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D-16 woke up slowly. There was a groggy feeling in his head, though he didn’t know why. Until he remembered what had happened the night before. Of course, like always, Orion Pax was behind this. Not only had his friend pulled him up in the middle of the night and pitched what must have been his most ridiculous idea yet, he was also going to make D-16 work an entire double shift on half a recharge cycle and-
D-16 suddenly jolted fully awake, all traces of haziness completely gone. They weren’t going to work today – they were going to watch the Iacon 5000!
Unwilling to waste a second more than necessary, D-16 rushed across the barracks to Orion’s recharge slab and shook his friend’s shoulders. Orion’s optics slowly blinked online and he emitted a low groan.
“Dee.” He mumbled groggily. “Why are you shaking me? Did Megatronus come back to life or something?”
“Come on, don’t be ridiculous Pax!” D-16 shook him even harder. “Today’s the Iacon 5000! We gotta hurry and get to the arena so we can get good seats!”
“But I’m tired!” Orion complained. “It feels like I’ve been run over by a freight train.”
“You should have thought of that before you decided to drag me up in the middle of the night.” D-16 said, giving him a friendly punch to the shoulder. “Now come on, let’s get some energon.”
After refueling, Orion and D-16 exited their barracks and joined the steady stream of bots all heading to the same place; the grand stadium. As much of an arena as it was a monument, the stadium not only represented the glory of the fallen Primes, but their legacy as well. The closer they got to it, the more excited D-16 became.
Even though the day was young, the streets were already very busy, cogged and cogless alike moving like a stream with one common goal. By the time D-16 and Orion were a couple of blocks away from the stadium, it had become virtually impossible to not bump into anyone every few seconds. A small thread of worry poked through the excitement inside D-16’s chest, but he quickly shoved it back down. The grand stadium was, well, grand, and even though they would never get a shot at the very best seats (those were always taken by cogged bots who could queue outside the stadium all night instead of having to work an extra mining shift) there were still plenty of others with a great view.
Just as they were about to enter the stadium’s perimeter area, D-16 felt a tug on his shoulder.
“I have a surprise for you.” Orion said casually, walking off the main road and onto a side street.
“Where are you going?” D-16 shouted after him, eying the many bots walking past. “The stadium is that way!”
He gestured towards the giant building. Perhaps Orion had hit his head during the previous day’s mining accident and simply forgot where they were heading? At least it would be better than-
“Yeah, I know. Follow me!”
That.
A part of D-16 just wanted to ignore him. If he simply walked away now, Orion could have fun on his little detour while D-16 got to enjoy the race, with the added bonus of not getting involved in something stupid and completely avoidable. Unfortunately, he knew that if he wasn’t there to pull his friend out of trouble when it found him, no one would. With a great sigh and one final look in the grand stadium’s direction, D-16 sprinted down the side street as well.
Orion led him through an old service hatch and further down a vast network of mechanical tunnels, and it did not take long until D-16 had no idea where they were anymore. He did know, however, that for every tight squeeze, dangerous jump, and shaky ladder, they were losing precious seconds until the race was due to start. At the same pace, the thread of worry was steadily turning his excitement into dread. Trying to voice his concerns to Orion didn’t help, as his friend only kept reassuring him that his plan, whatever it was, would be awesome. His promises only served to have the opposite effect.
By the time he was forced to crawl through the third rusty maintenance hatch, D-16 had all but given up on getting to see the race on anything other than a monitor. If they even caught any of it at all. He sighed as the last bits of his excitement evaporated. They had all worked so hard since the last shift increases, and between those, he’d been forced to run after Orion every time his friend made up some new hare-brained scheme to ‘show the world they were something more’. And, of course, when D-16 for once had something he really looked forward to, that too had to be put aside in favor of Orion’s newest whim. Which he, for the record, still hadn’t revealed anything more about.
Now halfway through the maintenance hatch, D-16 decided to voice his concerns one last time. He knew the chances were very slim, but still hoped Orion might come to his senses just this once.
“I know this is, like, fun for you, like you’re joking around and everything.” He said as he pulled himself through the hatch. The space beyond was big enough for a cogged bot to stand upright, and the entire left side consisted of one large, red tinted window. D-16 continued his rant as he moved to stand beside Orion.
“But if you make me miss any part of the Iacon 5000, I swear I’ll smelt your face right off your...”
His voice trailed off as he looked through the window. While everything on the other side was tinted a deep red, there was no mistaking where they were. Cheering bots, an atmosphere loaded with suspense, and a perfect view of the starting line for the Iacon 5000. D-16 could even spot several famous racers down on the track below. Instantly, the dread was pushed back by an avalanche of new excitement.
“Look look, there’s Thunderglide! And Behemoth!” He bounced happily as he pointed out his favorite competitors. “This is unbelievable! I feel like I’m in the race!”
He looked over at Orion, who was watching him with a warm smile. A realization hit D-16.
“You did this for me?” He asked softly.
Orion’s smile grew fond, and his optics seemed to shift into an even deeper blue.
“Yeah.” He said. “I know I’ve been a bit selfish lately, always dragging you into trouble with me. So, I figured it’s time for me to give something back.”
D-16 didn’t know what to say to that. He simply couldn’t find the words to convey everything he was feeling. Fortunately, Orion looked like he already knew.
“Look!” He said, still smiling. “I think Sentinel’s about to give his speech.”
D-16’s gaze followed where Orion was pointing. And there was Sentinel Prime himself, swooping through the arena on golden wings while waving at the cheering masses. Eventually, he landed on a tall platform to give the traditional introductory speech before the race began, talking about the war and the thirteen Primes who had died to save their planet. As he spoke, holostatues of the fallen heroes were lit across the stadium. D-16’s optics flicked between them until he found the one depicting Megatronus Prime, who stood regally while looking out over the audience. While D-16 was elated to see his idol so close up, it could not eclipse the happiness of knowing Orion had done this for him.
“Racers, on your marks!” Sentinel shouted, pulling D-16 out of his thoughts.
Below, the competitors jumped and twisted and twirled into their transformation sequences. Some were flashier than others, even showing off by doing extra acrobatics as their plating moved and clicked into place. D-16 felt another flash of excitement shoot through his frame. If the race wasn’t about to start, he would probably have needed to run a few laps around their little space to burn off some energy.
“I can’t believe we get to watch from the starting line.” He raved, doing a couple of small skips, though his optics never left the racers. “These have to be the best seats in the house!”
“Yup!” Orion said with a chuckle. “You’re going to have to back up a bit in a second though.”
“What? Why?” D-16 asked, slightly suspicious.
“First class privileges come with some extra perks.” Orion winked, taking his shoulder and leading him to the back of the small space. “Just trust me on this.”
He stepped onto a small ledge just above the floor and helped his friend do the same, since D-16 still refused to take his optics off the track.
“Get set!” Sentinel’s voice echoed from outside. The window turned from red to orange as the air filled with the sounds of revving engines.
“Hold onto here.” Orion guided D-16’s hand onto a small outcropping and closed it.
Above, Sentinel’s hand transformed into a blaster and fired once. The window turned green, and the floor where D-16 and Orion had stood not ten seconds before fell open just as the choir of engines reached its crescendo and the racers threw themselves forward. For a moment D-16 feared he would slip and fall, but his grip held, and he found himself laughing with glee as the slipstream from the passing racers swept over him.
Once the race’s first few tumultuous seconds were over, the floor below closed up again, letting Orion and D-16 lower themselves back down. D-16 immediately rushed over to the window, pressing up against the glass so he could see the racers make their way across Iacon. The winding road they drove on constantly took unexpected turns, keeping them all on their toes.
Just as the first bots entered one of the obstacle filled tunnels, D-16 felt something nudge his shoulder.
“Energon?” Orion offered, holding out a small cube.
D-16 accepted it with a nod and distractedly put it in his mouth. To his surprise, it wasn’t the regular rations handed out in the mines, but a finely filtered blend that melted right on his tongue. There was even a slight hint of copper in the aftertaste.
“Where-” He began to ask, but Orion interrupted him with another cube.
“Don’t worry about it.” His friend said with a wink. “I can tell you later.”
D-16 nodded and hummed, his focus already back on the race, where the regular track had given way to a section filled with pitfalls and gravity shifters. Orion chuckled as he settled down next to him with a cube of his own. Together, they watched and cheered as the competition became more intense by the second. D-16 had watched the race every cycle since he came online, but those past experiences didn’t even come close to this.
“And here they come, up on the final stretch!” The announcer said excitedly. “Looks like it’ll be a close one.”
Both Orion and D-16 had their faces pressed to the window as the leading pack shot towards the finish line. Some were caught in the magnetic tunnel that served as a final obstacle, but three fliers and one grounder skillfully maneuvered around it. The quartet were almost side by side as they approached the finish line.
“I cannot believe it!” The announcer was practically screaming now. “This has to be one of the closest finales in Iacon 5000 history!”
The leaders all pushed their engines to the max. Just as the race looked to be a tie, the only land vehicle managed to speed up even more, crossing the finish line with mere milliseconds to spare. The audience’s roar shook the entire stadium, D-16 and Orion among them.
“We have a winner!” The announcer sounded halfway to blowing out his voice box. “After the most exhilarating finish Iacon has ever seen, Blurr has claimed victory!”
D-16 cheered again, grabbing Orion’s shoulders and shaking him.
“Did you see that?” He shouted. “Did you see how fast they were going? And that finale! I can’t believe we got to watch all of that up close!”
He released Orion again, but their optics remained interlocked.
“Look, I-” D-16 hesitated as he once again struggled to find the right words. “Thank you. For doing all of this. I don’t know how else to tell you, but it means a lot to me.”
“It’s alright, Dee.” Orion gave him another of those fond smiles. “You deserve this. Besides-”
He held out a fist.
“Always got your back, right?”
D-16 looked at his friend’s hand for a moment. Then he rushed forward, wrapping Orion in a tight hug instead.
“Yeah.” He whispered. “No matter what.”