Chapter Text
“Your spark may be in the right place, Orion.” Megatron growled, his sharp digits colliding painfully into the fragile cables of Orion's neck. “But you have much to learn before you can hope to ever again stand your ground against me. A moment sadly, which shall never come.” He lifted his blade and Orion desperately searched for some lie in his expression, some hint that this was just a cruel joke, that his old friend was still inside of the bot before him.
Nothing but rage stared back at him.
Orion lifted his arm in a feeble attempt to defend himself as he prepared for the final blow. So focused was he on the warlord in front of him that he almost missed the sound of an engine revving behind him. Time seemed to speed up as one moment Megatron was above him, fully prepared to take Orion’s life, and the next he was gone, kicked away by a much smaller bot. Despite the pain and the warning's flashing across his HUD, Orion shakily forced himself to his pedes, prepared to assist the new ally in whatever way he could, when his optic was caught by a minicon in his peripheral. He turned around and blinked in surprise.
The creature was smaller than any minicon Orion had seen in his years on Cybertron, an odd black fuzz on the top of it's head and pale, organic mesh under some sort of soft protective covering on it's frame. His processor pulled up recent records of his off-hours research, and he recognized it as one of the Earth’s primary inhabitants. Human.
Despite the difference in species, Orion recognized the expression the human wore. Defeat. Sadness. Fear. It held something up to him, so small in it's hand that it took a moment to process what he was seeing. Silver of the purest kind and glowing slightly blue, it was something that Orion had only researched in the depths of the historical archives, but he knew immediately what it meant. Something twisted inside of him, and he had to force the words out. “Are you…certain I am worthy?” he whispered in a language that he knew many of the people on this sector of the planet spoke.
The human had a strange liquid falling down it's face as it responded, “You have…no idea. But…”
There was damage to the little device around the edges. Orion didn't know why or how, but the look of regret on the human’s face confirmed it. It held the Key up to him, and both waited for a precious few seconds, but nothing happened. A small pang hit him in the spark as the human blinked rapidly, it's voice cracking as it whispered, “I’m…I’m so sorry, Optimus.”
And there was that name again.
Optimus.
Who was he?
Orion was pulled from his thoughts and from the trance that the human seemed to have put on him by a loud clanging sound. The little bot that had defended him was being held against a pillar by the much larger servos of his once-friend. Rage quickly filled his spark, and he allowed the same self-defense protocols to engage as before, his servos twisting into the guns he'd used against the vehicons moments prior. “Megatronus!” He yelled, catching the Warlord's attention briefly. "Leave her! I’m your enemy, not-”
“Optimus!”
Once again, the name being called was unfamiliar, but he knew Ratchet's voice when he heard it. Megatron threw the small bot to the side like she weighed nothing, but she landed on her pedes and proceeded to fire at him. Megatron barely seemed to feel the blasts as he charged towards the archivist, his sword out. Panic coursed through Orion’s frame, but he assumed what little battle stance that Jazz had taught him, hoping against logic that it might buy some time.
A second swirling green mass appeared a few feet away, but Orion barely spared at glance at the thing, thoroughly distracted by ducking one of Megatron’s swings. He realized a second too late that Megatron’s other fist, the one equipped with his blade, was coming towards him fast. It landed squarely on Orion’s abdomen, and a bright, agonizing pain shot through him as the blade was buried deep into panels. The warnings in his vision increased, urgently telling him to contact medical assistance. Megatron pulled the blade out sharply, tearing a gasp from Orion's voicebox, and Orion felt energon begin to flow out of the wound.
“Optimus!” A deep and unfamiliar voice called out. “Get out of here!”
“I-” He tried to duck again, but Megatron easily managed to stick his blade into joints below his shoulder armor and twisted it harshly, a manic smile gracing his faceplates. Orion felt and heard multiple things snap, and he quickly lost the ability to move his digits, something overpowered by the intense pain that wracked him. He screamed, using his working arm to try and desperately tug at the blade, which was drawn out again, leaving his arm halfway severed and dangling uselessly at his side.
“You’re pathetic.” Megatron hissed, his optics flashing. Despite Orion's struggles, Megatron managed to hold him firmly in place as he raised his blade for what Orion suspected was the final time. He fought against the urge to close his optics, opting instead to face death in the face.
A shot was fired from somewhere, landing squarely on Megatron's face. In his shock, he released Orion for a moment, staggering as his optics tried to open. Orion stumbled back, barely able to tell which way was up, and felt a servo grab his. Ratchet barely managed to hold him up as he yelled, “We need to go, Optimus! Now!” Ratchet’s voice was commanding and desperate, but Orion still looked around, fighting the pain and dismissing warning signs so he could see clearly.
“What about-?”
“They’re all through but Bulkhead, please!” Ratchet begged, tugging on his servo harder.
“I’m here!” A large green bot managed to land a blow squarely on Megatron's back, knocking him over for a split second before he scrambled to Orion’s other side. “Come on, Optimus!”
With a last look around the cavern, Orion saw no others that he thought to be allies and let himself be tugged into the groundbridge. Megatron reached out for him as the groundbridge closed in front of him, the snarl and visceral hatred on his face the last thing Orion saw before he was suddenly in a different room. He stumbled into it, following Ratchet blindly.
He could feel himself shaking violently, but that was the least of his worries. He looked around the room in fear, trying to find someone who might continue the fight. Even if someone had, it would have been for naught, as in the split second that it took to register others in the room, his vision had gone blurry. The ground was slippery with something that he realized was his own energon and he was standing in an unfamiliar room with unfamiliar bots and creatures that he realized were more inhabitants of this planet. His cooling systems flashed a warning, telling him to vent, but something sticky was clogging the airway. Someone called something similar to his name as his knees buckled.
Ratchet and Bulkhead caught Optimus as he fell and Bulkhead immediately lay him on the closest medical berth, having lifted many a large bot for medics before. Ratchet could hear the humans asking questions, but he only glanced at them before turning them out, his medic protocols taking over. Unless something was wrong with Jack, they could wait. Optimus was bleeding heavily, Megatron’s blade obviously having caught multiple energon lines. It had pierced through solid chunk of Orion’s shoulder, most likely leaving multiple functions offline. Ratchet only spoke to give the others instructions, working swiftly and without thinking about Optimus’s lack of fighting prowess. He knew what that meant, and he couldn't let himself be distracted by it yet.
He told Arcee to hook Optimus up to an energon line, thanking Primus that they'd managed to sustain a decent enough emergency supply. Optimus’s middle was pierced completely through, leaving a pool of energon on the table that was getting larger by the second. His optics were offline, which only worried Ratchet further. A bot’s bio lights would turn off in extreme situations to conserve energy. His arm would have to be in a brace for a while, no doubt, but they could deal with that after he stopped the bleeding.
The base fell silent as he worked, only the soft thuds of pedes and quiet murmurs letting him know that the others were even still there. He let himself be relieved that Optimus was unconscious as his lack of Cybertronian tools forced him to dig through wires and energon lines to reconnect them manually, his servos quickly becoming wet with energon. It was only his protocols and the many battles he'd seen that stopped him from breaking down entirely. He hadn't seen Optimus come back from a battle this injured since they'd come to Earth.
Once he finally managed to stabilize his leader and ensured that the energon line was connected properly, he let himself turn away, energon dripping from his servos and multiple warnings telling him to cool himself before he overheated from stress. He took a deep vent, “Is anyone else hurt?"
“Nothing but some dings and scrapes." Arcee said from her spot kneeling on the floor next to her partner. She had her servo on Jack's back as he was calmed by his mother, tears on his face and his chest heaving from what looked like a panic attack. June seemed to be handling it, so Ratchet let himself wipe his servos off and look at the others. Like Arcee said, they all had a fair amount of painful dents and a few small tears in their armor, but nothing that required medical attention.
Bumblebee whirred and clicked beside her, asking the question that had plagued the back of everyone’s minds since Optimus had knelt down next to Jack. :Is he Optimus?:
It was quiet for a moment as Rafeal translated for the humans, everyone looking at Jack as he wiped his eyes. “...he’s not.”
Ratchet felt his spark drop as the last bit of hope he had fell apart at those words.
"Why didn't it work?" Bulkhead asked quietly.
Jack held up the key, not meeting anyone's vision. A familiar pattern of bite marks lined the edge of the device, small cracks spreading from the corners. Though it still glowed, Ratchet knew that if the key was damaged, then Vector Sigma was in all likelihood lost as well. “I’m sorry. There were too many scraplets.”
Ratchet felt rage boil in his tanks, but not at Jack. It was a rage was directed at Megatron, at Primus, at the scraplets and at every other fragged being in the universe that deemed it okay to rip his closest friend and leader away. Aware that anger wasn't going to help, and at his protocol's urging, he knelt beside the human, using a digit to slightly tilt his head up to look him in the eye. “It’s not your fault, Jack.”
Jack looked away, holding the key in front of him. “Take it. Maybe you can fix it.”
Ratchet said nothing as the key transformed, taking it once it's size allowed him to. He hoped that it could still be used, if it had the capability to transform, though he didn't let it get too high. Instead, he cleared out a box of tools and carefully placed the key inside before shutting the box in a drawer. Bumblebee made a strange sound with his vocalizer and Bulkhead put a hand between his doors, giving him silent reassurance. Miko and Rafael were quiet for once, both of them just staring up at the bot that they didn't know anymore.
In the hours following, Ratchet patched the rest of the team's smaller wounds, and the humans went home, unable to come up with a good enough excuse for their families to stay. June wanted Jack to get some sleep, and so took him home too, assuring the boy that he could come back bright and early the next day, as long as he got to school on time. Bumblebee stayed behind to keep Ratchet company when Bulkhead and Arcee decided to take a drive to wind down. Bumblebee just watched silently from a large crate that they used as a chair as Ratchet inspected the key, only moving when something changed in Optimus's vitals. The two of them stayed like that for a long time, Ratchet eventually putting the artifact away when he couldn't find anything past the damage.
Bumblebee went to stand by Ratchet's side, and for once, Ratchet gave into the younger bot's need for physical assurance, wrapping his arms around the scout's shoulders. Bumblebee whirred in surprise, but leaned into it, closing his optics. :I'm scared, Ratchet:
"I know. We all are." Ratchet murmured, letting the younger bot go. He didn't want to give anyone false hope. Optimus would wake up, and he wasn't going to be Optimus.
:He's not going to remember me, is he?: Bumblebee's doorwings lowered, his optics refocusing as he looked at their unconscious leader.
"Optimus found you during the war. If he doesn't remember that, then...I'm sorry, Bumblebee." Ratchet said honestly, wishing not for the first time that his Medic protocols came with instructions on how to assure frightened bots. Bumblebee whirred sadly, letting Ratchet put a servo between his doorwings. Ratchet sighed, "He might not wake for a while. His body is going through a rough healing process. I would go try to wind down, it's not good to be stationary for so long."
:I want to be here when he wakes up:
"I know you do. But it's not healthy for you to go so long without rest, and he's safe." When Bumblebee started to protest again, he interrupted him, "It's for Optimus's sake too. If there's a bot he doesn't recognize standing there when he wakes, it might trigger something. We don't know what he went through with the Decepticons or how much he remembers."
Bumblebee considered that for a moment, :He knows you, right?:
"It's likely that his memory loss doesn't go far enough for him to forget me, if he remembered Megatron enough to trust him in the cavern. We were friends for a while before they met."
Bumblebee only hesitated for another second before relenting, :Okay. Ping me when he wakes up? I'm going to try and find the others:
"I'll ping you." Ratchet promised, deciding to let the scout go without rest. It wasn't like anyone was going to have an easy time recharging after all of this anyways.
It was close to dawn when he heard the machines monitoring Optimus begin to beep, alerting Ratchet to his coming online. A muffled whine escaped his vocalizer, and Ratchet took a step back, giving Optimus - no, Orion - the space he might need. After a moment, his optics opened slowly, looking around with a sort unfocused haze to them. He was still and quiet long enough that Ratchet began to worry, but moments later his optics widened and quickly filled with panic. He made to get up, and Ratchet let him, knowing that any injuries he would sustain because of such movements would be worse if Ratchet tried to hold him down. “Easy Orion,” he said as gently as he could, holding his servos up as Orion looked his way. “You’re safe.”
Orion seemed to struggle with himself for a moment, glancing around with fear written plainly on his face. “R-Ratchet-?”
“Orion, I need you to focus on me, and calm down.” Ratchet grimaced as energon started to ooze out of the fresh wields on Orion's abdomen. “Don’t move too much, you’re hurt.”
Orion made a pained noise, his optics shutting tightly against whatever he was feeling. His working arm was being used to hold himself up, so he couldn't touch the wound, but Ratchet could see what was hurting him. "Ah-frag-!"
"Orion, I'm going to touch you. Is that okay?" Ratchet moved closer, letting Orion take control of the situation. "Give me a yes or no."
Orion didn't respond verbally, but Ratchet saw the slightest nod and took it as consent. Gently, in case he read it wrong, he put a servo on Orion's back and good shoulder, slowly forcing him to lay down again. When Orion didn't fight against it, Ratchet let go and put a servo on Orion's arm to stop him from touching the wound. "Good, you're doing fine, Orion. Try to cool off, you're starting to overheat."
Orion took a few deep vents, and Ratchet heard his fans click on, both airways working to cool him off. "Ratchet?"
"Yes, it's me, Orion." Ratchet looked at the reopened wound and decided that it was a slow enough leak that he could fix it after Orion was fully calm. “We’re in the Autobot base. We’re safe, I promise, but you're injured and need to be still."
"He-he said that too." Orion wheezed, his optics finally opening to look at Ratchet. He seemed so young, the strong and tough leader Ratchet had come to be familiar with replaced with a trembling data clerk who was clearly scared out of his mind. "He said-he said I was safe."
“I wouldn’t lie to you.” Ratchet said firmly, “You know this.”
“I-He said that too.” Orion repeated, his voicebox stuttering as he tried to talk over himself. Ratchet held his uninjured servo, giving him something firm to hold onto as Orion forced himself to stop talking and just lay there, taking in the ceiling above them.
“I know. I’m so sorry. I understand if you can't trust me yet.”
Orion looked fully at Ratchet and squeezed his servo before closing his optics again. “...I know you’re not like him." He whispered finally. “I broke into their records. I'm-I'm sorry."
“No, Orion.” Ratchet shook his head, kneeling slightly so that they were at optic-level. “You don’t need to apologize.”
“...right.”
“Are you-” Ratchet was cut off as a familiar engine roared through the base, Arcee halfway transformed before she even stopped moving. She was covered in dust, and looked like she was going to murder someone, but her expression softened as soon as she saw that Orion was awake. Ratchet felt Orion tense like he was going to sit up again and ran his thumb over his digits reassuringly. "Arcee. Where are the others?"
"Behind me. We raced back." Arcee said, giving Orion a small smile and a wave. Ratchet was glad that she could hide her rage for his sake, and he sent a comm to the other Autobots, letting them know that Orion was awake and that they needed to come in slow. Arcee took a step forward, "Optimus?"
Orion shook his head, quiet as he replied, “No. I’m sorry.”
"Oh." Arcee glanced at Ratchet, then back at Orion. "Orion?"
"Yes." Orion let go of Ratchet's servo, a nervous expression on his face as he tried once again to sit up.
Ratchet pushed lightly on his shoulder and moved to stand in front of him, putting a physical barrier between Orion and someone he would perceive as a stranger. Arcee seemed to realize this and took a few steps back, going to sit on the crate that Bumblebee had occupied hours before. "Hey, I get it if you don't trust me, but none of us here are gonna hurt you." Arcee said gently. Ratchet sent her a grateful look as Orion shifted to lay on his uninjured side, bringing his legs up to shield his injured middle.
"How many more people are here?" Orion asked, not taking his optics off of the small bot.
"Two more bots." Ratchet responded, "It's just me, Arcee, Bulkhead and Bumblebee. And you."
"And me." Orion frowned, "What about the human?"
"The one you met briefly is called Jack." Arcee crossed her legs, obviously trying to look as casual as possible. "There's four others, but they won't hurt you either."
"Four? What-?"
"Hey, the Boss-bot's awake!" Bulkhead's voice boomed loudly off the walls of the base, both he and Bumblebee walking in bot form into the base.
Orion flinched, then grimaced and placed his servo over his middle. Ratchet turned around, "Okay, I need to repair that before it gets pulled any more." He said, scolding Bulkhead over a private comm for being so loud. Arcee jumped off the crate and tugged the other two to the wall, murmuring quietly to them. Bumblebee was staring at Orion, his face falling when Orion barely acknowledged him. Ratchet got Orion to lay on his back again, noting where the split was being tugged as he gathered his things. "Is this okay?" He asked Orion quietly, gesturing to the others.
Orion nodded, staying quiet as Ratchet began to re-wield the metal shut. He put a rubber patch over the wound this time, giving it a bit more security. As he finished, Orion spoke up, but it wasn't directed at him. "What are your names?"
"Huh? Oh, I'm Bulkhead." Bulkhead grinned, his voice much more subdued. "This is Bumblebee."
Bumblebee gave Orion a little wave, and Orion hesitantly waved back, "Hello. It's nice to meet you. And, erm...thank you for saving my life."
"Oh, uh...yeah. No problem. Nice to meet you too." Bulkhead rubbed the back of his helm as the base fell into an awkward silence.
"Right, now that we've made our introductions, I need you all to leave us alone. Orion needs to rest, I imagine it's been quite the experience these past few days." Ratchet said in his most haughty I'm the Medic and you can't say no voice. Bumblebee whirred in protest, but a firm look from Ratchet and a private comm telling the three of them that Orion was probably extremely overwhelmed and in pain made him relent, following the others to the hallway, sparing a glance over his shoulder. Orion was wholly focused on Ratchet, and Ratchet could see the disappointment in the scout's body language before he left. Ratchet began unhooking the energon line in Orion's arm, glad that the rubber rube hadn't been damaged or damaged Orion in his previous panic.
“...Ratchet?” Orion asked, watching the medic
“Hm?” Ratchet hung the coil on it's rightful place.
“What…what exactly happened to Cybertron?”
Ratchet stilled, “He told you?”
“Yes.”
Ratchet sighed, “War.”
“Well, yes, I did get that much.” Orion said, huffing. Ratchet, despite the circumstances, smiled at that little bit of sass. It had been a while.
“I'll tell you once you've healed. You don't need the extra stress on top of everything else." Ratchet said in his no-nonsense way that gave no room for argument.
"Then answer me one thing?"
Ratchet narrowed his optics, but gave a nod.
"Who is Optimus Prime?"