

“Because they were made after, in the first wave.”

“Septimus mentored Sentinel before there was an… accident shortly after Sentinel no longer needed his advice.” Storm started, sounding hesitant.

“Convenient,” Nathan muttered. “When can we slag that piece of scrap metal?”

“2013 or 14,” she answered. “And I plan on going for him immediately, so he can’t get anyone killed.”

“That’s years away,” he protested, and she just shrugged.

“One mile,” Storm suddenly announced. “He believes that there were humans trying to find him, which is why he asked if he could still visit.”

“Sector Seven,” Ashley told her, getting a disgusted look from the femme as she stood. “Was he followed?”

“He claims to have lost them after 12 cycles,”

She frowned. “How much Earth time is that?”

Storm gave her a saddened look. “Roughly 12 hours. It should’ve normally taken six.”

“He was trying to lose them. He must be tired,” she sighed.

Not even a second later, a familiar, beat-up yellow Camaro came down the lane, with no driver in sight. The Autobot came to a halt as she started to walk down the steps, and the second her foot hit the ground, he was transformed and staring at the three of them, blue eyes wide as his doorwings twitched.

“Hello there- little lady,” he said towards her, making her let out a laugh.

“Hello,” she echoed. “We… we need to talk for a bit. And, Bumblebee, it’s really important that what we’re about to tell you, you don’t tell anyone else.”

He glanced over at Storm, who had the same seldom expression and nodded. He then looked around as the others entered the clearing, recognition on his face before he glanced back down at her.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Riley, and I work for someone called “The Informant”. They have the power to help stop the war, but they can’t do it alone, so they recruited us to help them.”

“The Informant- Dangerous?”

It was weird, hearing her voice, but she shook her head. “They want to ensure Cybertronians survive as a species, and this war is preventing that. They don’t want to fight.”

“They would be considered a NAIL,” Stormdrive butted in. “They don’t care about factions. They just want the fighting to stop.”

Bumblebee looked over the femme before glancing down at her. “What are- your words- human?”

—————————————-

It took a lot to get Bumblebee to promise them he wouldn’t tell Optimus unless he had just cause to, and even then she wasn’t completely sure what he meant by “just cause”. As it were, they didn’t tell him anything about the Allspark or the Matrix, only that the Informant was looking for them and would be able to get confirmed locations within a year. She was their contact, and she wanted to help as much as possible. In return, he’d help get them in with the Autobots.

Which meant between planning on how to get to the Allspark, they also now had to house hunt for a place that was close enough to the Witwickyes, it wouldn’t seem odd that she reached out. Hmm, well, Micronus was technically the same age as Sam in this new life, and even though he could easily test out of it… hopefully he wouldn’t be too angry.

She sat down on one of the couches in the barn that the bots used with a huff, Nathan glancing up from where he was fiddling with some phone components. “Still thinking about what to do?” he asked, and she just nodded with a grimace.

“One thing at a time,” she finally said. “First thing’s first: The Allspark. It’s top priority that it’s moved vessels before it’s destroyed in Mission City.”

“And have you figured out how yet?” He asked, causing her to give a so-so motion.

“They’re obsessed with Cybertronians,” she started, voice soft. “If we create a diversion and cause most of them to leave for capture, we could most likely slip in and out without much issue.”

“But that puts the others at risk,” he cautioned, making her nod.

“They’re aware that cold is a weakness through Megatron. Is there any way they could get at least some temporary cold upgrades?”

Nathan barked out a laugh. “We’re not some type of-”

“Machine to upgrade?” she finished, smirking at how he flushed. “I’m not trying to imply that, but anything to give them an edge, we should take.”

“Quinn might be able to tell someone what to make,” he mused. “If he could find a way, it would be him. Pray he never meets Brainstorm.”

“Ha, or Wheeljack. The universe would explode.”

—————————————-

Bumblebee was… certainly something. He was definitely a child at heart, especially as she pinned down that he was the equivalent of 17, and would be for another 50 or so years. It made sense as to why he bonded with Sam so easily, and as she sat on the couch in the barn, introducing him to the world of video games, she wondered if they could use this to their advantage.

“We could enroll you and Michael in school,” she mused, making his hardlight form tilt his head towards her, otherwise enthralled by Mario Kart: Double Dash. “It’s normal for some to not be able to speak in humanity, through birth or,” she let her eyes flick to his throat, where the scar tissue could vaguely be seen. “Traumatic response. And then Morgan can get a job as an interpreter, and that’s three of us in school to get close to Witwicky.”

Bee paused the game, turning to her, eyebrows furrowed before she watched his hands slowly form words and desperately wished she paid more attention when her sister tried to teach her the language. He signed something again, but this time, she watched as he raised his pinkie before making an L shape and the pinkie again, followed by a V and a nearly closed fist.

“You… like? ASL?” she asked, getting a smile and a nod. “I’m glad. There are a lot of uses for it outside of just talking. Speaking of talking…” she trailed off, staring at him as he lowered his hands. “You said you’d contact Optimus about us so the others wouldn’t be blindsided. That was a few days ago ‘Bee, and you still haven’t done it.”

Suddenly, his form disappeared in a flash of static, making her sigh and pull out her phone.

“I’ll do it then!” She called out before lowering her voice to a mutter. “I hope Optimus grounds him.”

—————————————-

10:46 AM [SECURED PHONE 1]: B told me you were running low on Energon. There’s a deposit beside my place that can be refined into cubes by the time you get here.

10:50 AM [O.PAX]: I apologize, I do not believe we have been introduced.

10:53 AM [SECURED PHONE 1:] Shit, he hasn’t briefed you yet? Please don’t be angry at him. I have a datapacket that has information. You can run it for viruses or whatever, but you’ll understand when you read it.

11:20 AM [O. PAX]: You offer this information freely?

11:21 AM [SECURED PHONE 1]: As freely as I can. There’s some things even I don’t know, and then there’s stuff I have to keep secret. I wish you and your team no ill will, Prime.

11:21: AM [O. PAX]: Are you able to get Archibald Witwicky’s glasses?

11:22 AM [SECURED PHONE 1]: Maybe? Even if I get the glasses, the decepticons are going to go after Sam, even if they know he doesn’t have them, ‘cause he’ll be a link to you.

11:22 AM [SECURED PHONE 1]: There’s… also something you should know. About Megatron and the Allspark.

—————————————-

Bumblebee still got in trouble, but more for not contacting them about allies sooner than revealing himself to an unknown. He left to go with Quinn and Shadowburst to scout Tranquility for houses and then to enroll him and Michael into the local school, which he was… strangely excited for. It was then she realized he probably missed moments like that, if he ever had them to begin with.

While they were gone, the rest schemed of Sector 7, Megatron, and the Allspark. Of how they were going to get into the facility, and how they were going to get out. How they were going to transfer the Allspark without anyone noticing, and how they were going to do an in-depth scan of Megatron without alerting his systems.

In the end, they agreed that she would sneak into the Hoover Dam with Morgan and Nathan while Stormdrive and Overboard distracted Sector 7. In her bag would be the small cylinder made of pure Cybertronian ores and ever-evolving nanites.

She was aware of the looks the other two were giving her as she handed them the lab coats and clipboards and did her best to ignore them. It was easy to get away from the tour group, and even easier to get into S7 territory.

Of course, it might have something to do with the two Primes triggering every alarm they could for NBE activity. They had roughly six months before the other Autobots would be in position for them to come down to Earth, and any change as drastic as tipping Sector 7 off would ruin all of their plans in one fell swoop.

She was mapping out escape plans when they rounded the corner and found herself frozen and the sight of the near sixty-foot cube that was crackling with energy. Suddenly, the cylinder in her bag felt too small.

“Ash?” Nathan murmured, pulling her from her thoughts.

“I knew it was going to be big,” she whispered back. “Can the container hold all of that energy?”

“Energy?” Morgan echoed. “What energy?”

“There’s… there’s literal lightning coming off of the cube! You mean to say that…” she trailed off, looking between their twin horrified looks. “Only I can see it.”

And it was only then, that after almost four months of planning, did it sink in.

“Purity,” she whispered. “I was never supposed to be a Cybertronian… I was supposed to be the Allspark’s next vessel. I am supposed to be it.” The mention of conduciveness made sense now. “Did you know? Any of you?”

“No,” Nathan immediately answered, looking as sick as she felt. “We would’ve protested if we knew. The Allspark isn’t supposed to be housed in a living being. The consequences alone-”

“We can argue over this later,” Morgan cut in. “We don’t have enough time to just stand here and do nothing while Stormdrive and Overboard are giving us a distraction.”

“You’re right,” she murmured, moving forward, her legs feeling like they were trying to give out from underneath her. They had clipboards with papers, but as she glanced at them again, only hers had the transfer information. Their badges were scanned and they were waved through.

They separated, Ash going to the very top where she could see the energy gathering the most. The second she touched it, it was like the world had been whisked away. It was just her and the cube.

Hello Purity.

Hello Knowledge, she thought back, fighting off a shudder as the information the hundreds of previous vessels had run through her. This is what Sam had to deal with? All those equations and schematics? All the voices in their heads?

You’re late.

I was sidetracked.

Are you going to aid them all, or aid the one?

She paused at this, fingers almost lifting away. What am I supposed to do? Even with the information you are giving me, it’s only half of what I already know. What is true? What is false?

What is greater, the will to hate, or the will to have peace?

She knew the answer as the informational flow stopped, causing her to come back, shaking her head and blinking rapidly. She looked at the checkerboard, which had what looked to be some filled-out paperwork and clipped the pen back into place.

The descent down was slow, and when she got to Nathan and Morgan, it took everything not to collapse.

“She’s burning up,” Nathan hissed once he checked her over. “We need to find a new vessel.”

“No,” she blurted out. “We need to-” she cut herself off, standing up a bit straighter as a few scientists walked past them. “We still need to scan Megatron. I’ll be fine until we get back to the cabin.”

“But-” Nathan started, but she shook his arm off, ignoring her shaking legs.

“Megatron, now.” she hissed, a wave of heat flaring with her irritation, and the two men inhaled sharply.

“Ok, just… calm down,” Morgan soothed. “Your eyes went white and glowed.” She wanted to do nothing more than to tear his head off at telling him to calm down, but instead took a deep breath and continued walking until she found herself stopped again, the sudden chill making her want to cry for the warlord.

At first, she thought that he was gray, like in the movies, but upon a closer look, she realized it was the ice making him appear lighter than he was. She could see that the bottom of his feet was nearly pitch black, and the further up she went, the closer he got to whatever was keeping him frozen, the more silver he got.

“Thermoregulating armor?” she whispered, and one of the scientists looked at her from his station.

“Maybe. We’ve been trying to study it for years, but there are these things that immediately seal the pieces we try to cut off,” He shrugged before noticing the scanner in her hand. “What’s that?”

“A scanner,” she answered. “Banachek was the one who ordered its creation. We think it might be able to cut through the radiation NBE-1 is giving off.” They would have no idea it was a basic medical scanner that was able to pass through EM fields.

“Well, hope it works,” he said, waving her forward, and the three moved as one, Ash once again at the top of the scaffolding while the other two were at the other ends, their own scanners in hand.

She found herself unable to look away from his face, that sick feeling coming back tenfold as she saw the barely alight red optics almost… staring at her. “You’ll be free from this soon, Megatronus,” she promised quietly, lowering the scanner to point toward his spark chamber. She saw the Cybertronian scrolling by as the readings were taken, but her focus was on the pulse-rate of his spark, which was slow, but trying to speed up the longer the scan went.

The device gave a tiny beep before shutting off, and she stepped back, the feeling of being watched still coming from the mech in front of her. His optics were flicking, and she took a risk, reaching out and hovering, not quite touching him as her fingers screamed at the cold he was radiating.

“Peace will come soon,” she promised again. “Don’t forget why you approached the Senate originally.”

Nathan cleared his throat and she pulled her hand back, walking away as the first alarm began to ring.

[defconprime]

German cover for New Frontier collection "No Limits," 2004.

[federer7]

Pearl Primus, 1940s

Photo: Barbara Morgan