Chapter Text
Rain assaulted the windshield, the pattering drowning out all else as Cass gripped the steering wheel hard enough for her knuckles to go white. She could hardly see, and the skies overhead were dark and ominous. It was early evening, and yet it felt as though night had already encroached on her small vehicle. There was nothing there to save her. No angels, no gods. She was alone, with only her purpose to drag her ever onward.
Her gun hung heavy against her shoulder where it was holstered, the metal a constant reminder of what she was fighting for.
And what she was running from.
"Mommy? Is Daddy going to get us?" From the backseat a small voice spoke up. Her daughter, Abigail, clutched her stuffed rabbit tightly. The doll was torn and damaged, but Abigail didn't seem to care in the slightest as she held it against her chest. Her car seat made her look all the smaller in the rearview mirror as she stared at Cass, concern etched onto her young face.
She did not deserve to be so scared. Not when she was so young and Cass was meant to keep the darkness at bay. But life wasn't fair. People were fickle. They were emotional and unjust. Abigail did not deserve to be born into a world that was so cruel. No one deserved such a fate.
"No, sweetheart. Not this time... I won't let him." Cass willed her voice to not shake as she comforted herself with the weight of her weapon and the textured surface of the steering wheel. People had failed her time and time again. But machines? Those had yet to abandon her and her small family.
"Why don't you play with your brother? Mommy needs to focus." Abigail nodded with a firmness and maturity that made Cass's heart sink. Her daughter quickly turned to the infant beside her, jangling plastic keys from the mobile above her son's head so that he wouldn't make a fuss.
Cass couldn't tell if he was responding to the attempt at play or not. But it didn't really matter. She could worry about her boy when they got to the motel. Until then, all that mattered was the road, and staying the hell away from Michael. Far too many times she'd gone back to him only to face further abuse.
Not anymore. She wouldn't let him scare her. Not when her children were at stake. She would fight until the bitter end for them. The rounds in her gun reminded her of that fact.
The engine roared as Cass tried to focus on the road, driving a little too fast for comfort. A sane driver would pull over and take time to let the rain pass. But Cass? She couldn't afford it. The drugs she'd given Michael would only last so long, and she didn't doubt that he and his gang would be on the hunt for her as soon as he was well enough to realize she would not be returning any of his calls. There was no time to waste. Risking a car crash was worth escaping him.
At least, that's what Cass kept telling herself... right up until an entity sprinted out of the woods along the road.
Everything was a blur as Cass slammed on the breaks just in time to stop before the being. Abigail screamed in the back, as did her son. Cass wanted to comfort them, but her eyes were locked solely on the being, the long legged, jagged, metal being that stood before her. The heavy rain obscured much of her view when it came to the finer details, but there were several things that stood out starkly regardless.
Grey and purple plates made up the entity, a strange insignia upon its shoulder and chest. It was humanoid, but it towered over the vehicle and glared down at Cass with a face that lacked any noticeable features aside from something that looked like a visor. Red lights emanated from the glass on its face, bright and angry. As its head turned, there was a brief moment when reality seemed to still.
The entity didn't move. Cass stayed still. Nothing happened.
And then, the thing began to reach.
Before she could really register what was happening, a mighty hand began to descend. It was taloned, sharp and powerful. She did not know what this thing was, but the sheer mass of it said enough. Terror echoed in her very blood as Cass gripped her gun, aiming without thinking. Whatever this was, whatever it wanted, she would not allow it to touch her or her children.
"GET BACK!" She screamed, but the entity kept reaching. Cass cursed, momentarily fearing for her children before firing off round after round through the windshield and into the thing's body. She could not see if she hit or not for the most part. But the bullets that bounced off the entity's hand left her shaking like a leaf. The bullets were useless. The thing was getting closer-
Cass did not believe in God. But as those mighty fingers began to grasp at her car, as her children screamed behind her... she wanted to believe.
And so she prayed. For the first time since she was a child, Cass prayed to whoever would hear her. If not for her sake, then for her children.
Against every odd, her prayer was answered.
With a deafening crash, the entity flew back. Its body hit the ground with a devastating shriek of tearing metal. It screamed, a mixture of electronic static and garbled half words that Cass had no hope of understanding. Her children wailed, rain poured in through the broken windshield. But as she watched, Cass felt her heart surge with hope.
A great red and blue giant, gloomy under the cloudy skies, towered over her. The entity lay on the ground, unmoving. And the giant… its gaze shifted, like spotlights in the dark as it landed on Cass’s car. Unlike the entity, it did not reach. Instead, it crouched down, gazing directly through the shattered glass.
Right at Cass.
She could barely breathe as the giant tilted its head, and began to speak.
"Human female, desist. The threat has passed." She hadn’t even realized her gun was still aimed. But her hands trembled so violently that it clattered to the floor of the car without much effort.
"What the hell are you?" The giant did not flinch, or roar, or reach. Instead, as Cass’s shaky voice rang out over the rain, the giant’s face shifted. A mask folded away, revealing true features. It lacked a nose, instead having a flat silver face that was entirely alien, yet seemed to hold so much concern all the same.
"I am designated Optimus Prime. I am chosen of my kind, and I come to guard you from these dark ones." Its voice came deep and rumbling, but not unkind. It was masculine in its tone, but seemed to struggle with words as it gestured to the still prone entity behind it. Abigail and her son wailed in fear still, but their crying eased a fraction as the giant, Optimus, hummed.
He did not move, instead, he seemed to produce a song. Cass could not determine the words or the tones of it. But as he made his noises, her children eased, their sobs dying off as Cass fought to regain control of her ringing ears and rattled nerves.
"Calm. Have peace. All is well now." Again, Optimus spoke. Tender in a way no human being had been with Cass since her father died. He did not so much as twitch, but as he stayed in position, Cass finally got control over her limbs again.
With as much swiftness as she could muster, she clambered out of the seat, rushing to pull Abigail and little Gunner out of the car. Her daughter scrambled out without issue, clinging to Cass’s leg. Gunner remained in his carrier, still crying, but not nearly as loud.
Cass’s first thought was to check her children for wounds, but looking them over, they were unharmed. And beyond that, as she pulled Gunner out of his carrier to hold in her arms and soothe as best she could, the giant dropped to a knee in front of her. Those massive eyes were kind in their glow, a smile gracing his face as he lowered himself, not in the manner of a predator, but rather gently as her father once had when she brought him Abigail for the first time.
Gentle. This giant was gentle.
"Peace, small ones. No evil will touch you now." With utmost tenderness, Optimus reached out with one massive hand. He was slow, methodical, unhurried as he gently placed a single finger on her daughter’s head and regarded her infant son with what she could only assume was fondness due to the hum he kept producing. Even as Cass trembled, she felt no fear when faced with this being, her savior.
As his eyes shifted from her children and her to her vehicle, she couldn’t help but want that comforting glow on her again, if only to ward off the dark. Maybe it was the adrenaline talking, but under his light, she felt safe.
"Your transport is damaged..." Her savior’s voice emerged soft and concerned. Cass held her children closer on instinct, trying to hush her daughter’s sniffling as Optimus, the giant who’d saved her from a horror far greater than even her bitter ex, extended a hand. He held it out, smiling as if nothing could ever go wrong again under his watch.
"Come. I will take you away from here. The road is not safe for your small ones." Such kindness from a metal giant. Cass could hardly breathe, much less think as Optimus, a being beyond comprehension, regarded her and her children so tenderly. Why was it that after all her years on this Earth, that an entity born of metal and light was the one who brought her salvation?
"You... why?" Her voice cracked as she stared at the extended hand, delicate seams, machinery, and finery showing its craftsmanship. Whatever her savior was, he was a being made with utmost love and attention. An entity forged with purpose and precision, unlike Cass and her human body, which seemed to always be on the brink of collapse.
She didn’t have time to receive an answer from her savior before Abigail abandoned her side, stepping up onto the giant’s hand. As she did, Cass couldn’t bring herself to be afraid. Not when those eyes shone so kindly on her daughter, as if washing away every pain she’d ever endured. Optimus again hummed, that low and comforting sound. Abigail was quick to settle down in his palm in response, content in a way Cass hadn’t seen her since before everything fell apart.
Cass hesitated only a moment, waiting until those gentle eyes looked upon her and her son again to join her daughter. Her savior’s hand was sturdy and firm, a shield against everything. And as she sat and the giant stood, Cass’s heart rate eased into a quiet flutter, in awe of the one who’d brought her out of her personal hell.
It was only once he began to walk, his other hand held above them to block out the rain, did he speak and answer her question. And when he did, Cass’s entire being rattled with the sheer love in his voice.
"Life is precious. I guard it where I go." Tears gathered in Cass’s eyes as she looked upon her savior again. He was strong, he was untouchable, and yet here he was… caring for her and her children as if they mattered to one so powerful. No one had offered her such unconditional kindness, especially not when they possessed such strength.
There was only one name she could find for such a being. For one who offered protection and tenderness despite their station rising far above every other.
Only someone like a god could be so kind.
Her awe was only broken when her savior said something in a tongue she did not know, a series of clicks and electronic noises she could not place. As he did, the world itself seemed to obey his command, ripping a swirling vortex open right in front of him. Cass should have been afraid of it, but she couldn’t bring herself to as the swirling hues of blue, green, and pink, accepted them all.
Inside the vortex, her savior was unhurried, his body striding through the breech in time and space as if he owned it. The colors enthralled her, and Cass could not help but hold her son a little tighter as the hues burned themselves into her mind. She was almost disappointed when it was over and they again emerged out into a raining forest. Only this time… the rain was lighter, the air less heavy with impending doom.
The world was gentler to her here. And looking up at her savior, she felt nothing short of love.
Love for her.
Love for her children.
"A town is that way. Not far. Go." Slowly, her savior lowered them to the ground. Cass’s shoes sank into the mud at the edge of a road, but she didn’t care in the slightest, and evidently, neither did Abigail as she reached back up for the giant. Her daughter made a quiet needy noise, and as she did, their savior paused in turning away, kneeling once more to pat her daughter’s head with one massive finger.
“You are safe, small one.” That oh so gentle smile graced the god-machine’s face once more. Cass felt tears rolling down her cheeks as she beheld the tenderness of the giant. She wished she could linger in that moment of peace and salvation, but she knew it was not to be as Optimus rose.
"Do not speak of this. I must not be found." With that single and quiet command, her savior turned back into the forest. He looked back to wave fondly at Abigail, and then made his way back through the vortex. He vanished as quickly as he came, but in his wake, Cass fell to her knees weeping. Her son whimpered against her chest and her daughter stood frozen in place.
But they were alive. They were safe.
By the time Cass got herself together enough to lead her little family down the road toward the town their god-machine had left them near, her heart was lighter than ever.
She didn’t believe in a human god. But maybe… maybe she could believe in him.
She held that belief in her very soul as she got her life together. And as the weeks passed and she got an apartment, a computer, and a chance to start over… she couldn’t help but write of her experiences and share them. Her god-machine was kind beyond words, and she was certain she was not the only one he’d touched with his grace.
And she was right.
Pictures, stories, and so much more. She was not alone in her faith.
Optimus was no figment of her imagination. He was real, and he was tangible.
He was a being who cared when no others did.
"Did you really have to show yourself to the humans?" Ratchet stood with his servos on his hips, glaring at Optimus the moment he stepped through the ground bridge and into their makeshift base. He sighed, watching as his oldest friend made a face as if he’d just stepped in something sticky. Tensions were high since the crash, especially considering their current team consisted of Optimus, Ratchet, Bumblebee, and Bulkead. A small crew with limited resources on a foreign world all but dominated by their far more prepared enemies.
Ratchet’s concerns were justified, but a hassle at times.
"There was no other option, old friend. The Vehicon had them in his grasp. If I had not acted, there would have been casualties." Optimus attempted to explain, doing his best to remain rational. It would be exceptionally hard to explain that part of the reason he hadn’t simply removed the threat and vanished was due to the human newbuilds. They’d been so scared, and their cries had done something to Optimus’s spark that he still couldn’t stop, not even after millennia of war.
He had to act.
"And a lack of witnesses." Ratchet just about spat, but his anger was half-sparked. They were both very aware that Optimus’s refusal to accept unneeded loss of life would have kept that outcome from occurring regardless of the situation.
"Perhaps. But I refuse to allow innocent lives to be lost for our benefit." Optimus didn’t even hesitate to produce his usual talking point, earning a groan from his medic. Ratchet slumped, defeated as he moved back to his console, kicking it once to get it to boot up in their wreck of a ship. Most of the Ark had been crushed in the collapse, rendering it largely useless. They were lucky to have enough salvage to get the basics up and running.
"Your spark is too soft for your own good, Optimus." Ratchet scowled, but there was a certain fondness to his words that allowed Optimus to smile momentarily before coming to stand at his friend’s side. Water dripped down from a break in the ceiling nearby, earning a substantial string of curses from Ratchet. No matter how many repairs they did, the Ark was falling apart and they all knew it.
A new base would be needed eventually. Something none of them were looking forward to making happen.
"I told the grown human not to speak of my involvement... Do you believe that one will comply?" Optimus pondered aloud, earning a grunt from Ratchet as he attempted to get their groundbridge technology back up and running again. It had been finicky as of late, enough so that Optimus was lucky to have gotten two good uses out of it before it decided to kick the can.
"I don't think it matters. So long as sightings are kept to a handful of humans every now and then, they'll be considered conspiracy theorists." Ratchet grumbled, slamming a servo down on the console and forcing it to go back to normal. How he managed it, Optimus had no idea. Honestly it wouldn’t have surprised him if the console feared his wrath.
"Don't worry about it. This world's government doesn't know we are here, and that's all we need to worry about." Ratchet’s final comment was somewhat comforting, but Optimus still found himself somewhat unsure. The human female and her offspring were… very caught up in his presence. He certainly hoped they could keep their mouths shut, but he doubted it.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have much time to worry over it before Bumblebee called for him to help with something or other, likely another collapse.
The whole incident faded from his processor quickly, his thoughts more occupied ensuring no one got electrocuted in their death trap of a ship.