#i am Giving Rodimus Everything Ever

[transingthoseformers]

Bee carry’s sparks heavy so in the beginning & halfway through Starscream is just carrying the mini in his arms while working and Bee is either asleep, eating or helping/watching & this is honestly the most calm Starscream has ever been so no one says a thing.

Two…Rodimus is the most breedable transformer out there. Dratchet are conjunx already but they work out a deal with MiniMegs to share Rodimus between the four of them & now Rodimus is conjunx to all four of them and ALWAYS sparked.

Yessss and you know rodimus deserves to feel so loved. He goes through so much and may i suggest this is related to him being a prime. Because I've had thoughts on idw style primes and breeding before.

And awww on the starbee and Starscream being an overbearing sire while Bumblebee's just "guess this is life now♡♡"

[in1-nutshell]

Hey, not sure if you're down for writing a continuation of the “Megatron 'accidentally' adopting human Buddy who fears nothing” post. But there was a line “Rung has a line of bots that express the same worry for Buddy one day doing something dumb and not being able to come back from it.” that I think should be expanded upon. Dangerous things are constantly happening to the lost light crew and Buddy must have the devil's luck to come out of everything that happens unscathed. I'd like to see that luck run out. I'd like to see the crew panicking because Buddy got hurt badly and there's been no news if they'll recover or not. I want to see Megatron deal with the impending mortality of his newly adopted kid poorly. And I want to see everyone on the lost light panic even more because if Megatron doesn't start a war if this kid dies, Whirl absolutely will. P.s please let buddy live, I may crave angst, but not that much.

Have a good day, love your writing

Ooooh! Have you been peaking at some of my drafts? haha! I have been thinking about what would happen if Buddy ever got hurt on Megatron's watch. But now more bots are going to watch.

Hope you enjoy!

Megatron and Fearless Buddy who gets seriously hurt

SFW, familial, platonic, angst but happy ending, mention of injuries but nothing graphic or detailed, Human reader

MTMTE/LL

As we all know Buddy fears nothing

And this put some stress on their friends and new dad, Megatron.

“Hey Megs!”--Rodimus

“Rodimus, don’t call me that.”--Megatron

“Yeah, not gonna happen. Anyways I was wondering if you’ve seen Buddy anywhere. They were supposed to show me something?”--Rodimus

“Show you what?”--Megatron

“Something about being a present for being Brainstorm’s ‘Guinea pig’?”--Rodimus

Buddy flying by on a jet pack.

“Hi Roddy! Hi Megs! Bye Roddy! Bye Megs!”--Buddy

“…”—Rodimus and Megatron

CRASH!

Both mechs start running

But as time continues to go on, their little antics are just normalized. Sure, there are still some bots that know the true fragility of the human life span. Such bots included but not limited to Ratchet, First Aid, Velocity, Swerve, Rung, Megatron, and Whirl

“Where are you going with those pilars?”—First Aid

“It’s nothing illegal, yet.”--Buddy

“What type of answer is that!?”—First Aid

But for the most part the crew thinks Buddy is almost as durable as they are. Yes, even Megatron has been guilty of this type of behavior. He isn’t too proud of that.

“C’mon Fleshy jump and do a flip!”—Random Bot

“Bet—”--Buddy

“I think not.”--Whirl

“Whirl?!”--Buddy

“If you break your dumb fragile bones who else is going to come with me on planet expeditions? Cyclonus? I think not. He sucks out all the fun.”—Whirl

“I am literally right here.”--Cyclonus

So, let the angst begin.

The place was being invaded by space pirates.

The pirates where taking the bridge and had successfully barricaded themselves in.

“Why can’t we just break the door down?”--Buddy

“The main room has delicate equipment. One wrong move…”--Megatron

“Okay that’s a bad idea then.”--Buddy

“We just need an opening from the main door and we can figure out the rest.”--Rodimus

“Hey, I’m tiny enough to fit through the crack under the door. I can open the door!”--Buddy

“Absolutely not.”--Megatron

“For once I’m agreeing with him.”--Whirl

“Hey, its not like we have many options here. Unless someone else has a better idea then I am quite literally the only thing stopping these guys.”--Buddy

“…go then…”--Megatron

He was going to regret saying it like that. The computers dashboard in order to unlock the door or at least give it an opening. So, when they were sure that the aliens weren’t looking, they sprinted over to the console by swinging up with a grappling hook to the chair and began running towards the buttons.

They had indirectly activated the plasma screens.

These were holoscreens all over the ship that would show what was happening on the bridge. Everyone had a front row seat to Buddy sprinting across the console. There where cheers as Buddy was coming closer and closer to the button

“They made it!”--Rodimus

“Way to go Buddy!”--Tailgate

“Just press the button.”—Ultra Magnus

“That’s my Amica—”--Whirl

It was right there…

The alien came out of nowhere…

“EW! A Rat!”--Alien

“A ra—"--Buddy

They swatted Buddy across the room in one swift movement. They’re tiny body hurdling across the room and off screen. A small sickening crack was heard.

It was barely noticeable.

But it caused a deafening sound across the entire Lost Light.

 Good news for the crew, Buddy’s shoe came off from the force of the hit and successfully pressed the button opening the door.

Everyone is lined up to take these aliens down.

Megatron and Whirl are at the forefront of it.

Megatron is trying to find Buddy while Whirl is absolutely destroying everything.

Megatron spots Buddy slumped over in the far corner of the room.

No motion, nothing

He is just frozen in place.

“Buddy…”--Megatron

“…”--Buddy

“Megatron! Move!”--Ratchet

Ratchet snaps him out of it as he is trying to help Buddy.

Megatron snaps out of it a cover him.

Buddy is rushed out an into the medbay.

Everyone is waiting.

The sudden gravity of Buddy’s mortality weighs heavily on the minds of everyone involved.

Megatron sulks in his room thinking about how he failed them. He can’t bear to sit by Buddy in the med bay. Ratchet understands and tells him that he when Buddy wakes up.

Whirl on the other hand, stays by Buddy’s bed side the entire time.

“Hey Tiny. It’s been a hot minute since you’ve open those little eyes… You mind opening them up?”--whirl

“…”--Buddy

“Fine be like that…”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

“Well, you’ve missed a lot since you took that hit. One you have a ton of inner most energon by your room and a growing number of get-well gifts. I personally made sure none of you’re a secret bomb. Megs is still in his room and its giving everyone the creeps.”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

“… Don’t tell this to anyone… but we miss you, you scared the ever living Pits out of us.”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

Whirl has lost every good thing in his life. He is going to make sure that this one thing does go so soon.

Buddy does wake up

“Hye Whirly Bird?”--Buddy

“Buddy?!”--Whirl

“Why you looking at me like that? Someone died?”--Buddy

“You nearly did Tiny!”--Whirl

“But I didn’t, huh? It takes more than a hand to stop me.”--Buddy

“…I guess huh.”--Whirl

Megatron is zooming over when he hears. Buddy is trying to play off their injuries to try and keep the peace.

“Hey Megs.”--Buddy

“Buddy…”--Megatron

“You okay? You look like you’re dying.”--Buddy

“… that was a poor choice of words.”--Megatron

“Yeah I guess— woah, Megs?"—Buddy

Megatron gently holding Buddy’s hand the best he can

“Just let me hold you please, just a little bit.”--Megatron

“Sure Megs.”--Buddy

As they are recovering Buddy is treated with a bit more respect than they had before. Good thing too, they did after all manage to save the ship after all.

[elfelt-valentine]

i don't really get simpatico but i would love to understand it more bc its such a big part of transformers now. if you're willing, you can do that big post on simpatico here?? if you wanna??? i'd really appreciate the help 🥺👉👈

The thing with Simpatico is that i didn't exactly Get it at first too, most of my exposure was through fan content and reading the thing i was just Yeah it Makes Sense people ship this, but then it kind of bestowed on me more how these two people are just two parts fitting together perfectly in a way they wouldn't with others, and it's not even inherently Romantic to me, even if i see them as very much in love and conjunxed post MTMTE/LL story.

Their relationship is quite silly in the context at first. Brainstorm's profile calls him a conflicted Perceptor fanboy. The only thing we get, up to this point, is his Annoyance with how his genius is overshadowed by Perceptor. While Perceptor doesn't seem to give him his time of day at all, more concerned with his work and what Rodimus wants from him than what Brainstorm is up to.

It's honestly just my personal interpretation of either characters, but Perceptor is finally allowed to fullly get back to science again, he's not expected to be holding his sniper rifle (even though he was never expected to! He had himself believe that holding a weapon will make him of more value!), while Brainstorm is there with his own super secret super important agenda.

Brainstorm is, apparently, an MTO, while we don't know what for, but MTOs have a very sad track record and usually have a lot of baggage as they're usually "born" and then kicked into the heat of battle, barely having any chance to learn who they are, just what they're for. Yet Brainstorm has never killed anyone - and despite that, he's still LIED about being an MTO.

Here they're talking about the concept of Constructed Cold, but there were TWO waves of them - pre-war and post-war. What Brainstorm is talking about he was not even born to witness yet.

They're both people who, one way or the other, "defying" what they are. It's a common theme with tf ships for me, but in case with this, it's Perceptor believing that he has to be more, and at the point of MTMTE, perhaps, not feeling entirely whole, and Brainstorm WANTING to be someone He actually Wants to Be.

Brainstorm feels threatened when his intellect is belittled by people calling Perceptor the genius. Brainstorm is quite egotistical and selfish, but it all ends up being just a facade, just as much Perceptor's cold and perfect exterior he cultivated throughout years during the war, of someone he thought his side needed.

Up until Brainstorm's time travel shenanigans, we saw them interacting sometimes, and a lot of the time, it was Brainstorm trying to impress Perceptor somehow, or just being himself that draws attention of Percy nevertheless.

And then we see Percy smiling the most he's ever smiled throughout the comic, calling Brainstorm a genius himself, impressed by the intricate work of Brainstorm.

Perceptor gets up to clap for Brainstorm at his trial, and i think it's the moment that sold Perceptor for his respect to Brainstorm. Everything he ever knew about Brainstorm - the careless egotistical and cowardly scientist - turned out to be nothing but means to an end, making way to a dedicated, caring, kind and brilliant person into his mind.

I think their finale just says it all regarding these two, honestly.

"I always wanted recognition for what I am."

"Me too."

Brainstorm spent his life on science and to be recognized. He didn't hide the fact he's an MTO just because. He wants to be seen for his achievements. Perceptor's war trauma had him feel useless to his comrades, who's "purpose", who's Genius, was ultimately the thing people saw in him, brushing off his personal achievements, maybe even the fact he could be more, his person, the way he feels Brainstorm could understand, too.

They're simpatico for a reason, and its just one of them, but pretty crucial and at the very core of why they're so compatible.

While i understand simply thinking of them as "science duo" they're so so much more than that.

[cozzzynook]

Summary : Percpetor hadn't had his heat cycle for months. He desperatly need to know why, and seek for relieve. Fortunately for him, the Lost Light's trip on Earth will help him more than he would have ever thought... and fuck him up even more.

Warnings : NSFW, denial, humanformers, robot in heat, violence, sparkeater behavior

Pairing : Ratchet / Perceptor, Perceptor / reader, mention of Perceptor / Drift and Brainstorm / Perceptor, Dratchet

-----

PART 1

The Lost Light arrived on Earth after Rodimus received visions from the Matrix about some artefact (and mostly because he talked with Drift and Drift said it was some divine artefact that would bring good luck so they had to take it before anyone else). During their trip to Earth, Perceptor worked on their human avatar, to blend in amongs the species. The scientist had noticed that something was wrong with him. For month, he had no sight of his heat cycle. Usually, it always happen every two months and last a week. But it must have been 6 months it haven't happened yet. Even Ratchet couldn't give him an answer for why, what was wrong with him, and could only give him aphrodisiacs to trigger his cycle. He tried having some fun time with Drift or Brainstorm, but nothing. Not a single droplet of fluid got out from him, or normally, he is confined in his habsuit, leaking and begging for relieve, sensitive and hot.

After some time of adaptation to their new form, team Rodimus is ready to blend amongs the humans and find their dear artefact.

Oslo, capital of Norway, is a very big and splendid city. Everything is so big, the buildings are immense and yet the street are so spacious. Perceptor's favorite place is the Opera. The architecture is amazing, and he thinks that it is funny to be able to walk on it to reach to roof². What he dislikes, like his team mates, is ... how to use a human paper map... Rodimus wanted to lead his crew trhought the city, but ended up losing himself. Whirl found himself being very amused by his captain's foolishness. I was almost night time, and the street start emptying.

-Oh captain, are you really sure you are able to lead us to your little vision? Or you just wanted to show off and flex?

-Oh shut up. I'd like to see you struggling with that damn thing. Perceptor, do you think you could... translate this ?

Perceptor rolled his eyes and took the map after taking a look around them. He examines it and try to locates their position.

-We must be here, near the Historic Center. And no, i'm not saying the name of this place. I am not familiar with the language.

-Perfect, okay, cool, we almost know where we are, now we have to discover how to.... oh hell nah, I don't know.

-Rodimus, are you even sure we are in the right city?

-Yes Magnus, i can feel it in my spark-, well my now heart. But I have no idea where it could be located. I have it's name in my head but I can't even say it, it's so fucked up. Totally different from cybertronian.

-You know what? Let's ask a local. I can't stand th cold any long-

-Hum, hallo! Do you need some help?

Everyone turn to the new arrivant. A human (without surprise) approach them with a polite smile. They have a strong accent, meaning this is a native.

-Hello there, hum yeah, we need to find a place we wanted to... visit! yeah tourism. Strictly hi and bye, of course.

The human gives Rodimus a strange look, and Perceptor find himself quite amused by this. First contact with a native and he already fucks his image up.

-Okay... where do you want to head? You can visit the Opera, the Fram Museum, the museum of Edvard Munch, the Fjord,... anyway, do you have any destination in mind?

-Yeah i have it, but i litteraly can't say it.

-Oh, maybe you can write it down? Or at least try?

-Hey, it's a good idea! Hum... does any of you have a pen ?

Rung search some seconds in his pockets before giving Rodimus a pen (where does it come from, they have no idea... after all, Rung is made of secrets boxes so they don't want to know further). The captain thinks a bit before trying his best to write his vision down the map. Everyone try to take a look, including Perceptor. But he start feeling weird. His tank feels dizzy. He tries to ignore it, but a thrill runs down his back and he knows something's wrong. With every seconds passing while Rodimus try to write down with the human encouraging him, the feeling become bigger. So he has the good idea to come near Ratchet.

-Ratchet.

Hell, his voice vibrates without him wanting it, even tho he whispered. His cheeks start warming up.

-Yes Perceptor?

-I feel- hm- i...

-Are you alright ? You become red.

-I, I need to sit down...

-Yes yes, of course, come with me.

-My head spins...

-Everything is alright sir?

Perceptor heard the human voice a bit too clear. A sudden rush of heat runs throught his frame and he understood. At the moment the human, the very kind, helpfull, encouraging and good looking human, came to them and spoke, it started.

-Yes, don't worry, I think he is a bit tired, that's all, we are going to sit there.

Ratchet hold him thight by the arm and back him up.

-Ratchet, Ratchet...

-Yeah, i know. It started, doesn't it?

Perceptor could only answer with a weak whine and cover slightly his mouth.

-It was time. Even if it's the worst time ever.

Ratchet rushs him to a corner hidden from curious eyes and makes him sit. Perceptor let his helm hit the wall behind him and pants due to his effort.

-Breath, it's okay, i'm here. Just try to not make a mess of you right now. Hell, i didn't even know it could happen in human form.

-Because this form doesn't... doesn't interfere with out actual frame... so nothing of our... of our system is changed, we remain the same...

The scientist could only squeezes his tights together and breath calmly. He has to stop talking, especially about sciences.

-You're lucky I have coolant with me. It was supposed to be for Rodimus, because we never know with him, but you need it more than him right now. Here, drink. There is a straw, it's easier.

Perceptor find some strenght to held Ratchet's hand while the medic help him drink. The sensation of the straw and cool liquid on his glossa and throat makes him quiver and softly whine. He wants more. He needs more. He craves that someone touch his hot frame.

-Slow down, you're gonna choke... yeah, your forehead is burning.

The cold servo on his head feels good and refreshing.

-Perceptor, do you allow me to inform Brainstorm or Drift that your heat has started?

-... no, they must not worry for me... It's not important...

-It is. But if you don't want, i'm not gonna make it. Let's say you got a cold.

-.... Thanks you...

An other rush of pleasure makes him tense up, and he barely hold his moan. Fortunatly for him, no one is around.

-Okay, we better gotta return to base. Quickly.

::Drift to Ratchet; is Percy okay?::

:: Ratchet to Drift ; yes. He just got a human cold. He has to rest. ::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; Okay. Finally, Rodimus managed to write his stuff down and the human knows. It's actually not a place but a building. And you know what? Ratty you know what??? Guess ::

-Oh, good news Perceptor, Rodimus finally managed to write his shit and the human knows. Drift is writting me.

No answer from the scientist. Oh shit, think Ratchet.

:: Ratchet to Drift ; i don't know, Drift. Tell me ?::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; the.human.works.there. ::

:: Ratchet to Drift ; oh really ? Finally a good news::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; the only problem is that.... it's on the other side of the city...::

:: Ratchet to Drift ; okay, i take down what i said. It's gonna be an issue. I don't want Perceptor to stay outside any longer for his cold. Tell the human that it's very kind of their part and that we are thankfull for their help::

Some seconds pass, so Ratchet believes their convo is done, so he focus back on his patient, that is having a wandering hand on his thight. He takes off his scarf because it's annoying him and sigh.

-Ok, listen to me. They found what they needed, but you're not going. Obviously. So i'm gonna take you back to base and -

-Hey, i'm sorry, is everything alright?

Ratchet realises quickly that the human is coming toward them. He throw his scarf on Perceptor to hide him a bit and stand before him, making a wall between him and the human. The others autobots remained at their place, turned in his direction but looking at the map. Only Drift is looking at him.

-Yes, don't worry. We are going back to our hotel. Thank you very much for your help, it was nice to meet you.....?

-My name is (YN). I'm sorry to insist, but i'm worried for you friend. It doesn't look like a simple cold.

-I am his doctor, i know what i'm talking about.

-Let me at least give him a killer pain. It can help. I have water with me.

Ratchet reflects on his options. Looking rude and impolite, or take his human role and accept. He has no choice but to accept.

-Okay, okay, but he can't take the "pain killer" with water. He has a special drink.

-No problem.

(YN) put their bag on the ground and take out something grey. They crack it open and a little white pill comes out. Ratchet backs up to let them see Perceptor, that seems to take a bit more composure.

-Hey, i'm (YN), the one from earlier. Your doctor said you're a bit in difficulties, so i'd like to give you something that can relieve you from fiever and pain. Here, open your mouth, and don't worry i have clean hands.

Perceptor does what he is told, and when these delicate fingers brush his lips, he just want to suck on them. But instead, he takes the straw and drink quickly. Too quickly, because he choke on his drink and start coughing. This only make an other rush of need and lust travel his spine.

Ratchet quickly comes by his side and the human step back.

-.... Where is your hotel? I would not like letting you outside too long. You can crash at my place for the night, i have a spare room. It's two streets away from here. You could leave tomorrow.

Ratchet looks at Perceptor and wonder what to do. He needed to be in a room, alone. He needed to relieve himself. But with a human next to him? He wasn't sure.

Perceptor suddenly grabs his arm and makes him bend closer to him.

-Please, ratchet, I need a room...

And he could see how hard his patient try to contain his moans. His voice is needy, whispered. His entire frame is tensed up and ratchet doubt he will be able to walk on his own.

-Okay, you'll get a room and? It's you heat cycle, you'll need transfluid. And i don't think you want to do that next to a human, knowing how loud you can be. And Brainstorm is not there. And Drift has to stay with Rodimus, because he is the third in command and has to stick with his captain in this unknown world. If you return to the ship, you could get what you need.

-That's hot...

-And that's not the point.

-Sir, i'm sorry to insist but your friend is not okay. And i can't let you in the cold. It doesn't bother me at all, really.

-... Okay. Okay. To your place. I don't want him there any longer.

And so, the three of them are heading to (YN) appartement. The rest of the team is informed that Perceptor must rest because of the side effects of their new form, causing him to have some human virus and that he had to go somewhere warm quickly. Drift would have liked to stay with him, but Ratchet reminded him that his place was next to his captains. Drift tried to call Perceptor but he wasn't answering.

Just like (YN) said, their place was near, so Perceptor quickly had a room where he could hide. Ratchet had to create an entire made up story about themselves, lying that they come from America and were visiting Europe every year, and that it was common for Perceptor -now named Jeremy- to be sick in cold country.

Midnight hit, and (YN) had to go to bed. Ratchet was allowed to sleep on the couch, but he was planning to pass his night by Perceptor's side. At the moment he entered the room, he could smell this distinct smell of heat. And Perceptor had already created a nest with the coushions and blanckets on the bed. He was under a blancket, hidding himself like a cat under a bed.

-Perceptor...?

Only choked whines came out from the blancket. Shaky breaths indicated to Ratchet that his friend was desperatly trying to self-service.

-Perceptor, listen to me.

-Ratchet, ratchet the smell of the covers. It smells the human. It feels s-o good. And the covers, it's so soft and squishy under me...

-Come out of your cave and listen to me.

Ratchet had to deal with so much robots in heat that it wasn't affecting him anymore. Maybe only Drift's heat were the only one that could turn him on, but that was it. He must admit anyways that the needy and aroused tone of this usually stern and confident bot was not letting him indifferent.

Perceptor emerges from from his nest and Ratchet was now glad to be in the human's appartement. Perceptor was completly worked up, already so sweaty as he was shirtless. He was trying to get as much as friction he could on his skin with the covers.

-... Do you want me to-

-Yes Ratchet, i want you, i need you, fill me up, use me, touch me please.

-.... -call Drift... over... okay right. Trust me, id like to help, but i'll be useless. Ah and don't forget to drink your coolant.

Ratchet takes from his pocket a bottle of coolant, but before he could do anything else, a weight was sitting on his lap.

-What the-

-I want you deep inside me.

Ratchet sight, put his servo on around his waist and hold him tight before lifting him and put him on the bed. Perceptor was over excited that he didn't have to insist more to have Ratchet's spike between his fold. He already had spead his legs like a good bot and was ready to fuck throught the night.

But nothing.

Not even servos on his frame.

Not a single breath in his audio receptors.

Not a second presence on the bed, dominating him.

When he looked at Ratchet, he was standing before the door, looking at him with indifference.

-Your coolant is on the night table next to the bed and your shirt too. Try to relax, and get some sleep. I'll be in the living room if you need anything, except a good frag. I'm not the one you have to ask for it. Good night Perceptor.

And on this, Ratchet left the room in silence. He couldn't pass the night with a horny mech like that. Perceptor kept looking at the door for some second, processing what just happened. When it hits him, a growl of frustration escape him. How dare Ratchet deny him the night? How could he resist to him, or he was offering his frame to him. Brainstorm would never leave him like that. He was ready to explode. Anger flood his hydraulics. He was so frustrated that he could blow up everything in the room. He was looking for a way to vent his anger when an idea came to his mind...

Ratchet, on his side, knew he did the good thing. Because there is something different about Perceptor's heat cycle. He has some tendencies to... become violent, possessive. Not like Drift, really violent. The worst Drift could have had made was biting his neck that a bit of energon spit out. Perceptor could be worst. How much time Brainstorm came to him with a missing wing, face plate destroyed, profond dents all over his frame,... just because he wasn't in the right position Perceptor indicated him or because his hand placement was not to the taste of his partener. And this happen since Perceptor became a sparkeater. It seems like, when he is subject to strong emotions/changements, his frame react the same way a sparkeater would react.. He knew that denying Perceptor overloads this night could anger him really bad, but to his advantage, they are not on the ship. They are on Earth, in a city they don't know, in a human appartement WITH a human in it and humans all around them. He wouldn't do anything, right?

Right?

~~~~

In the morning, Ratchet went to check on his patient. He wanted to make sure he slept a bit and eventually change the covers himself before (YN) could see anything. The room was empty. He got worried, and looked everywhere where he could be. It was early in the morning, so (YN) was surely still sleeping, so he had to be extra carefull. Then he heard the sound of water. He realised that Perceptor was in the bathroom, surely taking a shower. He freaked out a bit, because hell, they are not in their house. But at least, Perceptor was up. He even hesistates to knock on the door and take some news, but he was quite scared of how he was today. So he just waited in his room, and took the occasion to open the window and change to covers. It smells heat and transfluids so bad Ratchet though he had his nose his someone's valve. When he was done, the door open on a relaxed Perceptor, with only a towel around his waist and wet hair. He sits on the bed.

-Hello Perceptor. how are you feeling today? Did you sleep a bit? I see you drank your coolant.

-I'm fine, thank you. Very tired. I am sorry for yesterday night.

-It's okay. Your heat?

-I'm... i'm still so hot, but, i believe it's in the morning and that... i could have slept a bit. And took a shower.

-Good. We wait until the human wakes up, we thank them and we leave. You need coolant, and i don't have anymore. So dress up and eat a bit. You can have them all, i already ate.

Ratchet hands him some energon cubes that Perceptor took graciously. He eats them one by one, savouring every single one of them. Oh fuck, he could go crazy again.

-Dress up. It would be embarrassing to show yourself like that.

Instead of doing what Ratchet told him, he was focused on what was happening inside of him. And a sudden question made him aroused.

-Ratchet.... it's only a theorie of mine but... do you think that... because my heat cycle came late... it might... last longer...?

Just the thought of being horny for more than a week made him all worked up again. It made Ratchet pinch his nose and close his optics.

-Urgh, Primus, i have no idea. But let's hope not. You're insufferable like that.

-Am I, Ratchet?

The medic already regrets his words.

-Please, dress up.

Ratchet walked when Perceptor grips his arm a bit too strong and pull him violently. Taken aback, Ratchet falls on the side of the bed and is pinned against it. Two bright yellow optics were staring at him with anger, lust, and the medic could only stare back.

-You're gonna pay me for this night...

A sharp pain in his wrists wake him up with adrenaline. In two seconds, Ratchet pin Perceptor to the ground with a knee on his back and his two arms crossed. It's a this moment he remarks that his hands grew claws and became a bit darker than his skin tone.

-Threat me again and I'll make sure you-

-What are you going to do, Ratchet? Call me a bad bot and punish me? I can't wait to see that.

-I was going to say that you would stay in your habsuit in quarantine everytime you'll have your heat cycle, because you become too violent during them.

A gentle knock on the door distract Ratchet, and Perceptor use it to switch their position. He is stronger than his medic, so it's easy for him to keep him there, under him. A vicious smile cross his lips, revealing sharp teeths. It was defenetly a sparkeater side effet, but who would have thought it would affect his avatar as well? His knee slides between Ratchet's legs and came against his modesty panel, and in one hand, pins Ratchet's wrists up his head.

:: Ratchet to Drift ; DRIFT, COME TO THIS ADRESS IMMEDIATLY. IT'S PERCEPTOR ::

Again, a knock on the door and the human speaking.

-Hello, i hear weird noise. Is everything alright ?

Perceptor turn his head toward the door and felt again a stronger rush of heat in his entire body. The human... yes...

Ratchet understood quickly that the human must be out of here. He looked all around the room and notice that the window was still open. He could try to sneak the mech out of there, but how? He was stronger than him, and pinned on the ground wasn't helping. He was helpless.

-Hum, yes yes, everything is alright, but Jeremy is still down! But don't worry, I can handle it!

-O-okay, ... I'm making breakfast, so, i'll be in the kitchen...

The medic felt again a sharp pain in his wrists and warm fluid coming from them.

-Perceptor, you'll have the entire eternity to make me pay for whatever mistake i made, but right now is not the moment!

Perceptor sit up on top of Ratchet and rise his hands to lick the wounds he inflicted. The sweet taste of the energon made him whimper and sucking for more. A hiss of pain escape him when the scientist bites without mercy.

:: Ratchet to Drift ; WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU !? SPEED UP!! And when you're there, you'll see an opened window. Climb and enter the room !! AND QUICKLY ::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; i'm on my way, what's happening, love? What's with Perceptor ?::

:: Ratchet to Drift ; HE HAS HIS HEAT CYCLE !!::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; ... I'm almost there. You're in the room?::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; Ratty ?::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; Ratty answer me::

:: Drift to Ratchet ; Ratchet, i'm informing Rodimus. Please, answer me!::

The medic was trying his best to escape. An opportunity opens to him, so he retract his left leg and with all of his strenght, push Perceptor off him.

He then heard something from outside and with a lot of relieve, Drift appeard in the room from the window. He gave Ratchet a bag with coolant and energon, and lock looks with Perceptor.

-Hey Percy, it's me, Drift, relax, i'm here... why don't you put on clothes huh? And drink, you must drink coolant, no? C'mon, here are your clothes.

Some seconds in silence pass during wich Perceptor was reflecting fast, then growl in frustration and accept to dress up. His optics came back blue.

Ratchet was trying to slow the bleeding down by covering the wounds with his sleeves.

-He hurted you badly. Do you need anything? I can jump out the window and-

-It's okay Drift, let's focus on Perceptor. This environnement is not good for him. Everything trigger him. We HAVE to bring him back. Plus, there is the human.

-Yeah...

They both look at the mech, shirtless, who was sitting on the floor looking exhausted and hot, optics shut, frame tensed, and intake slightly opened.

-Can you put your shirt on?

-... No...

-T's okay, let's just put on your jacket then.

-You take care of him? I'm gonna have a talk with the human. And don't fuck him.

Ratchet didn't wait for an answer and head to the kitchen, taking the time to swipe off some energon. The human was there, eating some weird looking red slices of "meat" with something oily and yellow.

-Goodmorning (YN).

-Oh, hello! How are you doing? and how is Jeremy doing? I am worried, i heard some noise.

-Well, let's say i tried to lift him up to dress him, but he couldn't stand and felt. Nothing serious, don't worry, everything is fine, i have things under control.

-I don't doubt that. Are you going to eat?

-Thank you very much, but we are not gonna use more of your precious time. We must return to our hotel.

-I understand. It was a pleasure to help anyway. How much time are planning on staying in Oslo? We could see each others, and i would make a little visit of the city? I'm in Hollidays.

-I'll see that with my friends, but it would be a pleasure. Thank you for your hospitality. I shouldn't have been grumpy yesterday. We will remember it.

-It's fine, you were stressed. If you are ready, then let me lead the way to the door.

-Yes, please. I'll check on him. Oh and, hum, sorry for the bed covers... he... he has sweated a lot during the night with hum... his fever so I took off the covers...

-No worry, i can wash them.

Ratchet returned to the room, but before opening the door, some muffled noises tingle his attention, as if a bed was shaking. Then a big moan confirmed his fears. They were banging on each others. God damn it, i'm gonna cut their spike off, thinks Ratchet.

He enters the room and close the door quickly behind him. And what he saw made him will he has some holy oil³ on him right now. For his optics's god damn sake. He wished he could see the light of Jesus fucking Christ.

NDA :

²: Oslo's opera has a special aritechture, because there are stairs directly built in it for people to walk to the roof, without going inside the building. Go see on Google, it is STUNNING.

³ holy oil : equivalent of holy water. If you didn't... understand... I believe you did but meh, i though it was funny to mention it.

------

it's not done and idk if i'll ever finish it

😳 this is a good good read oh my goodness.

Poor Ratchet and Drift.

Poor Brainstorm..poor percy..

This is very interesting! Thank you for sharing!

[peggingprowl]

hi, I hope you're having a good day! ❤

r u a fan of the megarod ship? any thoughts on them?

I am having a good day! I woke up snuggled in a warm bed with a cat on top of me LOL

As for megarod, yeah I do enjoy it! How could I not with a ship name like that? And speaking of megarods, I like to think that Rodimus GREATLY enjoys Megatron's. Rodimus would look so cute sitting and squirming on Megatron's massive spike <3 Maybe Megatron makes him sit on it while he works on the bridge, letting everyone see how desperate Rodimus gets having to sit there warming his spike, leaking all over Megatron's lap, an inhibitor restricting his own overloads. Megs would probably have to gag him to make him be quiet.... No other way he'd be getting his work done.

Maybe if Rodimus is good, Megatron will take him back and give him an overload— only to just have him STILL warm his spike once they get back. But now he's all sensitive and getting overstimulated and it's DELICIOUS and TERRIBLE and EVERYTHING he's ever wanted.

Ahem. Anyway. Yeah I like megarod just fine :)

[loveofbots]

hii second request ever woaw

i really hope i'm not annoying you or asking too much, but if i am please ignore!!

so, i asked for the Swerve x autistic gn reader during/after sensory overload, but i was wondering if we could get a version with Rung instead of Swerve too? <:3c

AGAIN sorry if im asking too much, feel free to ignore!! i just really liked the first one :×

thankns!!

- Raft (again,..)

YOU ARE NOT ANNOYING TYSM /gen

Again I am writing from personal experience, everyone experiences sensory overload differently

Rung gives me dad vibes but he is god after all-

Warnings: Sensory overload, anger, marshmallow fluffy

Work was too much, it was almost always too much. These days you really just grit your teeth through it and went on. Rung told you to take a break, even if it was just a small one. But as the only human on the Lost Light you had a duty to preform. One slip up, even just one day where you didn’t show up, and you felt as if the whole world would collapse.

It was a colossal weight upon your mental health and the strain was beginning to show. Tailgate had approached you today to ask how you were. While you were delighted for the break in your work to talk to the minibot, he brought up your stress- and by association your stressors.

The minibot was still two heads taller than you, but his worried demeanour was what really irked you.

“Cyclonus and I have been worried about you recently. You are hardly ever around just to hang out, and I’m getting concerned that Rodimus is working you too hard!”

You sighed and covered your face with your hand. Maybe if you were thinking about it logically- you would realize that he was just trying to make sure that you were ok. That Tailgate was trying to show that he cared.

But your brain was so crammed full of awfulness and stress that you snapped at your friend.

“Rodimus is not overworking me! I’m just fine and I don’t need anybody’s help!” You snatched your work off the table and left for your shared hab suite with Rung.

He was busy with a model ship as you walked in and headed straight for your bed.

You flopped down to try and rest, but EVERYTHING started to aggravate you. The sweater you wore bunched up and wouldn’t allow free movement, the texture of your pants made you just want to claw them off. The temperature was wrong, the lights were too bright, your skin was full of pins and needles!

Finally you broke, hitting the mattress hard with a balled up fist you cried out, tearing your clothes off. It was a fit of raged caused by your built up tension. It scared you, you were not an angry person. Yet everything made you want to leave, it made you so angry.

Finally the worst of it subsided and you laid down in bed. You heard the light flick off and footsteps approached the bed.

“Y/N?”

Sweetly Rung called out to you, his voice soft and quiet. He had known the moment you walked in that something was wrong. And hearing your fit in the room just confirmed his suspicions. However he did not run in and try to stop you, you were grateful. The anger needed to come out somehow. Better onto a pillow than a person.

The bot knelt down next to the bed and weaselled a hand up to your side, brushing your now bare skin. Once you responded by pulling him closer he took the cue and gently lifted you. Rung straightened out the sheets, fluffed the pillows, and climbed into the bed next to you. With the lights dimmed, texture fixed, and your lover next to you things were alright.

He rubbed your shoulders to relax some of the tension left behind. Giving you kisses on the head as you snuggled closer. His spark casing had a calming thrum.

“I’m so sorry baby...” You mumbled remorsefully into his chassis. He smiled and held you close. “I should have taken your advice, I should have taken a break.” 

Rung hummed and mulled what you said over in his head for a second. You loved just how thoughtful he was, how he actually heard what you said and took it into account. 

“It’s okay darling,” He began, cradling you as you so craved. Shielding you from the negative sensations of the world. “You’re resting now. I’ve got you.” 

It didn’t take very long after that for sleep to catch up to you. Rung double checked to make sure you were alright, leaving for only a moment to bring water to you and some of your favorite swim toys. Music? He hummed a little melody for you. Chewlery? Yeah he’s got those too. His digits stroked your face gently and he took his glasses off. 

Slowly but surely, the persistent annoyance of the world slipped away from you. Your contended face made Rung smile. 

“Feeling better?” 

“Yeah, thank you Hun.” 

[phecdasolar]

*cracks knuckles* my time has come

Top of the list is one of my all time favorites I CANNOT get enough of them, may I present;

[T] The Echo Garden by AltraViolet

MTMTE/LL crossover with Transformers Prime (Soundwave specifically)

Incredibly slow burn crack ship taken seriously that’s actually really good I would die for them (It’s Rodimus and TFP Soundwave, just trust me on this it’s so good)

33 chapters and still going

206k words

The world building and character depth is phenomenal, even the background characters have personality I love them all so much this is a masterpiece of fiction I am *shakes you aggressively* PLEASE READ THIS

Next on the list is actually a short series by one of my FAVORITE Ao3 authors ApatheticRobots

[T] The fundamentals of conscious existence

Yes it is another crossover series if you can’t tell I really love crossovers I’m not sorry

Anyways crossover between IDW and TFP as well as IDW Shattered Glass in the last book

Ship is Wheeljack/Starscream

The fics basically go Wheeljack isekai, then Starscream therapy arc, then soft cinnamon roll Starscream meets angsty counterpart

Series of one-shots, being 10k, 17k, and 4K respectively, I don’t know if the series itself is complete tho

It’s just really precious to me and I hold them near and dear and close to my heart I hope you enjoy them the same way <3

Aight let’s see next thing I have is, uh. Well I found this in my bookmarks from like. 2 years ago and it’s basically a musical redemption arc I think..? I have no idea but it was good enough for me to bookmark so I’ll trust past me

[T] The One Where Everyone Sings by EHSparkwoman

Aight so from what I remember this is basically a DJD redemption fic but it’s. Done using songs. He. Megatron literally sings them into redemption I have no idea. The Greatest Showman is mentioned. I have no idea what’s going on. It’s funny tho so have fun

5 chapters, complete

28k words

I have no idea how big a part the ships play in this but the DJD is all in a relationship which, good for them, and then there’s also uhhhhhhh I just looked at the tags that’s too many to list but just like. The main gays basically, we all know who

I’m gonna reread this later actually I’m curious now

Let’s see I’m bound to have some more fics somewhere I’m obsessed with these skrunkly little robot dudes, I remember having some other ones I really enjoyed somewhere, it’s just been awhile- actually I’m going to dig around ApatheticRobots more, obviously I’m gonna find more great content hold on- OH! Here we go! Knew I could count on them :D

Anyways! more softness by ApatheticRobots here’s a mouthful of a title with a Homestuck reference to boot (love them)

[G] That’s a hell of a mystery no one thought was a mystery and didn’t even really need solving but damn if it didn’t just get solved so nice work

Two words: Paper cranes

Bunch of short scenes that connect together in the end

Pairing is CyWhirlGate but it’s not the main focus of the fic

One-shot, 3k words

Autistic Ultra Magnus my beloved he is so <3

Surprise surprise MORE content by ApatheticRobots I love them y’know what I should just link you directly to their account go. Go follow them and give them love they deserve all the nice things in the world I love them

[T] The good doctor, in the context of involving so-called ‘doctors of divinity’

Another series of one-shots surrounding Whirl going to therapy and his relationship with Rung. They are. So soft. Their friendship is everything to me. The last one-shot killed me five times and took everything I cared about. I love them.

3 one-shots, completed

Fics are 2.4K, 2k and 1k respectively

No ships this time just patient-patientee/friendship. They are special to me and I love them. Have I said that I love them? Because I do. Very much.

Heheh you got me scavenging right now I’m trying to find every single IDW fic I’ve ever read and loved thank you for giving me the excuse to do this :D

Okay I think this is the last one I have rn but if I find more I’ll update the list how about that :D

Fair warning, it’s a mildly inappropriate, but nothing ever actually happens bc it’s more just their type of humor? I guess but it’s FUNNY and I love them

[T] Winning Hearts and Minds (and Spikes) by TrebleTwenty

Basically the war propaganda goes from “Join Us Or Die” and “We Need YOU” to “Join the Autobots/Decepticons look how sexy our group members our, aren’t they gorgeous, Cybertron’s next top model but ONLY if you join” and it’s just. I’m crying it’s so funny please

4 chapters ongoing, though it hasn’t updated since 2019 so idk TvT

16k words

Immature inappropriate humor I am sorry for that at the very least but that is also as far as it goes I pinky swear

Jazz is an Icon™️ and peak comedy, Prowl is suffering, and Megatron is literally babysitting his high command and I am all here for it

Aight I think that’s all I’ve got for now, hope you enjoy!!! (^^) <333

I have officially finished Transformers Lost Light and I am now DEVASTATED emotionally.

Does anybody have good fanfic recommendations for MTMTE/LL or even Wreckers??? Doesn’t matter if they have pairings, OCs, etc I just wanna know the BEST fic you’ve ever read.

[soundcrusher]

When the bird fell

Oh boy. OH FREAKING BOY!

Part 4 of season 3 from my ongoing story set in the sentient sg/Lost Light au from @cuppajj is out, and I have to say, it's a freaking ride.

This...this part is 5 and a third pages long. And I had fun writing it, while at the same time feeeling bad for Phoenix...

Okay, fun doesn't really describe it, I was just hit by the muse-train/muse-truck. I don't know.

Either way, enjoy.

Ps: I'm not good in writing fighting scenes... So.... sorry for that

Trigger Warning: Character death

..;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;....;;..

“HOW DARE YOU COME HERE?!” Phoenix flinched as his mother’s booming voice rang through the home. Never in his whole life has he ever heard his mother be this angry at anyone. Yes there were times where she was irritated or enraged by someone, but never angry. It was unusual and scary. And the youngling's fears only grew, as he felt Rodimus let go of him. 

“Wait here.” Was all the prime said, as he made his way down the stairs and over to the front door. Rifle in his servos, just in case. After all, with Lightlost being on Cybertron, Rodimus couldn’t be too careful. So, he used a wall as cover, while watching Tankcrusher argue with whoever was there. Although, Rodimus was soon enough distracted by his brother walking up to him, followed by Dominus. “You know that I don’t like being left alone…” Muttered Phoenix, as he hid together with Rodimus and Dominus behind the wall. 

“I know, but considering we don’t know who’s there, I thought it might have been safer for you, if you stayed in your room.” Said the prime. Giving his brother no time to reply, as he placed a servo over Phoenix’s mouth. Silencing the younger mech, because both Tankcrusher and the unwanted guest fell quiet. 

“You… know… that I missed you… don’t you?” Came the soft whisper of a mech, whose voicebox was clearly damaged, or, at least, newly fixed. “I… am not asking for… forgiveness. I do not… deserve it. Not after hurting… you and Phoenix… but, Bessie… listen. You’re in… danger…. I can’t say more…. I  can’t, but, please…. run. Take the boys and run. Far away from here…”

“We haven't seen each other for years, Thrillchaser, for years, and now you show up only to tell me a lunatic is trying to get to my sons!?” Tankcrusher’s voice was deathly calm, as she grabbed Thrillchaser by the front of his armor and hefted him up to look him in the optics. “You left me alone with Phoenix. You left our sparkling without a sire! And now you’re back and endangering the lives of our son and his brothers? What kind of conjux does that?!”

“A… foolish one…” Thrillchaser couldn’t do anything else than hang there. He knew that coming here to warn Tankcrusher and the boys was a bad idea. Especially considering everything he’s done, but he couldn't do nothing either. Tankcrusher was, and still is, his  conjux after all. His one true love, and whatever little emotion he had left, compelled him to do the only right thing and warn her. If she listened to him was her choice though. “But… if you don’t believe me… then I will… go…”

“Go, and never return.”  Said the femme, as she set the flier down. giving him one strong push, before grabbing the doorknob. “Because I can see that the Thrillchaser I loved died a long time ago.” But before she could close the door, Phoenix rushed forward. Yelling a quick “Stop!” before pushing himself past Tankcrusher and grabbing Thrillchaser’s only servo. Stopping the mech in his steps. 

“Please… stop…” 

Phoenix was lost, as he looked up at the mech who he only knew as the silent observer Lightlost made walk around the Lost Light, or as the one who would watch him play the guitar and sing. But never would have Phoenix thought that this mech was his father. They shared no resemblance, except for the wings. Which only caused Phoenix to realize how much he didn’t fit into this family. “You… left because of me, didn’t you?” 

“Yes.”

“Have you ever thought about… about coming back?” 

Thrillchaser could hear the hope in Phoenix’s voice, as the youngling looked up at him. And despite the blackened visor, the flier saw the innocence his sparklings optics held. An innocent Thrillchaser thought about extinguishing the first time he saw him on that cursed ship. An innocent, that no-one seemed to be able to take from him. Be it Lightlost, Runningway, Thrillchaser, or any other being in the universe. And that realization caused Thrillchaser’s spark to ache worse than before, as he squeezed Phoenix’s servos, before letting go. Muttering a single “No” and turning around. Walking away, as the youngling stood there frozen. 

This was for the better, Thrillchaser told himself. He had no right to be in Phoenix’s life after everything he’s done. After he thought about killing his own sparkling just because he thought he was the dead prime reborn. So, Thrillchaser returned to the Lost Light. Already fabricating a story in his mind about how his ‘prey’ wasn’t home and how they might have figured out something was up and left Cybertron. But how was he supposed to make it believable? Every version he came up with had holes in it. Holes, the Lost Light would quickly pick up on and then they would know that he tried to warn them. 

“I see you have returned.” Came the Lost Light’s voice from all around him, as he stepped onto the bridge. He didn’t know why the shipformer cared for this room the most, but if he had to take a guess, it would probably have to do something with the empty captain’s chair, or the small nest of blankets and pillows a little bit farther away from it. Or perhaps it was the small painting depicting Lightlost, Rodimus and Phoenix all holding hands and smiling on the wall next to the nest. A painting clearly done by someone who was still learning. 

There was more than one painting scattered around the ship though. Thrillchaser has seen a few of them. Most were arrows pointing down hallways and towards doors, others depicted some of the dead Cybertronians on the ship or other things the painter deemed as interesting. He once tried to clean the bridge, the wall next to the provisionally bed in particular, but before he could even touch anything, he was stopped by a cable wrapping around his servo and harshly pulling him away from the painting. Thrillchaiser hasn’t tried to get all too close to the paintings afterwards. The Lost Light made it clear that they wouldn’t like it if he removed any of them and he didn’t want to needlessly agitate them. 

But now, as he took another look at the painting, Thrillchaser found himself wondering how deep Lightlost’s influence on the youngling runs. Phoenix is still attached to them, if his observations aren’t wrong, and after being forced to watch the security videos and having stalked the youngspark through the ship himself, Thirllchaser finds himself regretting leaving Tankcrusher and Phoenix all those years ago. 

Maybe if he had stayed, Phoenix would have never left Cybertron with his old crew and been subjected to whatever the Lost Light did to him. The prime would probably still be on this ship, trapped in an never ending circle of torture, but at least Phoenix would have been spared this ‘expirience’. 

But then again, Thrillchaser was a fool and fate would have probably found another way to write its story either way. 

“I didn’t think you would be back so soon, Thrillchaser.” Said Lightlost, as they let their holo-avatar appear next to the flier. Noticing how the usually emotionless mech got startled by this simple action. Something they found quite suspicious. “Why don’t you tell me about your findings? I’m sure that you have something very interesting to report. After all, you did visit your conjux’s home. Disobeying my orders in the process.”

This was a trap, Thrillchaser could feel it. Lightlost might not have said it outright, but he was  sure they knew what he did. They sure enough knew that he tried to warn them. But still, Thrillchaser tried to come up with a lie. But a lie created in desperation can’t convince anyone. 

“Do you really think I can’t see through your lie?” Asked Lightlost sweetly, as they walked away from Thrillchaser and over to the painting. Kneeling down in front of it, before running a loving servo over it. “Do you know how long I have waited for this chance? My captain and little bird are so close. All I have to do is reach my servo out and grab the little bird’s wings. Crushing them, so that he can never leave again. And then, all I have to do is wait for my captain to come to me. But, there’s just one little problem. Do you know what it is?”

Thrillchaser could hear the threatening tone underneath the friendly charade Lightlost put on. He has heard it many times before, but somehow, it scared him more than anything else now. So, he simply shook his head. Not trusting his voice to hide his slight fear.

“Really? You have no idea?” They asked, letting out a soft, amused chuckle afterwards. “Not even one guess? Ah, Thrillchaser, and here I thought you were clever. I see where Phoenix gets his naivety from. But I guess that’s the only thing he’s got from you. My little bird is way too good to be compared to someone like you after all.” That stung more than Thrillchaser thought it would, but Lostlight didn’t seem to stop there. “Maybe that’s why I’m his parent, and not you. I could give him something you didn’t, even though you had the chance to.”

“And… what is… that? Trauma? Fears? The… inability to socially function… outside the walls of a ship?” Asked the flier, as he flared his useless wings as best as he could. Thrillchaser might not have been there for Phoenix, he might have tried to get rid of his sparkling, but never has he done what Lightlost did. And yet, despite his threatening gesture, Thrillchaser found himself backing away as the Holo-avatar walked towards him. 

“Maybe I have installed one or two fears into my little bird, but the world outside is scary. How many of his crew have hurt him? How many have tried to kill him, despite him never doing anything to them. Even you tried to hurt him, no, you didn’t try.” They said with a smile. “You hurt him. Admitting to his face that he was the reason for you leaving and then saying that you never planned on coming back, imagen the toll of such a truth on his young spark. But, it only proves my point. There is no other place for him, than with me.”

“H-how…” Was all Thrillchaser could say, before cables dropped down from the ceiling. Wrapping around his body and making sure he couldn’t escape. He knew it, this was a trap from the moment he stepped onto the ship, and yet, he was still stupid enough to return. Maybe he should have stayed with them. Made sure that they left Cybertron, before the Lost Light realized, but then again, it would have just delayed the inevitable. 

“If you think I wouldn’t keep an optic on you, you thought wrong. I knew that I couldn’t trust you anymore. Not since you stopped following my captain and little bird for a while. Ah, and here I thought that giving you your voice back would change things. But I guess I thought wrong. Just means I have to take it from you again.” Was all Lightlost said, before leaving the  bridge and walking towards the medibay. Dragging Thrillchaser after them with their cables.

It didn’t take long for Lightlost to finish Thrillchaser’s little ‘operation’. Removing a voice box was, after all, easier than keeping their captain alive. Ah,but they could have also simply killed the mech then and there, but that would have been a shame. They put too much work into that flier than to just kill him. No, they will keep him alive a little while longer. Even if it’s just to let him witness the next steps of their plan. 

A plan, they were already setting in motion by making their way over to Phoenix’s old home. Although, Lightlost was stopped in their tracks by a tall femme who shared a similar paint job to their little bird. And while the femme made sure they wouldn’t be able to move further towards the house, they spotted Phoenix, Rodimus and that turbofox they picked up hide inside. Looking out through the windows. With Rodimus having taken position on the second floor, rifle in his servos and aimed at them. Always trying to fight his way out of a situation, although their captain taking a step back and not joining the fight in the front lines is something new. Maybe he’s finally starting to listen to them?

Either way, Lightlost came to catch a little bird and get rid of the mother bird. And they don’t really plan on going empty handed. 

So, they didn’t waste any second, and without any warning, Lightlost pulled out their spear and was quick to attack the femme. Landing one hit, before his weapon was blocked by her rifle. 

“You have something that belongs to me, Tankcrusher, and I tend to take it back.” Said Lightlost, as they took one step to the side, before quickly striking again. They could see that the femme wasn’t used to one on one compat, or, at least she hasn’t been honing her fighting skills for quite some time. Something, Lightlost had to admit they had in common, but then again, they had the advantage of being a Holo-avatar, while Tancrusher was not.

“As if I would let you get your servos on my boys.” Growled Tankcrusher back.

Their dance of death continued for quite some time. Neither of them were willing to give up on ending the other. But only one of them knew, there was only one end to this fight. And that only one would make it out ‘alive’. 

But Tankcrusher didn’t. And as she wrestled her weapon free from Lightlost’s and took her chance to shoot at the mech in front of her, she was stunned to see the shot move through Lightlost’s body and hit a lamppost behind them. And this was an opportunity the Holo-avatar did not waste. No, without a second doubt, they rammed their spear into Tankcrusher’s middle. Giving it a good twist, as if to make sure the femme would know that this was her end, before slicing her in half. Watching her bleed out in front of them, before quickly blocking an incoming sword strike from none other than their little bird. 

And here Lightlost thought that they had to drag the little bird out of its nest. 

“H-how?! MAMA!? Why!? WHY LIGHTLOST?!” Screeched the youngling, as he kept on swinging his sword. But the swings were careless and easy to dodge. “I thought… I thought you were… why?! Why kill my mama?!”

“She attacked me first, little bird. I simply defended myself.” They said, but their soft words didn’t seem to help soothe the younglings wild emotions. So, if soft words didn’t help, then they would use different ones and play on the youngling’s need of proving that he was a good kid. 

So, with a sad sigh, Lightlost looked down at Phoenix with a disappointed look in their optics, before saying. “Little bird... I'm not mad at you for attacking me. It's understandable, but it disappoints me that you would even think of doing it. Especially after I have proven time and time again, that I only mean well." And those words seemed to do the trick, because hearing and seeing Lightlost, his parent, being disappointed in him caused Phoenix to hesitate. Because, in a way, they were right. From what Phoenix could see, his mama attacked first. Leaving Lightlost no other option as to fight back. But then again, they didn’t have to kill her either. 

And as Phoenix looked down at the slowly dimming visor of his mama, he could no longer fight the tears. This was too much for him. It was too much for his poor spark, and he started to cry. Dropping his sword on the ground, to better hug himself. This wasn’t real. This couldn’t be real. His mama wasn’t dying, and Lightlost wasn’t the one who did this. He’s just sleeping. 

Yes. He was sleeping and this was just a nightmare. 

Although, this was no dream, and deep down, Phoenix knew that. But the realization came too late, and as he looked up at Lightlost with teary optics, the youngling could do nothing against them as they hit him over the helm. Knocking him out successfully, before quickly catching him. And as they carried the youngling away from the scene, they could hear Rodimus and Dominus run towards them. 

But before they could even come too close, Lightlost turned around. Fixing both of them with a warning glare, disguised as a warm smile. Causing both of them to stop in their tracks, and Rodimus to hold Dominus back, in case the turbofo tried anything.

“Ah, my captain,” they said, “I would love to stay and celebrate our reunion but sadly, I have to go. This little bird is in need of some medical attention, and I doubt that the both of you could help him. So, please, try and find me after I have left Cybertron, because", they said with a sweet smile and cheerful voice, "I don't know what will happen to our little bird, if you don't show up. He might lose a leg, maybe his voice, or maybe..." Their smile distorted, until it was too sweet and kind, while they softly cradled the youngling's head to their chest. Gazing down at the ‘sleeping’ youngling with a smile. "Phoenix will lose his mind.” 

After they said that, Lightlost left for good. Carrying their little bird back towards his cage, but not before saying, “See you soon, captain."

And Rodimus and Dominus could do nothing else than watch Lightlost take the youngling away from them, for they knew that trying to do something now, would only lead to defeat and, maybe, another death. 

“Come…” muttered the prime after Lightlost and Phoenix were long gone. “We have to bury Tankcrusher….” 

[keldabika]

1/1 Hello! headcanon S/O makes good covers of songs and music videos(like those YouTube videos)? Swerve, as a lover of Earth(this is how it was mentioned in the comics) walks on the Internet and finds various covers performed by their human friend, watches and listens to them all and then runs to show Rewind.

[TF MTMTE] S/O Who Makes Song Covers

———————————————————————

* At first, Swerve was having a particularly slow day in the bar.

* He had just dealt with another one of Whirl’s shenanigans which accidentally blew up into a huge scuffle between Whirl and Skids, which got Chromedome and Rewind involved after Whirl stole their drinks in order to drench Skids in energon.

* The resident liaison, aka you, had watched from afar as everything turned to scrap between them and the whole area erupted into a bar fight.

* Swerve was embarrassed to say the least—the one person who ever seemed to pay attention to him on this damned ship, and they witnessed him unable to control his own patrons.

* He decided to close the bar early and retire off to his habsuite afterwards—better than sticking around.

* Turned on a datapad while sipping a cube of highgrade because Primus knows he deserves it.

* Began surfing through the internet and stumbled upon his favourite video streaming and uploading site: youtube.

* At first he scrolled through recommended cat videos, DIY’s and gaming streams, until he found something strangely out of place on the home page.

* He’d stumbled upon the music section and saw your face plastered to the front of a video image. Beneath it captioned “Born this way [Cover by s/o]” and featuring a plethora of other musicians and background singer mentions.

* He clicked on it, immediately entranced by the thought of you having a secret life or hobby, possibly whatever you did for a living before joining the LL crew.

* Absolutely astounded by the sound of your voice—he truly believed you were the incarnation of clarity based on the effortlessness of your rhythm and lack of lisps or vocal breaks.

* Swerve used to invest a bit in musicians back on Cybertron, he never owned a bar back then but understood that Cybertron’s versions of human ‘Harlems’ contained a lot of organized musical entertainment.

* When he opened a bar on the ship after finding the distillery with Skids, the first thing he thought of was music.

* Never found a decent singer cause everybody on the LL sucks.

* Immediately after finishing the first video, he clicked on your profile and continued scrolling, finding the oldest one on your account and beginning there.

* The post itself was 8 years old, which meant you had been in the industry of cover songs and albums for a decent time before you joined the LL on their adventures across space.

* He listened to every single one of them, with themes ranging from jazz and reggae, to rap and pop music from disney movies.

* Fell in love with your personality even more through your music; surely someone who sounds so beautiful has a beautiful heart as well!

* Immediately after finishing the last video, he ran to show the only other over-appreciator of media: Rewind.

* Rewind was astounded as well by your abilities, immediately began recording and downloading the recordings to a private database for future purposes.

* Both of them immediately called a bar meeting at like.... 3 am.

* Ultra Magnus (Minimus Ambus) arrived first and demanded to know why an emergency meeting was called.

* Rodimus and Chromedome arrived next because Roddy thought there’d be a fight, and Chromedome heard that Rewind sounded the emergency alert.

* As soon as everyone gathered, and Swerve stated it had something to do with their dear human liaison, everybody shut up.

* The room fell silent until Rewind began streaming the music to the bar speakers.

* Immediate awe from everyone in the room.

* This melodious voice belonged to s/o? Their little liaison? The one everybody used to ignore?

* Crushes and developing friendships all around the room and you hadn’t even arrived yet.

* The moment you stepped foot into the bar, everybody once again went quiet. When you asked why, an immediate response broke out.

* “You sing?!” and “I didn’t know your original function was a musician?” and “I didn’t know you had such a sweet voice!” rang out across the ship.

* You were evidently startled, and Swerve could tell—Rewind as well—and Swerve had to smash a clean glass against the counter to gain everyone’s attention again.

* “Let’s hear what our friend here has to say, shall we?”

* Everybody once again turned to face you.

* You explained that it was rather embarrassing they had stumbled upon an old ‘hobby’ of yours, but told them that you used to be a well-loved solo-singer back in the early days before the lost light.

* You never gained much fame beyond the internet media streams and sometimes group choreographs, but found a joy in music anyways, hoping to make your life long dream of finding fame and happiness out of singing come true.

* When you realized that such a thing was hard to achieve, especially in your national industry, you basically gave up on trying to achieve it, which is why the date of your last upload was about 2 years before you came to the crew.

* They listened intently, Swerve especially, and their expressions changed from astonishment to sadness.

* “So you.... don’t sing anymore?” came from a slightly downed Megatron—he thought there’d finally be someone to appreciate his poetry.

* You told him no, and the entire bar began to beg. About 100 bots shoved into a small bar, begging and pleading with you to continue your dream and make new music—some offering to teach you Cybertronian if it meant you could produce it in their language.

* The hesitancy in your voice was obvious, but you did eventually agree.

* The LL broke out into cheering, and Swerve reopened the bar for the night so that the others could party away. Ultra Magnus and some other tired bots slipped off down the halls to recharge again, but not before offering their congratulations (and bribes).

* You smiled slightly and exited the room, heading to the internal flight deck for some alone time.

* Swerve eventually made his way down after everyone had had their drinks, wanting to speak with you about the past.

* “Why’d ya’ give it up in the first place? Singing I mean.”

* “I don’t really know, I suppose because I realized that my dreams were unobtainable.”

* “Then maybe you’ll find that here on the Lost Light, there’s a lot more room for change.” he spoke to you.

* He didn’t know it that night, but you agreed with him. There was a lot that the world could offer, even more so now that you knew the universe was so vast.

* Maybe you went unappreciated on Earth, but you now have hundreds of bots ready to fight for a simple song from you.

* And who knows? Music videos would be 1000% cooler if you filmed them with giant robots out in space.

BONUS:

* Your voice alone singlehandedly turned Getaway back to the good side.

———————————————————————

✨ Hope you enjoyed ✨

[my-own-oracle]

Could I get a fluffy Drift romantic Valentine thingy?

Of course! Every bot deserves some love. You didn't specify any specific version of Drift, so I'm going with the MTMTE version. If you wanted RID15 or something else, just let me know. Sorry, this kinda got long; I've been without power for the majority of 3 days, this was one of the few things I could to do.

You still kept track of the days that passed on Earth. At first, it was for your own amusement. Wanting to keep track of the time on Earth, but as some holidays came and went, you kept track to keep the connection to your home alive. You kept track of the calendar changes, making a special note when you entered the month of February

You planned, quietly and carefully, gathering spare datapads and using your little stash of credits to purchase a small gift for a particular bot. It was hard keeping the whole thing a secret, considering most of the things you had to hide away were significantly larger than you, but by the power of pure determination, you managed. 

You spent hours locked away in your hab-unit, carefully typing out cheesy Valentine's poems for your friends. Most following the 'roses are red, and violets are blue' format. And when they were done, you beamed. 

You spent the day dragging different data pads around to other bots. Tailgate had even decided to help you for a while, flying you around on his hoverboard, laughing and talking with you as you made your way through the large ship. Even with his help, the event took up most of the day. Slowly everything was handed out. All but one Valentine remained. 

You bid a farewell to Tailgate as he dropped you off at your hab-unit. You had to do this delivery alone. 

This was the Valentine that mattered the most.

**** Drift had spent most of the day with Rodimus, talking about everything from different tactical plans to the many ways the Co-captain could encourage and rally his mechs with a more powerful aura. Or at least Rodimus pretended to listen to that last part. Either way, Drift had spent several hours with his friend. During that time, the spectralist had spied an unusual sight, a datapad in Rodimus' personal quarters. "Did someone slip that in here when you weren't looking?" Rodimus laughed good-naturedly before shaking his helm.

"No, the Space Cadet dropped it off. She's celebrating an earth holiday today and is passing out some gifts to bots she thinks will appreciate them. Rodimus passed the datapad over to Drift, letting him read the short poem written on it.

"Roses are red, And you are too. I am so thankful, To be friends with you." 

Drift found himself smiling as he reads the blurb of text below it, where you explained Valentine's day and its significance to humans in your own culture. 

"So this day is used to express love and gratitude to those around you?" Drift clarified, smiling a little wider as Rodimus nodded.

"She told me humans also use this day as an excuse to express more romantic kinds of love too."

A feeling of jealousy settled in his tanks. 

"(Y/N)- she is truly a wonderful person. Did she pass out many of these?" 

"She had a large stack. You'll probably have one waiting for you in your room," A servo pushed into drifts shoulder plating.

"I doubt that we-" he calms his spark before speaking again. "We may be friends, but we hardly spend time alone together. I think she's frightened of me."

"Uhhh I-"

"She must have learned about some of the things in my past. She can hardly look at me in the optics when we're together, and if we are alone, she can't speak. I fear that I may be terrifying to be around.."

"Okay…. Have you ever thought that maybe your being," Rodumis rolled his optics, "I don't know, a little overdramatic?" 

Drift pondered the thought. But no matter how he looked at it, the hesitant gaze, the fidgeting when together, the quietness she only had around him, all signs pointed to her fearing him.

"Drift, please, don't make me be the responsible one. It goes against my entire being." 

Silence lapsed again.

"I am not spelling this out for you," Rodimus stood, pulling Drift to his peds and shoving him out the door. "Come back when you're done being a sparkling. Go talk to her," the door shut, leaving Drift to walk back to his hab-unit.

****

You could feel your heart racing under your ribs. Thundering with each step you took, leading you to pause every few meters. 'This is so stupid. I can't do this.' you told yourself for the hundredth time. 

"You alright there, Space Cadet?" you snapped your head behind you, spying Rodimus standing maybe a few feet away. When had he snuck up on you?

"I'm fine, just lost in my head." you face back towards Drifts unit, your confidence waning with each passing second.

"Is that another one of those valentines?" Rodimus squatted down to you your level, a servo reaching out to the special datapad you had placed on the hall floor. 

"No," you dashed in front of his hand. "Nothing of interest, really. It's just like the one I gave to you and everybody else."

"And I suppose the box next to it is nothing too," you took a large step to the right, standing between the white and red wrapped box you had next to the Data-pad, before sharing a small, shy smile with the co-captain.

"It's- it's nothing." your voice was softer than you wanted it to be. The smug look on Rodimus' face told you he didn't buy it. "I wanted to give a gift to someone, and if I was on Earth, I would give a special someone candy. I found out Cybertronians can eat energon candies, and I bought a crystal of it as a gift. But it's stupid. He probably won't like it anyways." 

You sunk your head closer to your shoulders. "Just giving him a poem and a piece of candy isn't going to make someone like him notice me." Your fingers worked at the hem of your shirt, rolling the worn material as a means to work out the lump you felt forming in your throat.

Rodimus held his servo out to you, a silent invitation to 'climb up' as he so often said. You took it, settling down into his palm. You watched as he carefully gathered your measly gift into his other servo and began walking in the direction you needed to go.

"So, you like this mech, and you're worried he doesn't like you." You nod. "Who is it?"

"I'd rather not say."

"It's not Ultra Magnus, is it?" You snap a playful glare at your friend. "I just needed to know, I'd still support you, but I won't be thrilled."

"No, it's not Magnus." you heard his vent of relief. Thundering footsteps filled the hall as Rodimus carried you farther a small way.

"so…"

"It- I, Drift," you whispered. "It's for Drift." You were thankful Rodimus didn't outright laugh. He did his best to stay composed. You could feel it in the way his digits curled for a moment, him gasping for air as he tried to talk.

"You think, he- you dont realize-" giggles filled the space between each attempted sentence.

"Yes, I like Drift. Go on, get it out. The little silly human is in love with a bot who probably couldn't care less, who's so far out of her league it's embarrassing." The lump in your throat returned, this time accompanied by a burning feeling behind your eyes. You took a few calming breaths, refusing to cry in such a frustrating situation.

"Oh stars, you're hopeless." Rodimus was smiling, oblivious to your emotional turmoil or not caring about it. "Trust me," he lifted you level with his politics, "He'll be thrilled."

***** Drift sat in his hab-unit, wondering how he could use this Valentine's day thing to his advantage. Find a way to earn some positive affection, and talk to you.

He was coming up blank; you were beloved. There was no way you would give up your time to talk to a bot who terrified you. If only he knew a way to quell your fear and maybe show that he wasn't such a bad bot. Drift heard his door open but didn't turn from his desk. His EM field told him it was Rodimus. 

"Yo." Rodimus walks over to Drift, and before he can turn, his friend grips the closest servo to him. Drift feels you more than sees you, as you're practically tossed into his servo. His optics widen monetarily, and he throws his other servo around you, desperately trying to keep you from falling.

You have his full attention, so much so that the sound of Rodimus putting your gift down on Drift's desk before walking out hardly registers in his audials. Rodimus' smug "You'll thank me later" rings aloud and as the door slides shut behind him.

Drift cautiously checks you over for injuries.  Slowly you roll over, sitting up and trying to look up into Drift's optics. 

Your eyes can barely go past his chassis.

"Are you alright?" Drift questions. His optics take over you again, first your body, then your aura.  

"Hi Drift, I'm alright" you raise your hand in a little wave,  you sound a little frightened, and he watches as your body tenses. "I'm sorry for-uh- barging in like this. But I wanted to bring you a valentines gift." you waved your hand to the small offering on the desk beside him. "It's been delivered, so I'll stop bothering you now, I'm so sorry to have-"

"You are not bothering me," he smiles down at you. You're nervous; that much is plain to see.  He turns his attention to your gift. While the box interests him, he takes the datapad first. 

"Roses are red, And you are kind. I hold you in my heart, always on my mind."

He watches from the corner of his optics as you become red, the color complimenting the flustered pink in your aura. 

"The poem is beautiful," he smiles, but you don't look at him in the optic. He puts down the pad and reaches for the box. The lid removes easily, and he is touched by the piece of energon candy you had inside. 

"Thank you for my gifts, though I will say I'm surprised you gave me one," your eyes snapped to his optics wide and hurt.

"Why, you're my friend." Your question was soft, so quiet should he had been organic, he wouldn't have heard it. 

"You're frightened of me, so I didnt think you would take the time to make me a gift."

"I'm not frightened of you," your hand reached our reassuringly to one of the digits around you, "What gave you that impression?"

Drift listed the clues he had gathered over the few months you'd been aboard, noting that with each one, a look of guilt took form over your face.

"Drift- I-I am not afraid of you," you stood abruptly, hopping from his hand to his desk "do you know what valentine's day is all about on earth?" 

"It's about showing your affection to those in your life," your smile made his spark hum. It was soft, there was fear, but he focused in closer and saw in your aura; it wasn't a fear of him.

"Correct, but only half correct. It's also about telling people who don't know you lo-" you took a breath. "Some humans use this day to confess their love for another person." He could see the struggle you had to keep your eyes at his optics. "Those things I did, the ones that made you think I was scared of you, I did them because I was nervous. I really like you Drift, I would go as far as to say love, but I'm frightened at what you'll do, what you'll think." 

He brought his servo to you again, two digits brushing your cheek and your hair. "If I were human, and it was Valentine's day, what should I do to quell your fears? How am I supposed to respond if I feel the same way about you?" 

You leaned into his digits, your body relaxing from a tension he hadn't realized you had been holding in.

"You just did."

[writeyouin]

Swerve X Reader – Changes - Chapter 7

Chapter 7 – A Rescue Without a Plan

A/N – Finally back to this baby, and boy am I glad to be back.

Warnings – None.

Rating – T

“Making your way in the world today, takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot.” You sang the Cheers song quietly in your cell, concentrating heavily on the cell bars.

Ever since you had forced yourself to calm down, streams of information had come flooding across your optics, revealing structural strengths and weaknesses to everything you looked at. You hoped to find something about the electrified bars that might lead to your escape, but so far, all the weaknesses were ones you couldn’t exploit from within the cell. You had long since given up on desperately trying to contact the Lost Light, figuring that something was blocking your comms.

You sighed, giving up on your song, a childish idea coming to mind. You knew nothing would come of it, but a smile reached your lips as you stared at your hand, “Go-Go-Gadget, Lock Pick.”

Naturally, nothing happened, but at least you were entertained, so you continued the game, taking comfort in the familiar words. “Go-Go-Gadget, Gun. Go-Go-Gadget, Scanner. Go-Go-Gadget, Blow Torch-” You jumped back in shock as one of your fingertips split open at the command, a strong blue flame roaring up from the split. You didn’t know whether you should be praising Brainstorm, for this was most certainly his addition, or cursing him for the cartoonish way you had accessed the tool. You were almost afraid to wonder how many of your body’s other commands were linked to the phrase Go-Go-Gadget.

Without wasting any more time, you put the flame to the bars, beginning the laborious process of escaping your cell.

As you worked, you had one more idea which you hastily tried, “Go-Go-Gadget, Manual.”

Before your optics, a string of writing cropped up, instructions on how your Cybertronian body worked. “Play audio,” You said, having been introduced to the opening menu. Perceptor’s voice filled your audials, starting your tutorial on your new body. You vented air through your systems and got to work, studying during your attempted escape.

Once he had been released from his cell, Swerve spent all of his time at the Lost Light’s shooting range, his aim never improving despite his efforts. He knew he had little hope of becoming a soldier in the time it would take to get to you, but he didn’t care, so long as he had something to keep him occupied. How could other humans be so cruel as to throw you of all people in a battle arena? You were kind and compassionate, and you would never have even considered harming another species, claiming that all were equal.

Swerve had often found you crying over books wherein humans had treated others terribly, mostly among their own species. He remembered asking you why you chose to read such books as The Diary of Anne Frank or Boy Erased, if they only served to make you upset, and you had replied that they were important to read lest history be repeated from ignorance. It was awful to think that you, the most empathetic of souls, were going to be scrapped for the entertainment of others.

Swerve knew they didn’t have long to rescue you. If the Arena’s advertisements were to be believed, you would be entering one of their battles in less than three cycles, when the new contestants would arrive to scrap you.

Swerve couldn’t forget the picture they had uploaded of you on the advertisement. You had been harmed in ways he never wanted to see, deep gashes in your arms and visible dents everywhere, yet in the picture, you were defiantly angry. He alone could recognise the fear beneath, but he couldn’t be prouder to see that you weren’t giving your captor the satisfaction of your apprehension.

He reloaded his gun, aiming it at the target, imagining it was your captors. Despite his anger, he missed, hitting a spot on the wall at least six feet from the target. Coolant sprung to his optics. You were in danger and he was completely useless. He couldn’t pilot the ship, he couldn’t shoot, it wasn’t even him that had discovered your location; that had been Nightbeat while he was too busy feeling sorry for himself. He was useless.

Rodimus’ voice rang clear through Swerve’s comms. It was a channel he had left open until you were found; that way anyone who needed him could contact him.

“Swerve, get to the board room. We have news on (Y/N).”

Swerve brusquely wiped the coolant from his optics, throwing the gun on the table before leaving. As soon as he was in the hallway, he transformed, speeding to the board room, eager for any information he could get, yet also terrified about what it could mean for you.

He didn’t say anything as he entered, his attention, like everyone else’s drawn to the video-feed of the Arena, where a human woman in acid-green armour was speaking.

“Greetings to fans, peasants, and nobles alike. It is I, Lady Ouida, your adored host of the Arena.”

Lady Ouida. Swerve glared at her holographic form, now having a name and a face to put to his enemy.

“As all of us betting royals know, there is to be a new competitor here. The foul-mouthed mini menace has refused to state her name, but we don’t care about that. We only care about one thing and one thing only. Which of our noble competitors will be the one to take her out?”

Banners depicting different armoured competitors unfurled around Lady Ouida; the scumbags that would try to take your life.

“In this message to all of you, my lovely subjects, I would like to make a special announcement. Although we had planned to set the battle for three cycles time, we have hit a little snag.”

Warmth flared in Swerve’s spark, as he hoped that the battle would be delayed even further, giving the Lost Light more time for your rescue.

Lady Ouida snapped her fingers, motioning for someone off-screen to do her bidding. The hope that Swerve had dared to feel was quickly extinguished as several trucks with chain attachments drove forward, dragging you behind them, the chains affixed to your arms.

“Our little menace here was caught roaming the halls of our fair kingdom, trying to escape her fate. She may not look like much, but she has proved to be very resourceful indeed, which I am sure you’ll keep in mind when betting.”

It looked like you desperately wanted to retort, but a modified gag stopped you from doing so. It didn’t stop you from attempting to kick at several of your captors, your pede falling short of its mark.

“NO!” Swerve cried out as you were electrocuted, making you fall to the floor. The others in the room spared him looks of pity before their attention returned to Lady Ouida.

“Spirited, is she not?” The Lady continued, spurred on by your attempted attack. “Alas, that brings me to my next point. We cannot keep her subdued for long and as such, we will have to cut betting short. You will have till the end of the cycle, for at dawn THE BATTLE BEGINS.”

The feed ended with a screen of competitors and their odds against you.

Rodimus wasted no time in addressing the room, all traces of his usual playfulness gone. “ETA to the Arena?” He asked no one in particular.

“Two cycles at most,” One of the Co-pilots answered.

“Not good enough. If you have to burn out the engines, you’ll get us there tonight. Strategy?”

Megatron brought up a hologram for the planet, pointing out the building on the map, a modernised castle with plasma-turrets as its main defences. “If it were me, I’d have the turrets hacked. The fastest route to the Arena itself is by the West wall. The ship is far too big to hide, so our best option is an outright assault. We could blast through the walls with an Alpha team. Meanwhile, a smaller Beta Team could attack the Northern ramparts, where we believe the prison cells to be located, in case (Y/N) is still being held there.”

“Who’s our hacker for this?”

“We have an accomplished team that will be led by Skids.”

“What will we need to get through the castle’s walls?”

“Ultra Magnus assures me that he has a supply of confiscated weapons from Whirl and Brainstorm.”

Rodimus nodded in acknowledgement, “You know Megatron, it’s rare, but on occasions such as this, I’m glad that you’re a crazed war-lord with a lot of strategic experience.”

Megatron looked uncomfortable at the compliment but didn’t comment.

Swerve raised his hand in what he assumed was a military fashion, “I’d like to be in the Alpha team.”

Rodimus took in some air with an awkward hiss, “Yeahhh, about that. Don’t you think you’d be better off, uh waiting to comfort (Y/N) in the med-bay or something? You’re um- You’re not exactly a good shot.”

Swerve bristled at the veiled insult. “THAT IS MY CONJUNX ENDURAE. I’LL BE GOING DOWN THERE EVEN IF I HAVE TO STEAL A POD-SHIP!”

“Okay, yep, cool. You’re there to rescue (Y/N), got it. Just… Maybe stay behind the rest of us, okay? Wait no. You go in front, I don’t want to be shot in the back or anything-” Rodimus stopped talking when he noticed more than one bot glaring at him for his lack of tact. “I mean, uh- You just go where you think is best, buddy. You got this.”

“Let’s just continue going over the plan,” Megatron interrupted, turning his attention back to the planetary holograph.

Thankfully, nobody questioned Swerve further, and he was free to remain undisturbed as the meeting went on.

Once again, you were behind bars but this time you were outside of the prison block. You were now in the centre of the Arena, which greatly resembled the Ancient Colosseums of Earth. You cradled your servo close to your body, the pain immense where your captors had crushed it after they had caught you trying to use the blow torch a second time; if there was any hope of returning to Swerve, it wouldn’t be the same way you escaped before.

With nothing else to do, you resumed listening to the recorded manual. Theoretically, you knew how to scan a vehicle and transform, so long as you found something to scan. Maybe you could convince Ouida to show you a vehicle in order to make the games more interesting. You doubted that plan would work, but if Ouida thought you were going to die in her games anyway, she might grant the request.

“In the event that you are in danger and need to record a message into your processor for an ally to discover-”

You focused on Perceptor’s instructions. Now seemed like the perfect time to record a message for Swerve, should he ever find your body. You tried to focus as your processor informed you that your voice and surroundings were being recorded.

“Swerve, I wish I could see you right now to tell you everything that’s on my mind, but if you’re watching this… Well, we know what’s happened.” You tried to keep your tone happy, but it proved to be impossible when thinking of the last time you had seen Swerve and how badly that had gone. You couldn’t stop from crying as you continued.

“Swerve, you are my whole world. I love you so much and I’m so sorry about how I acted. I was scared and confused, and… That’s no reason for the way I was. I’m terrified of what might happen to you if I die. Please, don’t think sadly on this. You have so much time left in the universe, and it’s a brighter place with you in it. No matter what happens, I need you to remember, I’m sticking with you. Never forget that you have my heart, always. I’m sorry that this is goodbye. I love you.”

Ending the feed, you hugged your knees to your chassis with your good hand, while you sat in silence and wept.

Swerve gripped the base of his chair, in the cruiser that the Alpha team had taken, hard enough to dent it. Upon reaching a close enough proximity to the planet’s surface, he had received a few dozen delayed private comms from you, the last of which was time-stamped only one hour prior. You were being kept in a cage, telling him how sorry you were and how much you loved him. If you were sticking with him, then he was going to stick right back to you.

Turbulence hit the ship, but Swerve’s determination didn’t waver. He knew it was just the first volley of attacks from the turrets, until Skids’ team would be able to disable them. Swerve remembered feeling like this thousands of times in the war. The feeling that you could be shot down at any moment on the way to your goal, but that you couldn’t think about death, lest it leech into your processor, freezing out all other thoughts. Swerve wouldn’t die. He couldn’t. Not while you were in danger. You were his mission and this was just another, smaller, war.

Swerve remembered his very first mission. His entire squadron had died, except for him. Being a mini-bot, he’d managed to hide without being discovered; he’d spent centuries hating himself for living as a coward instead of dying a hero with the rest of his squad. As it turned out, many bots had had similar experiences which haunted them. This time, he would not hide, his team would survive, they would rescue you, and Swerve would tell you every minute of every day that he loved you.

“SKIDS,” Rodimus yelled over the comms, “A LITTLE HELP WITH THE FRAGGING TURRETS.”

“Working on it,” Skids replied frantically. “They have one hell of an IT team there, Rodimus. The turrets are encrypted at least five times over.”

“Great. I’ll pass on the compliment when I meet them. Can you stop the turrets or not?”

There was a sharp silence on Skids end which was answer enough; the team would have to go in under fire.

“Okay,” Rodimus looked to his team. Ultra Magnus, Tailgate, Cyclonus, and Swerve were there, along with a few other volunteers that made their number twenty. “Plan B. We drive fast and furious, ploughing through their defences.”

The team were less enthusiastic at the thought of being shot, but none of them buckled under pressure; everyone was ready to go to your aid.

“Beta team, in position?” Rodimus asked, as they had planned to do before the Alpha Team dropped down onto the planet’s surface.

“Negative,” Megatron replied. His team comprised of Drift, Nautica, Nightbeat, and Brainstorm. It was decided that a smaller team would be better for infiltration. “The blueprints were wrong. We landed right in their armoury and are facing heavy fire.”

“HEY, NO, NOT COOL. WE WERE FACING HEAVY FIRE FIRST.” Rodimus pouted. “THAT’S OUR THING. GET YOUR OWN THING.”

“Don’t be a sparkling,” Megatron hissed. “Rendezvous here. We need backup.”

Swerve crushed another part of his chair. Meeting up with the beta team would lead them further away from you. They should face the turrets, consequences be damned. Swerve imagined reaching over to the control panel and forcing the team to drop. If he wasn’t afraid to have their energon on his servos, he’d do it. However, frustrating as it was, he left the planning up to the Co-Captains, itching for the moment that he would finally be useful. So far, everything in the plan was falling apart.

“Get ready to fight, crew,” Rodimus warned as the cruiser approached the Beta Teams location. Everyone stood up, heading to the back of the ship, “Dropping in three, two, one.”

The doors opened, leaving all the transformed vehicles to drive out on the ramp, jumping the gap onto the planet. There, the battle began. A handful of Cybertronians against a few hundred organics, none of whom seemed to be human; perhaps Lady Ouida was the only human among the organics that inhabited the planet.

Swerve raged with every shot he took. In hallways full to the brim of enemies, even he couldn’t miss. His blaster kept ringing off with compliments. Good job. Nice shootin’ Tex. You’re my hero.

However, as many shots as he got in, the enemies didn’t drop. It seemed that they were immune to most of the weapons, only stumbling slightly before they got back up to fight.

“This isn’t working,” Cyclonus growled through gritted teeth, him and Drift being the only ones to do any real damage with their swords, though they kept getting pushed back by the horde.

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Rodimus said sardonically. “Time for plan C.”

“We don’t have a plan C,” Ultra Magnus reported.

“Then improvise.”

From the corner of his optic, Swerve saw a flash of green and he spun around to see Lady Ouida herself. She was climbing over the rubble, apparently trying to reach the fast-firing ballista behind the invaders of her castle. Full of rage at the human who had dared to harm his Conjunx Endurae, Swerve rushed at her, screaming. He tackled her to the ground, grunting as she stabbed a plasma dagger into his side. He would worry about the pain later, when you were safe. For now, he didn’t care, as that was the only weapon she had and she couldn’t retrieve it from his side now that he had her arms firmly in his grasp.

Swerve had always prided himself on being gentle with you, his beloved human. However, with Ouida in his grip, he was all too aware of how easy it would be to crush every bone in her body with only the slightest bit of pressure.

“WHERE IS MY CONJUNX?” He spat at her.

“Dead.” Lady Ouida lied. “As you will be soon enough, robotic scum.”

Swerve didn’t bother to press her on her deception, knowing instinctively that she wouldn’t talk, no matter what he did. Instead, he carried her towards her army, making sure the creatures could see her.

“I HAVE YOUR LEADER,” He roared at them. “LET US PASS, OR I’LL CRUSH HER.”

The organics stopped shooting, eerily expressionless as they lowered their weapons. Ouida shot her captors a disgusted look, hating that they had bested her experimental mutants. They were made to follow orders and protect the castle, but they had also been designed to ensure that she wouldn’t be harmed; with her as a captive, they were useless.

Swerve made his way forward, but Rodimus grabbed his shoulder-plate, pulling him back.

“Hey, loving the energy buddy,” Rodimus complimented Swerve. “Great improv and all, but uh, the Arena is the other way.”

“Oh,” Swerve looked at the mutant army, who were watching Ouida like a dog watching its master. “In that case, don’t follow us, or I’ll crush her.”

“YEAH,” Rodimus fist-pumped the air. “LET’S GO RESCUE (Y/N).”

You didn’t know what to say as you were faced with the many faces of the Lost Light that you thought you’d never see again, but most importantly Swerve. For a moment, you were half-convinced that you were hallucinating again, but then he had pushed Lady Ouida into Drift’s arms and he was holding you.

He kissed your helm, pulling you into his chassis, checking over every inch of you for injuries. “(Y/N),” he murmured. “My (Y/N).”

“Swerve,” You cried his name. “Swerve. I was so scared I’d never see you-”

“Shh, it’s okay, I’m here now. I love you. Always,” He repeated your message to you, letting you alone know that he had received it.

“Not to interrupt this reunion,” Megatron said sombrely, “But enemy reinforcements could arrive at any moment, and we need to get you two to medical treatment immediately.”

For the first time, you noticed the gash in Swerve’s side, coated with freshly congealed energon; he had taken the dagger out prior to seeing you.

“She hurt you… She-”

It was your turn to scream at Ouida, “YOU HURT MY CONJUNX ENDURAE.”

You reached out to crush her with your good arm, but Drift dragged Ouida into safety, “Sorry (Y/N), but she’s our ticket out of here. If we kill her, we have no leverage.”

You glared at Ouida, “You’re lucky he values all life, you hateful witch.”

Ouida rolled her eyes, unperturbed by the raving antics of a non-organic.

“Come on, (Y/N),” Swerve ushered you ahead of the group. “It’s time for us to go home.”

Home. You thought of your hab-suite aboard the Lost Light where you had built your life with Swerve; you couldn’t wait to get back to it. Letting Swerve cradle you in his arms, you leaned on him and took your first steps back towards home.

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[quetzalpapalotl]

I've been thinking about this a lot, but there's a key difference in the way Jro and Barber write Optimus.

When Roberts writes Optimus he is a figure of awe. Be it because he's doing crazy maneuvers that somehow work or by the strength of his principles, there's usually someone there to fawn over him. Even when he's not present, like in LL when Megatron mentions Optimus is usually with admiration.

But JRo is also willing to do more than that. Paint him a but more cynical or flawed, give him doubt. This combination is very reminiscent of how he wrote Optimus in Eugenesis, actually. But the key difference between him at Barber is that Jro's Optimus is always ultimately a figure of good. So for example, Chaos Theory which brings out a lot of his flaws, still gives the reassurance that at his core Optimus is still the idealistic Orion he was before getting the matrix. JRo even confirmed that his speech in the Death of Optimus Prime mirroring the Senate speech was meant to show he hasn't really changed.

But Barber is willing to question whether Optimus is a figure of good to begin with. He made an entire run with that as its theme. Jro made him a cop, which wasn't good but he still focused on his good intentions. Barber called him out on that and showed how much his good intentions mattered when he was still working for a corrupt regime. To be fair, Barber had to try and make a coherent character from everything else that went on on IDW.

But they still don't write him different enough that it looks like two different characters. Is hard to be sure who wrote what in Dark Cybertron, but JRo wrote the conversation between Rodimus, Orion and Magnus (which again has Orion in a shitty mood and being very cynical). So assuming he had a hand in the dead universe segments, those still look very phase 2 OP. He is having doubts, mad at the world and at himself, so he projects that on Rodimus, who despite everything still believes in him and makes Orion gain enough confidence to reclaim the Prime name. This is portrayed as a triumphant moment. And then later Barber would go on to question if Optimus being Prime is a good thing all over again.

And one funny thing about all of this is the outcome of the trial. Optimus does a dirty move and risks the safety of the LL crew by putting Megatron as captain which he didn't even have the authority to, just because he wants to believe in Megs so badly. Thing is that this kind of "I know what's better" assholery is completely in character for him. But I wonder how much Jro was considering that or if he was just focused on getting Megatron on the LL (and he knew Optimus was right because Megatron was meant to become better anyway) and didn't think much about the implications. Certainly none of the problems this causes ever get blamed on Optimus.

Maybe it really is just that Jro didn't get to do much with Optimus. But idk. I do love how he writes him, but I don't know if he would have had the guts to go as far as Barber went. Both in making him more coherent overall and things like "I am gonna help humams"/"Shut the fuck up, we don't want your help you colonizer condescending shit" or calling him a murderer at his own funeral, all of that despite maintaining his core good intentions. They were a good combo, but I'm glad Barber got most of it.

All I wish is that either would have given me more Zeta, lol

[bimbocore]

I know like two things about transformers, so enlighten me of your blorbos and such

YAAAS OK SO (most of these are based off of IDW (2005) continuity characters so bear with me)

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most)

GOD THERES SO MANY but probably Rodimus, he's the one I relate to the most, he's just so ADHD all the time and he has so many Moments, like the time they were playing hide and seek on a spaceship and his plan was to "paint himself space color and stand in front of a window"

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped)

Tailgate, he's small and adorable but also old as fuck and has a big purple boyfriend, he's puntable but in the most affectionate way.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

NOBODY talks about Rewind, I fucking love Rewind. He's an archivist and records basically everything with a little camera on his head, he's described as excitable, trusting and mischievous and also he's like the Token Gay (everyones gay but like he and his boyfriend Chromedome are like THE established couple of the series that isnt a slowburn)

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

I'm cheating on this one but Rung. HIS WHOLE JOKE is that he basically fades into the background and is a universal constant but no one ever remembers his name. He's amazing and is Definitely Not Important To The Series Whatsoever I Promise (I dont) BUT I LOVE HIM, hes a twinky little therapist too so thats hilarious.

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave)

Starscream is practially the defenition of a poor little meow, he's a pathetic fucking whelp who craves the attention and admiration of everyone, and will lie, cheat and manipulate his way to the top in pursuit of that goal and i LOVE HIM

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason)

Riptide maybe, he's canonically the dumbest fucking person in the world and I'm going to exploit the hell out of that

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell)

I have a GREAT list of characters that i fucking Hate with every fiber of my being for various reasons (racism mostly) so heres a list of the most awful cunts in the Transformers Comics

Overlord (slaughtered an entire prison complex, wiped out entire planets, bit the head off of a gay character just so he'd stop screaming)

Tyrest (nearly fucking thanos snapped the entire universe but instead of everyone equal he specifically targets a minority group for religious reasons)

Star Saber (religious fanatic who actually honest to god proposed the idea of an "atheist holocaust" i am dead serious)

Getaway (no spoilers but GOD i hate this guy and Rodimus does too)

Prowl (he's a cop and also he's legit THE most fucking HATEABLE CHARACTER IN THE WORLD, he's the reason why basically fucking everything, and he also mocked a widower (Prowl is literally the reason WHY he was a widower at the time) and then got thrown off a cliff I hate prowl so much its unreal, he also flips tables when hes angry)

[staticsqueaks]

Hosin is a good singer, but a horrible rock singer. He tries his best, but he can't quite capture the inflection he needs, having fun with everything regardless. He lets the transition happen, the sheer magnificence and smoothness of such an incredible feat blowing his little mind. Everything was unnatural to his senses but oddly natural in the same breath, the Emperor trying to take stock of such a seamless process to little avail. Everything was happening so fast, the music, the transformation, the modification. "We can do the same! My species can create body parts for ourselves to add and remove as we wish. It is not quite the same, but similar." Hosin reached out and hesitantly touched the well worn paint. "Incredible...You, Rodimus, are one of the most fascinating people I have ever met in my life! You- You can do all of these things, all of these fantastical modifications and play my music, and- goodness, starshine, you really should give yourself more credit!" He blurted out without thinking, though he meant it. He slipped his satchel off, nervous to leave it behind in someone else's berth but he didn't want to risk losing his precious notes to the cosmos. He couldn't help but contain his awe, practically buzzing with excitement at this point as he gripped interestingly around that bar, giving a tug to see how well it would hold for their upcoming feat. His static buzzed over his form, Hosin pulling back when he administered a little shock. "S-Sorry, I think the thrill of this all is causing me to go a little haywire!" He joked lightly, letting go when he realized he wasn't just pulling on a bar, he was pulling on someone else. "Pardon, I am just excited to try this! Now, you are the expert; what else will we need?"

Forehead bunts are very important to Wild Rodimi!

Get forehead bumped and maybe a bit of a rub where Rodi drags his jaw on him.

"Goodness, you always come back, you silly thing!" Hosin laughed into the bonk and returned the gentle rub with a squeak of amusement. He booped him on the bridge of his nose. "Forehead bonks are always welcome anytime you feel like you need a cuddle, co-captain!"

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Mae Catt’s Cyberverse Q&A

Here’s a neater version of some key Q&A responses from Mae Catt’s Cyberverse stream. 

Please note: not everything is verbatim, and also note that Mae Catt said “Don’t take things I say as the end-all be-all.” She’s a big supporter of fanfic writers!

This Q&A session contains spoilers for Season 3 of Cyberverse. For a (somewhat) more comprehensive transcript, please refer to this post.

Q: Megop rights?

“Oh absolutely, duh.”

Q: What does Optimus do when he’s not giving speeches / being a leader when they were all hanging out on the ARK?

I think he reads, he seems like a heavy reader. It’d be cute if he read really bad Earth romance novels. He seems like a guy who needs a break from everything.

Q: Does Optimus have hobbies?

Not to borrow from Rung, but doesn’t it seem like Optimus would make model ships? Very quiet, very focused detail-oriented hobby. *pauses* Oh duh, he also plays basketball.

Q: How did the Decepticons learn to stream? 

Because they’re deceptive! Megatron knew he should dedicate some time to winning the hearts and minds of humans. Starscreams’ funeral was not the first time they streamed. Optimus would use the official media channels (like the news), not a streaming service. Megatron would try to speak more directly to the people.

Q: Is Optimus the type of streamer who would take 10 minutes to figure out how to un-mute his microphone?

Optimus is a dad. He has no idea what’s going on with streaming. Optimus would say embarrassing things while Bee and Hot Rod were in the middle of streaming something.

Q: Is Megatron dead?

In discussions we wanted to kill him. We wanted to do a reverse Optimus death. However, in the final product, I kinda enjoy the ambiguity rather than the final decision. Can’t remember if we were decisive about that in the script.

Q: Did the Titan mind Decepticons living in them?

The Titans want to be cities. They want citizens. They want to be lived in, that brings them joy.

Q: Does Megatron do anything for fun or is he too angry?

I want to say he’s too angry, he has fun beating people down but I don’t think he’s had fun for a long time.

Q: How would you feel about a female Optimus Prime? 

[GAY LAUGHTER] 

The question is: do you turn Optimus Prime into a woman, or do you take characters like Elita One and uplift her? I would want to lean more into giving Elita One more oomph, I do love how Optimus doubts himself and if he’s worthy of being a Prime.

(Mae Catt talked a lot about representation and later mentioned how there's more pressure to write the girl characters well, especially because of the need for better representation. They wanted more girls in the show, and they planned to have Jazz be a girl).

Q: Elita prime when?

All the time, in my heart!

Q: Did you plan to have ___ character in the show?

Almost every character was discussed at least once. 

She really regrets that they didn’t get to have Beast Machine Obsidian or Rumble and Frenzy in the show, and says she would’ve loved a MTMTE-style Ultra Magnus / Minimus and Transmutate. She didn’t know what Obsidian’s personality would be, it was just a “Look how cool he is!” sort of thing.

(Note: We have Mae Catt to thank for Whirl getting into Cyberverse)

Q: What was your favorite episode?

“I Am the AllSpark” because of the Megatron and Starscream dialogue (which she wrote). Also S2 04 Soundwave and Shockwave.

I enjoyed writing Starscream most, Clobber and Hot Rod became a joy, S2 E4 was my first episode, and it was fun getting into Hot Rod’s voice. It was hard doing Optimus’ voice, I’d always pass it off to someone to look at it.

Q: Did you ever plan to have Hot Rod become Rodimus?

Rodimus was never considered for the show because Optimus dying has been covered to death, but we were adamant about portraying Hot Rod as someone who wanted to be a leader. Hot Rod is someone who is learning to be a leader.

(On that note, when someone asked if she thought Bee would ever become Prime, Mae Catt said:)

I don’t think Bee would be a Prime. Windblade and Hot Rod would be a better Prime. He wouldn’t want to be a Prime. He’s the #2 to Primes!

Q: Did Megatron always plan to return to Cybertron?

Megatron’s priorities changed when he saw his doppelganger. Realizing he was a horrible tyrant, that scared him enough to return and not kill Optimus and make peace no matter what.

Q: Which death hurt you the most?

Starscream. (Slipstream’s hurt too).

We didn’t want to kill people off willy-nilly for shock value, but in certain instances it made sense. Like, the audience will fall in love with Slipstream because she’s becoming good, so she has to die. (She apologized for that sounding harsh). We killed Prowl because it was Shadow Striker doing the killing and he’s a self-sacrificing lieutenant. I almost wanted Starscream to emerge from the Judge’s head untouched, but I’m ultimately glad that idea got shot down.

(She circles back to this comment later, so I’m making note of that here since it wasn’t a direct response to a question)

When I was desperately trying to save Starscream’s life even though I brutally murdered Slipstream, I wanted Starscream to have amnesia and have a redeption arc. I wanted him to have a Windblade shard and have it be kind of like Castaway, where the only person he talked to was that (and the shard only had 5 phrases it could say). Eventually Bee would befriend him and he’d wind up with the Autobots.

I wanted to write Starscream kind of like an abuse victim who expects the worst of the Autobots, but I wanted him to warm up slowly to them. I wanted to have a Starscream and Optimus episode where Starscream messes up on something and Optimus is like “you did your best and that’s what counts”, a response which is totally new to Starscream. But obviously we didn’t have time for that.

Regarding redemption arcs (a continuation from the previous question, and a huge highlight from the stream):

Re: the potential for Starscream’s redemption arc “A redemption arc needs to be facilitated by a character acknowledging that what they did was wrong. He would have had a laundry list of excuses for it, even if there was all that evidence to the contrary, but the character needs to acknowledge that reasons don’t matter because people got hurt [by their actions]. [The character] needs to intend to do better. Let them try and let them fail, they don’t need to do a 180, it’s hard work to be a better person.”

NOTE: Mae Catt also made a few more comments re: the idea of a Starscream redemption arc on her Tumblr page.

Q: Did Megatron really kill Starscream?

The Starscream beatdown was super severe and they were like “holy frick they’re really going for it” when they saw the storyboards. According to Maecatt, Megatron didn’t kill Starscream when he slammed him down (which is a bit confusing since the show definitely made it seem like Starscream died). 

Q: Did Drift die? Why was he a double-agent?

According to us, Drift did not make it, but I fully endorse whatever you want. We needed a double-agent, someone who would (seemingly) kill Hot Rod. (She says they went with Drift because of his history in the comics).

(Later on in the stream)

Maybe Drift is alive, maybe he’s rethinking his decision and he’ll come back later. Drift would’ve been helpful in S3 for sure, maybe he’d come back with Repugnis or something.

Q: Why are you so mean to Percy? 

He's so mature and pragmatic that he can take it, and is willing to take one for the team bc he understands that it's what he needs to do. (In response to someone’s comment about his personality) Yes, he’s calmly feral.

Q: Is Skullcruncher Percy's bouncer now that he's running Maccadam's? 

Oh totally.

(She later mentions that Percy has permanently taken over Maccadam’s. Also: Skullcruncher is a lady! She misses Mac, but Percy takes good care of her).

Q: If Tarn is the perfect Decepticon who's the perfect Autobot? 

A firetruck alt mode, and an Autobot insignia as a face. Nat (her fiance) and I talked about it a lot. Optimus SHOULD be a fire truck, it makes the relationship between him and Ratchet a little more fun since Ratchet is an ambulance, and Optimus has an ax. It just makes sense! 

(She agreed that the perfect Autobot would be Thunderclash after the chat said that).

On that note, Mae Catt said they used Tarn for the show because: “OBVIOUSLY (the perfect decepticon) should look like this guy. A faceless mindless Decepticon that only serves Megatron”.

Q:  What sort of documents DID Optimus work on in the archives? 

Probably historical archives and working on stuff about all the Primes. Something like the French / American revolution equivalent, which informed his speech writing for Megatron and his own ethics.

Q: Did you always plan to make Optimus socially awkward? 

We “found” the social awkwardness for Optimus. Optimus was depicted as a father figure in S1 (implying it’s because S1 is from Bee’s perspective), S2 / S3 we were able to explore more and found the limits [writing him] and found it was hard to maintain that level of heroic dialogue. Optimus would feel awkward about it too. Randolph did an impression of Optimus’ speech for the Party Down episode. “[Optimus] can’t not be in war-mode.”

Q: Were Optimus and Megatron ever friends, or did they just work together on the speech stuff? 

Oh hell yes, I think [the story] is always enhanced when they’re friends and when Optimus really believes in what Megatron was working on. Optimus’ rejection of Megatron is what pushes him over the edge, his best friend rejecting him pushes him into a place where he becomes a tyrannical person.

Q: Does Maccadam know we love him? 

Mae Catt: *puts hand over hear heart and looks off into the distance dramatically* Yes.

Q:  What’s the best selfie Arcee’s ever taken? 

I like the one with the giraffe. Or maybe a selfie with some humans. I like the idea of Arcee having a bunch of human friends. 

Q: What do the Transformers think of the Florida Man? 

They can’t really tell the difference between humans, they don’t really get it. It just sorta looks like all the normal stuff they see on Earth (or something). 

Q: Who’s the Florida Man of the Transformers? 

Rack ‘n Ruin. But he’s too nice. Hmmm.

Q: What was most important to you personally to put out in each episode? Like humor/characterization/arcs 

I wanted to make sure I didn’t write dialogue that was condescending to kids, wanted to be true about the character. Dialogue needs to be true to the characters, and gay. (Laughs)

Q: Do Transformers know what memes are?

They know what they ARE, but they don’t get it. We wanted Hot Rod to be super into Earth culture (winning races and driving off before humans could realize no one was in the car), but we never had time to really get into that.

Q: What music does Soundwave like?

We had a cut joke from S2 E5 [where Megatron and Optimus are popping through portals all around the world trying to find the All Spark] . Soundwave pops into Brazil where there’s a music festival and he crashes the concert and hang out. He likes EDM the most? 

His favorite song is Despacito. He thinks its so sad.

Q: Were you surprised that Jake Tillman was in his 20s listening to his Optimus voice the first time?

She apparently listened to his vines a lot when he was in his teens so meeting up again like that was a cool coincidence. 

Q: What other dimensions or places did you want to be in the show?

I would’ve liked to have the other Transformers series show up (TFP, TFA, G1, Shattered Glass) but we don’t have those assets or budget. 

“This will quickly become unclear to audiences who aren’t (you people).” They couldn’t have all these references when some of their audience wouldn’t get it. 

Q: What about ____ ship?

Mae Catt says she doesn’t want to yuck anybody’s yums. For example, someone asked about Arcee/Grimlock, and while she said she sees them more as friends, she didn’t say they can’t be in a relationship. (Mae Catt also said she doesn’t ship Bee with anyone because she sees him as a little brother).

As she said several times in the stream, “Don’t take things I say as the end-all be-all”!

That being said, she did say she likes Dead End / Perceptor and Windblade / Slipstream.

Q: Why are there no humans in the show?

From the show’s conception, there were no plans to include any humans. They didn’t want humans distracting from the Transformers.

Q: Why did the Scientist collect Soundwaves?

He collects Soundwave because Soundwave is COOL! Wouldn’t you collect a single father of 5 who carries them around in his chest?

Why does anyone collect what they collect? “That’s a really angry dad who’s got five children he carries around in him and he plays music. Gotta have that!”

(Later on, she circles back to this question)

All the Other Universe Soundwaves the Scientist collected also had their own Laserbeaks. I wonder if the scientist would’ve taken them out. He might’ve just gotten rid of them.

(And of course, here are the boyfriend questions from the stream:)

Q: Is Dead End a good boyfriend?

Dead End is a work in progress, but maybe Percy is patient enough to get him there

(Mae Catt says she really loves the Deadceptor ship. She knew people would ship it, but she didn’t ship it herself until she saw the fanart for it).

Q: Is Astrotrain a good boyfriend?

No, no...he’s not a good person, really.

Q: Is Percy a good boyfriend?

Absolutely--WAIT HOLD ON. He’s very blunt, he doesn’t mince words, if you can handle his bluntness then you’re good. He is what he is and you have to deal with him.

Q: Is Soundwave a good boyfriend?

Soundwave is not a good boyfriend. He’s a good casual romance but he’s not a good boyfriend. Soundwave would be a terrible listener. He hears a lot but he’d tune you out.

Other information tidbits:

- If Thunderclash was in the show he and Jetfire would HATE each other. Thunderclash would be a rival reality star (maybe) to Media Fire.

- Mae Catt said “A lot of intelligent life is inherently mechanical” in space, explaining why so much of the non-Cybertronian life we saw in the show were robots.

- Knock Out was considered for the show, but every Transformer under the sun was discussed at some point in the writer’s room. (Ex: “Rumble and Frenzy are always considered in my heart, but there wasn’t enough time or space or assets to do so”).

- “The brand team had grown up on the toys as we had grown up on the ‘toons, so we just wanted to make the best thing imaginable.”

- They decided Optimus would be in the Other Universe’s Matrix and have a plinth because they wanted to show he was dead. “Logical backflips because he needed to be among the 13 to talk to Windblade.” 

- Dead End’s eyes are white.

- The team wanted Jazz to be a lady (!!!!!!!)  

- These characters have their own lives that we don’t see. Lots of stuff happening between episodes that we don’t always necessarily see.

- Developing Sky-Byte’s character was simultaneous with Jetfire’s character. “We knew we wanted Sky-Byte to be a poet, and we wanted him and Megatron to be chummy”.

- Percy did permanently take over Mac’s bar.  

- Her favorite VA is Jeremy Levy, he’s a really cool guy.

- She thinks Starscream and Cheetor could become (not necessarily friends, but connected?) because of their connection to the All Spark. Mentions how Starscream acknowledge Cheetor as the “Guardian of the Allspark”.

- Mae Catt describes Starscream as an “Awful gremlin” several times.

- Astrotrain and the Insecticons are from Megatron X’s universe.

- She thinks Cliffjumper and Bee wouldn’t get along, solely because of the IDW2 comic stuff. (They had a cut joke about someone telling Bee he should paint himself red and Bee saying, “But then everyone will think I’m Cliffjumper!”).

- Cyberverse got 26 episodes for season 3 because they had the 4-part episode movies.

- Megatron cares about his troops, but not in a way that we would notice that care. 

- AcidStorm is genderfluid. 

-  Cold Construction doesn’t exist in this show. When asked why all the Seekers look the same then, Mae Catt says “Maybe there’s one jet mode all the seekers really like”.

- She loves the idea of Wild Wheel robbing Astrotrain in train-mode, totally Wild West-style.

- One of the things she’s proudest of was turning Lugnut into a gal (and having so much body diversity and gender-neutral designs for a lot of characters). They wanted to include many more girls in Cyberverse (Nickel and Lightbright among them). She also mentioned that  Shadow Striker is taller than Optimus or is his height.

- She describes Cosmos as “R2D2, but a Transformer!”

- Maccadam looking like a buff Rung was just a strange coincidence.

- Blurr really was the fastest.

- Mae Catt says we absolutely SHOULD write fanfic. Fanfiction made her into the writer she is today. She wrote non-stop Matrix fanfic from the age of 12-20 years old. It helped her learn a lot about writing.

- She uses “They” pronouns for Rack ‘n Ruin when referring to both of them, but says that individually they both use “he”.

- She’s really sad that Skywarp didn’t get a speaking line.

- Mae Catt won’t say whether Ratchet finished medical school or not. (She laughed when someone commented "I don’t believe that man has ever been to medical school”). She also says she wants “I choose to believe Ratchet has never been to medical school” on a T-shirt.

- When asked why Rack ‘n Ruin were captains of the Ark in one universe, she says they’re probably the Prime in that one weird universe (lmao).

- She loves the idea that Transformers have siblings / families.

- In a world where they had an unlimited budget, it’d be fun if Cybertronians were constantly shape-shifting and changing their forms. Example: she’d like having Transformers who “grew a beard” and decided to “shave it”.

- She doesn’t understand cycles or astrocycles, she doesn’t understand the weird Transformers time stuff. (mood)

- She loved Beast Wars Inferno, she loved that Inferno called Megatron a Queen. It was played as a joke because the 90s weren’t very socially conscious, but she liked that Megatron never corrected him or beat him down.

- Shockwave altered his spark to have maximum bad vibes to destroy the All Spark.

- She said it’s hard talking about writing a show because you’re designing the experience and you have to make sometimes what sounds like cold and pragmatic decisions (eg: "we need a cold and spunky female”) which sucks, but they need to balance out the show. She says she’d never do that just for the sake of doing it, but it’s part of something that they do need to be aware of while working on a show. “It starts from a weirdly cold pragmatic place, but we try and put truth in it”.

- They didn’t want to have Unicron in the show since he’s the default “big bad”, but if he was in the show, Mae Catt says “If you put the proverbial budget-gun to my head, I’d keep Unicron in planet-mode because it’s more mysterious, but I want both alt modes”.

- Her favorite Megatron is Beast Wars Megatron.

- She doesn’t like Sky Lnxy’s design, it’s creepy. “He talks in the G1 episodes and the voice makes it worse.” She can’t get over his face.

- “I’d love to see more jets [who aren’t our usual gang] and find out all jets are kinda snobby, which explains why Starscream’s the way he is”.

- Everyone on the Autobot side are friends with each other.

Thanks for your time Mae Catt! We’re lucky to have you. Thank you for all your hard work on this amazing show.

[thanksjro]

Dark Cybertron Chapter 5: the Issue that Made Me Stop Reading MTMTE for Three Years

So, Megatron’s still getting space-bridged in the torso. That’s still happening. Nova Prime and Galvatron are coming through the rift, as Shockwave, who seems to have lost most of the mass in his lower body, thanks Megatron for his service.

Robert Gill’s on art for this issue alongside Ramondelli, and this is basically the only place we’ll be getting a taste of his style. Let’s see what he’s bringing to the table.

JESUS CHRIST.

WHY DO YOU HAVE GUMS.

Nightmare Murder Death Ravage, the Decepticons, and the Autobots just broke into Shockwave’s underground lair, and are ready to kick some ass. Shockwave was expecting this to happen, because he is a very smart boy, and also apparently genre savvy. Soundwave tackles Shockwave to the ground, and gets insulted for his troubles.

Sir, your eye's been turned into a silver-dollar pancake.

Shockwave calls in Metalhawk to handle these goons who’ve broken into his domicile, and Metalhawk, who legitimately looks like he’d snap in half if the breeze blew the wrong way, gets to work. Bumblebee tries to reason with the man- ripping off his whole-ass face to reveal... his face... in the process- but it’s useless. Metalhawk is just too het up about politics.

Over in another part of the room, Ironhide and a couple of buddies are going to lay the smackdown on Nova Prime and Galvatron, who are still coming out of the space bridge. They’ve been at this for like ten minutes now. Ironhide starts trying to shove Nova Prime back through the bridge, punching him in the face as he does. Megatron, at this point, has lost his arms. They’ve simply disappeared from the scene at hand.

The art isn’t great this issue, if you couldn’t already tell.

While this is happening, Skywarp is busy messing with the medical equipment Megatron’s hooked up to, and losing his corporeal form, because that death wave from a couple issues back did, in fact, hit him a little.

This is the Rattrap issue, by the way.

Over with Arcee, it would seem as though we’ve given up on even pretending to give a shit about size continuity, as Rumble and Blitzwing are the same height now. These three are on a mission to grab some of the resurrection ore and bring it back to base for the wounded, which is nice of them.

Shockwave shoots Soundwave, then calls Waspinator over, as Skywarp sticks his little hands into the ore that’s growing out of the walls. This makes him better, I guess? Because it’s resurrection ore? Even though he’s not dead? Also, his mouth looks like it’s full of wood pulp, and I don’t like it.

Bumblebee is trying to make a breakthrough with Metalhawk, but there’s no time for that, as Shockwave’s up to some weird nonsense involving Nova Prime.

The same could be said of this entire comic event.

Waspinator meets up with Shockwave and hands him his “staff”. I use quotations because it super isn’t a staff, but that’s what it’s called in-issue. What it actually is… well, it looks like a gun with a stinger for a barrel. I know he had a gun that looks very similar in Beast Wars, and he whipped it out on the regular, but I guess it’s a staff now? A staff that isn’t even remotely a staff? TFWiki makes the claim that it’s his stinger, which makes way more sense, but I don’t know that I’d want to hand the rump roast portion of my own ass to the purple science gremlin, even if it did mean cool stuff was going to happen.

Look, I don’t know, okay? I think someone fucked up the script.

Shockwave pops off his gun hand and attaches the “staff”, claiming to know how to handle the Titan way better than Waspinator ever could, because he’s just that smart. Then the Titan comes to life and bursts through the ground. Ironhide, who is still straddling Megatron as he punches Nova Prime into submission, gets his shop wrecked by a giant fist.

Meanwhile, in the Dead Universe, we’re finally getting back to that whole Nightbeat thing. Everyone is very surprised to find him here, and sort-of, maybe alive? Dead Universe complicates things.

Back in Spotlight: Hardhead, Hardhead and Nightbeat went on an adventure together to Gorlam Prime, trying to figure out what the hell had happened to Nightbeat’s brain in Spotlight: Nightbeat, where he was brainwashed into being a sleeper agent for Nova Prime, who was still in the Dead Universe at the time, and are you beginning to see why I sort of just gave up on following the plot and stopped reading? You have to have read essentially all of Phase 1 for any of this to make sense. Between that and the art, I was just sort of over the whole thing.

Anyway, Hardhead had to shoot Nightbeat in the head after the dude got his… brain taken over. There were some little tiny guys involved, Jhiaxus was there, it was weird. Because Nightbeat died at the edge of a portal to the Dead Universe, it took his body and dragged him inside, both trapping him and keeping him alive.

Rodimus isn’t too keen on this turn of events, and Hardhead feels really awkward about the whole thing. Nightbeat seems to be taking being an off-brand zombie in stride though, as he immediately makes himself a nuisance to Cyclonus, by way of cold-reading the guy. Because he’s a detective, he’s pretty good at it.

Nightbeat, you fool! It’ll be another 22 issues before Cyclonus is ready to even acknowledge his feelings!

Orion Pax breaks it up before we can see what Cyclonus considers a good punishment for putting him through the ordeal of being known, and we finally get back on track.

Back on Cybertron, I guess there’s been a bit of a time skip, as Megatron is back on his feet and carrying Ironhide to safety. Also, his mouth has gone AWOL. He tries to ask Bumblebee what the plan is, only to be interrupted by Galvatron ripping him in half.

God, I wish you hadn’t found your mouth, Megatron. This is awful.

Galvatron throws Megatron on the ground, and things just keep getting better, because now the Titan’s up on its feet, and Shockwave just told it to go ham.

Back in the Dead Universe, things are getting complicated, and I don’t think we’ll be getting answers any time soon.

Oh, well, I’m glad Nightbeat is as lost on this whole thing as I am.

Hardhead wants to know what was up with all that cryptic bullshit Nightbeat was spouting off earlier, and Nightbeat reveals even more details about Cyclonus- his forcefield generator was damaged when they got to the Dead Universe, and now he’s infected with… I dunno, bad vibes, I guess. That’s why he got sick a couple issues back, and also why the Cyberwraiths ran away from him; the Dead Universe is assimilating him back into its fold.

Even though it’s been established to want literally everything inside it dead.

Though Cyclonus did spend six million years hanging out in the Dead Universe, so maybe it’s fine, actually.

You know, truth be told, I’m not sure exactly how it works, and neither does anyone else, it would seem.

Anyway, Nightbeat tells the fellas to hold tight while he goes to grab somethingaaaaand he’s trapped them in a magic box.

Ugh, whatever, Orion.

Turns out getting shot didn’t fix Nightbeat’s sleeper agent issue, and now the boys are going to pay for being so chatty.

And that’s a series wrap on Team -Imus! Let’s give ‘em a hand, folks!

At this point, Nova Prime reveals that he did, in fact, get shoved back through the space bridge, and is still in the Dead Universe. Sucks to be him, I guess.

...Man, this Rattrap issue was great! Loved the part where he was in it.