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1.
Kaon, Millions of Years Ago
Orion has never seen Megatronus this happy. As they leave the oil house and step into the chilly night, Megatronus is laughing heartily at a joke Orion made. It’s infectious, really, and soon Orion himself is laughing as they stroll down the dimly lit streets of Kaon. As they turn down a narrow road toward Megatronus’s living quarters, Megatronus slows his gait and turns his helm up, sighing wistfully. Orion slips his servo into Megatronus’s and squeezes gently.
“You know, sometimes I still can’t believe the stars are real,” Megatronus says quietly.
Orion gazes up and the twinkling stars, something he’s seen countless times in Iacon.
“I spent centuries in the mines, wallowing in the darkness, after catching a glimpse of the sun,” Megatronus continues, his voice thoughtful. “I’ll never forget the first time Soundwave took me stargazing.”
“I’m sorry,” Orion says. He doesn’t know what else to say. The caste system is an awful thing. Strips the joys of life from mechs simply because of how they are forged.
When Megatronus looks down at him, his scarlet optics have a shine of sadness. Orion stands on the tips of his pedes and reaches up to Megatronus, stroking his face until Megatronus sweeps him into his arms, hugging him tightly.
And there they stand under the stars and moonlight.
II.
Now
“There’s no hope for him.”
Ratchet’s words are like a plasma knife through the spark. Optimus hopes he heard him wrong…he HAD to….but Ratchet’s solemn expression says everything. Another blast rocks the makeshift shelter, causing rocks to fall from the ceiling. The Decepticons are getting closer. Closer to their leader, who lies sedated on the medical berth with wires and tubes hooked up to him.
Optimus was positive that this would work. That they would find a cure.
It all started years after reconstruction on Cybertron ended. After the minor issues with rogue Decepticons, after the council was restored and Optimus returned. Megatron. He came back, but he changed. Terribly. One glance at his purple optics and glowing lines of poison on his chassis told Optimus that he found dark energon again, perhaps still craving it from before.
And then Megatron changed. Rallied Decepticons to his side again, started a war.
It wasn’t him. He wasn’t in his right mind, Optimus kept reminding himself. Surely there was something they could do…
And so they captured Megatron and brought him to this hideout in the Manganese Mountains where Ratchet could go about his work in peace, fix him. But things never go as planned…
“There must be a cure, old friend.” Optimus tries to keep his voice steady, but panic is rising inside of him.
The cruelty of it all…it haunts him. Megatron changed, resisted Unicron. He found redemption. Yet he wasn’t allowed to rest…
Ratchet looks at the screens again, his optics flicking over Megatron’s vitals, the results of the energon tests.
The doctor sighs and shakes his helm. “The dark energon has fused with every circuit. His very CNA. There’s nothing I can do…”
Another loud bang. More falling rocks. The Decepticons are going to breach the entrance any moment now, find their way down the tunnels into the heart of the mountain where Megatron was.
“There has to be something else,” Optimus says, but he feels completely defeated.
“We need to get out of here,” Ratchet says. Then he speaks into his comm. “Prowl, open a ground bridge. Quickly!”
There’s a burst of green light as their only way of escape opens up in the cold cavern.
“You go, Ratchet. Give me a moment. “ Optimus says.
Thankfully, Ratchet obeys, running through the ground bridge to the safety of the Autobot headquarters in Crystal City.
Optimus turns back to Megatron. The silver mech is stirring awake now, his purple optics flickering before steadily glowing and staring up at the Prime.
“Optimus…” Megatron gasps, holding out a shaking servo.
Optimus takes his servo, intertwining their fingers. He feels washer fluid pricking the corners of his optics. This is the first time Megatron has shown real clarity, as if his addled processor is giving him a blessed chance to see the world as it should be.
He knows what he should do, but he can’t. He just can’t.
Instead, he leaves, ignoring Megatron’s frightened, confused cries as he jumps through the ground bridge to safety.
III.
The battle rages on. Cities burn, Cybertronians die. Some flee again, taking to the stars, but this time vowing never to return. Perhaps Cybertron is cursed. From the Quintessons, to the First War, perhaps they were destined to remain in battle. Destroying each other until the end of time.
Optimus felt overwhelming guilt. Again. He’s selfish to refuse to kill Megatron, but this time is worse than before. Megatron isn’t himself. It’s not his fault. The dark energon has taken him over.
Part of Optimus still believes he can get through to Megatron, set things right.
He finally catches a break when Ratchet shows him a vial of bright orange liquid.
“The antidote.” Ratchet can barely contain his excitement. “Once Megatron is cured, he can tell the Decepticons to stand down.”
Much to Optimus’s relief, Ratchet never admonished him for leaving Megatron alive. He understood. That’s why he didn’t give up on finding a solution, pouring over the samples of Megatron’s energon.
For the first time in a while, Optimus feels hope. Happiness. He gazes at their salvation as Ratchet holds it up, the light gleaming against the glass.
“You’ve done it, old friend!” Optimus lays a hand on Ratchet’s shoulder, smiling. “You’ve done it.”
***
“Megatron, stop this!” Optimus shouts, shoving Megatron back as the mech takes a wild swing at him.
The air is thick with smoke and death.
Megatron crashes to the ground, but stands up again, his optics wild, energon dripping from a deep cut on his face.
“You Autobots will bring back the caste system…” Megatron says, breathing hard. “You’re just waiting until you can enslave us again.”
“I would never do that,” Optimus says. When he sees that Megatron isn’t going to attack him again, he retrieves the medicine from his subspace. Now was his only chance. “Megatron, your’e judgement is being clouded by dark energon. This isn’t you!” He takes a step forward.
Megatron just glowers at him, his dentae bared.
Optimus prays to Primus that this will work, then leaps at Megatron, pinning him down and injecting the serum into his neck cables.
Megatron thrashes around momentarily, then relaxes, his gaze seeming to focus. Optimus hovers above him, his spark beating out of control.
The purple is slowly fading from Megatron’s optics, returning them to their normal red…
There’s hope.
If only for a moment.
Megatron jumps to his pedes and punches Optimus right in the face, sending him tumbling to the ground. Then comes a blast from his newly built fusion canon that Optimus barely avoids.
Hope fades.
And the war continues.
IV.
Optimus knows what he has to do.
It was called Shadowplay. A terrible procedure, one that completely erased the victim’s memories, altered their personality until they were a shell of their former self. It can cancel out the effects of the dark energon.
When Optimus told Ratchet about his plans, Ratchet’s optics went wide in terror. He was an honorable medic. He couldn’t do such a terrible thing. But lives were at stake. It was the only way they could end this war once and for all.
And so, through great effort, Optimus captured Megatron again, this time alongside Bulkhead, Prowl, Jazz, and Ironhide. They dragged him through the ground bridge before the Decepticons could pursue, took him to the base, strapped him onto the medical table,
Megatron struggles, shouting, cursing, trying to scratch Optimus’s optics out. Ratchet gives him a sedative, but it barely works.
“Are you sure about this, Prime?” Prowl asks, giving Megatron a wary look.
“It’s the only way,” Optimus says, his voice strained.
He leaves Ratchet to it. Partly because he doesn’t want to distract the medic, but partly because he can’t bring himself to watch.
V.
The war ends without ceremony. With Megatron gone, the Decepticons couldn’t regroup. Their willpower fizzled out until it was no more.
And the rebuilding process begins. Again.
For cycles on end, Optimus can’t bring himself to visit Megatron in his cell. Even after the peace treaty is signed with the Decepticons, even after things are slightly back to ‘normal’…he doesn’t want to see the terrible damage done to his friend. His once lover. The love of his life.
But he needs to. He needs to be there for Megatron in this dark hour.
And so he ventures down to the cells where the warlord is being kept.
As he peers through the energized bars at Megatron, he can clearly see the effects of the surgery. Its in the way Megatron is slumped on his berth, the way he stares blankly at the floor and only looks at Optimus when the Prime calls his name twice.
Megatron stares at him with empty optics. He blinks.
“Are you…alright?” Is all Optimus can think to ask.
“Yes,” Megatron says. “You’re—-Optimus Prime.”
Optimus manages a faint smile. “Yes, I am.
Megatron nods at the holo on the wall of his cell. “I’ve been watching your speeches.” He frowns. “Whatever I’ve done, I’m sorry.”
Optimus’s spark clenches. “No, I’m the one who should be sorry,” he says softly. “For everything.”
VI.
After arguing with the new council, Optimus finally gets Megatron released. Why should he stay locked up if he can’t even remember what he did? Or who he is? He’s harmless now.
When Megatron steps outside with Optimus, he looks around, but doesn’t seem to care about this new world he’s in now. He stares at his surroundings with a passionless expression, shuffling alongside Optimus.
“Where am I going now?” Megatron asks.
“I set up a place for you in my living quarters,” Optimus says. “But you don’t have to stay there if you don’t want. You’re a free mech, now.”
VII.
A solar cycle later, Optimus takes Megatron back to Kaon. Or what’s left of Kaon. And what’s left of Megatron…
The mech is still a shell of his former self. A chassis, but an empty, altered processor. No memories of the nights spent with Orion Pax. No memories of the war, the Decepticons, Unicron, dark energon, anything. He’s a blank slate.
But he’s alive. Free of the influence of the poisonous substance that consumed him.
The only other option available was killing Megatron. And that’s something Optimus could never bring himself to do.
“So this place was destroyed by the war, too?” Megatron watches Optimus expectantly, his optics glowing.
They’re surrounded by a sea of rubble, the only remnants of Megatron’s home after the second war. Optimus brought him here in hopes that it would jumpstart his memory somehow, break through the permanence of the surgery.
He knew it to be impossible, but he didn’t want to stop trying.
“Yes, it was,” Optimus replies, feeling dejected.
Megatron looks up at the clear blue sky, his face solemn. After a moment, he keeps plodding along, kicking at piles of metal.
Optimus follows him. Together, they stroll through the city aimlessly.
“This place…” Megatron says suddenly. “There’s something about it.”
Optimum’s spark skips a beat. Could it be..?
Megatron sits down on a block of metal and rubs his helm. Optimus joins him, but stays silent, wanting to give Megatron some time to contemplate things by himself. He can barely contain himself. Perhaps memory wiping isn’t as permanent as once thought…
But Megatron loses his train of thought and the moment passes.
Optimus tries to conceal his disappointment as Megatron looks at him with that blank expression again, like he’s seeing a stranger.
Sighing in defeat, Optimus holds out his servo. Megatron looks at it, confused for a klik before holding it, lacing their digits together.