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Most days, being a clerk was an excellent job. He got to punch in, do his job, punch out, and go home with almost no questions asked. Even working at the crossroads of the universe rarely presented him with a challenge much more exciting than a hiccup in a timeline somewhere, and that was usually something he could call in for Vector Prime to deal with.
Yes, all things considered, he very much liked his job.
But every now and then the universe decided to throw him something decidedly strange and today was just one of those days.
He’d been seated at his desk when an audible pop sounded somewhere in front of him; he startled and looked up, nearly falling back in his seat when two mechs that hadn’t been there just previously suddenly occupied the space in front of his desk. He managed to compose himself quickly; just interdimensional tourists, he reminded himself. Not quite routine, but close enough.
“May I help you?” he asked.
The mech in the front – a flier with an air about him more befitting a mech three times his size – stepped forward, lifting his chin as if in defiance. Of what, the clerk could only guess. “I am Starscream,” he said, and then tugged at another flier standing behind him by the arm, dragging the other mech up beside him. “And this is Skywarp. And we need to return this.” A jerk of his thumb, this time to somewhere behind him.
The clerk leaned up in his seat to get a better look and nearly fell out of his chair again when he saw what it was. “What did you do to him?” he asked, some parts awed, most parts now terrified. “We were wondering where he’d gotten off to…”
The mech they had offline and bound in an anti-grav transport behind them was none other than Optimus Prime, scourge leader of the feared Autobots – or at least, that’s who this particular Optimus Prime was. He was known throughout every galaxy in his dimension and his absence there had caused a noted disruption to the timeline of events there – but for the better. Vector Prime had deemed it better if he not be actively looked for.
And now here he was, being dropped off in his lap at the very end of his shift. These fliers didn't look like much really, but they apparently had struts steely enough to successfully knock out a mech from the upper echelons of the universe's known terrors.
“This idiot here,” the one called Starscream started to explain, pulling him from his thoughts. “Decided it’d make a funny gift if he presented me with an alternative version of, uh—”
“The evil version of the mech he’s fragging in our universe,” the one called Skywarp interrupted, grinning as though he still thought this was a fantastic idea. “I happened on him, by accident, when I warped into the wrong dimension for a minute,” he said with a shrug, startling when he caught the glare Starscream was giving him. “What? It happens,” he said, pouting.
“Right,” the clerk said, nodding. It was true; these hiccups did happen. Though usually to not to such immediate effect, and certainly not for a reason as ridiculous as this. “Well, I suppose I’ll have no choice but to put him back where he belongs,” he said with a grimace, not looking forward to that particular reunion. “I take it you had an opportunity to acquaint yourself with him?”
Starscream snorted. “Acquaint myself? He’d been awake for barely a few moments when he decided to pin me to the ground, ranting on about something to do with an ember I supposedly had and how he was going to rip it out of me,” the flier said, shivering visibly at the memory. “The only reason I’m not insisting you send this one with him,” he said, gesturing to Skywarp again, “is because he walked in on time to help me knock Big and Ugly out before he tore my head off.”
The clerk almost laughed at the mental image, but he thought better of mocking the Prime, even unconscious as he was. “Yes, well. Consider yourself acquainted then. There’s not much else to know about him outside of his violent outbursts,” the clerk replied, motioning for them to push the transport up towards the desk where he could get a better look at it. He opened a new case file and started to note what they’d said down when a detail occurred to him. “Wait, you’re fragging the other Optimus Prime?” he asked, optics flicking over the Decepticon symbols on the fliers’ wings.
He might not be participating in the war but the conflict was going on in tandem in every universe. He knew more than enough about it.
Starscream bristled, his plating flaring defensively. “You are not to mention that to anyone else,” he hissed, glaring at Skywarp again for letting it slip. The clerk was starting to feel bad for the other flier, though he supposed he had been the bright one to attempt giving a maniac to another mech as a gift of some sort. “You have him now. Can we go?” he demanded.
The clerk nodded, not letting his curiosity get the best of him. “Yes, he will be returned to his dimension. They won’t be happy about it, but every world must have its hurts,” he said, repeating the simple way in which Vector Prime had explained why the agents of chaos must be allowed to exist.
“Good,” Starscream replied shortly, waving a hand dismissively after he’d heard the ‘yes’. “Thank you,” he huffed, apparently despite himself. “Skywarp, let’s go,” he instructed with a scowl.
Skywarp grumbled something inaudible and took the other flier’s hand; another pop and they were gone.
The clerk sighed, shaking his helm. He had almost wanted to tell them that this Optimus Prime had known a Starscream once as well but that likely would have been sharing too much. He put the thought from his mind, focusing on inputting the information he had to so that he could go ahead and get this Prime back to where he needed to be. He wanted to be done with his shift and home by the time the mech woke up, hopefully nowhere near him.