** Possession ** Part 4
by Ivy Bohnlein



     As I fell through Unicron's body, I kicked and lashed out wildly, 
hoping to catch hold of something that could break my downward plunge.  
I managed to grasp a protruding ledge and hoist myself up to balance on 
the narrow shelf.  My optics scanned over my surroundings, looking for a 
means of escape.  The walls around me were smooth, polished metal, with 
occasional large, thorn-like structures protruding from them.  The 
projections were too far apart to be climbed, and a false move would send 
me down to certain destruction in the furnace of Unicron's belly.  I had 
to move upward, somehow.  If I were lucky, perhaps I could find some 
sensitive neural structures and destroy them, giving the other Decepticons
time to find some weakness to exploit.
     One thing was certain, however: I had to get away from where I was.  
The ledge was barely wide enough to support my feet, and there was 
nothing but a sheer drop below.  I heard an odd noise from above and 
jerked my head upward to look.  One of the spikes above me had split open 
into a large claw and was extending outward on an uncoiling metal leash.  
As I watched, more claws split open above me and prepared to drop down 
and attack.  When the first one dove at me, I fired up at the junction 
where it attached to the wall.  A few quick bursts and it broke free, 
falling at my feet with the claw still reflexively snapping.  I picked it 
up by the severed end and began to swing it in circles at my side, 
waiting until a claw from far above came into range, then snapped my claw 
forward.  The two claws snapped shut over each other and held.  I used my 
makeshift rope to swing off of my ledge and plant my feet against the 
opposite wall, then head up the rope hand-over-hand.  I kept a careful 
watch on the junction where the two claws grasped each other, fearing 
that one might release and send me spinning down in free fall, but they 
held tight.  In fact, the first claw began to retract into the wall 
above, thinking that it had captured me.  The message must have 
penetrated to the other claws as well, because they all stopped harassing 
my climb and retracted into inert spikes once more.  It all made my climb 
much easier.
     When I had climbed as far as I could on my 'rope', I stood 
precariously upon the surface of the intermeshed claws and cut the 
trailing leash from them with another blast of my cannon.  By snaking the 
metal cable around the protruding spikes above me, I could climb upward, 
gather my rope again, and repeat the process.  As I neared Unicron's 
head, the spikes were closer together, and I could discard the rope to 
climb overhand.  By the time I reached a more level tunnel, my shoulder 
joints were aching with the strain.  I could hear a faint rushing of 
liquid from the other side of the tunnel walls as I peered into the 
darkness, but there was little to see.  The passage looked like it could 
be a route to the interior of Unicron's head - maybe even to his main 
processor.  If I could get there...
     But it would be his weakest point.  And a weakness like that would 
obviously be well defended.  The lack of obvious defenses around this 
area had to be a ruse.  I diverted extra power to charge my cannon fully, 
then touched the faintly glowing Matrix that still hung by its chain 
around my neck.  I smiled briefly in grim determination, and began to run 
the gauntlet.
     My assumption had been correct.  As I sprinted, doors opened in the 
floor, ceiling, and walls to release hundreds of self-defense mechanisms. 
 More claws, like the ones which had attacked me earlier and some more of 
a different design, shot out at me and snapped down on empty air or upon 
each other.  I had to vault over tripwires and spiked floors, duck under 
swinging blades, dodge laser fire, and blast my way through barriers.  At 
one point, a flood of water  even threatened to knock me backwards, but I 
grabbed hold of one of the snapping claws and held on while the wave 
passed.  And then I was up again, snaking and dodging and leaping and 
fighting my way through.  I had to keep moving, moving, moving...
     Just when I thought that my race would never end, the tunnel opened up 
into a larger chamber, dimly lit and ominously silent.  The defenses 
snapped at my heels one last time, then retracted.  Obviously battle 
could not be risked here.  Wherever here was.
     I stared around.  The room was irregularly shaped, with oddly placed 
columns and a shadowed dais.  But nothing it contained seemed vital 
enough to destroy.  The only way out was the tunnel I'd arrived in, 
unless the impenetrable shadows on the ceiling concealed a passage.  As I 
strained my senses for any kind of clue as to what might be above, I was 
surprised to hear shouts and the sounds of battle.  I wend up to one wall 
and pressed my audial sensors against it, then took a quick step back in 
surprise.
     I had clearly heard the sound of spacecraft involved in a 
harrying battle. This wall was all that separated me from the outside, 
from freedom!  I quickly buckled down into my cannon form and loosed a 
blast at the barrier, then transformed back to inspect the results.
     Nothing.  Maybe I'd weakened it, but it would take more energy than I 
had left to break through.  A sense of doom washed over me and I wandered 
over to sit on the dais.  The Matrix at my neck was all that illuminated 
the dark corner, and I touched it with my hand, staring at its light.
     "Well," I said bitterly, unconcerned that I was talking to an 
inanimate object, "You're lighting my darkest hour.  But this wasn't what 
I had in mind."
     It just continued to shine softly, impassively.  I felt a wave of 
hatred and revulsion sweep over me.  It had gotten me into this.  I'd 
believed in it, like a fool: in the Matrix and its supernatural powers.  
If I hadn't stolen it and challenged Unicron, Cybertron might still be in 
one piece.  I didn't even want it touching me, and yet I feared it too 
much to throw it away.  Instead, I cupped my hand over its window to shut 
out its glow.  A sliver of blue light still escaped to outline my tightly 
pressed fingers, so I put my other hand over it as well, like crossing my 
hands over my heart.
     The light disappeared - swallowed, like all hope, by the darkness.
     As the lack of visual stimuli sharpened my other senses, I heard a low 
crash and a groan.  I was no longer alone.  Hands and knees scraped along 
the ground, then cautious footsteps took over as my new companion drew 
nearer.  Well, if we were trapped here until death, I ought to at least 
find out his name.  I removed my hands from the Matrix, unleashing its 
dim glow in the room.
     "The Matrix," the Other gasped in wonder.  He was an Autobot, 
strangely enough, slight of build and red, with yellow flames splashed on 
his chest.  Bright blue optics, oddly reminiscent of Optimus Prime's, 
sparked in his youthful face at the sight of the Matrix.  I recognized 
him from the assault on Autobot City - he had tired to save Prime, and in 
return, become my hostage.  What was the name the Autobots had shouted?  
Hot Rod.
     I looked at the Matrix darkly and leaned forward into its glow, to 
reveal my face to the young Autobot's eyes.  "It will do you no good, 
Autobot.  It cannot be opened."
     Idealism and a dose of Autobot self-righteousness flooded his face and 
voice.  Sad, really.  "Not by a Decepticon," he announced.
     Fool.  If Ultra Magnus still lived, you could ask him.  "Like it or 
not, we are allies now, against a common foe."  I wanted to continue, but 
my vision was suddenly cut off by that blinding red light and my audio 
was filled by a high pitched screaming whine.  Fire rippled over my limbs 
as Unicron reminded me that he did not appreciate betrayal.  I groaned in 
agony, dropping to my knees and clutching my head.  No, please, I'll do 
anything, just make it stop....
     Unicron's voice filled my mind, his words sounding almost panicked in 
their clipped haste.  "Destroy him, Galvatron, now!  Or you yourself will 
be obliterated!"
     "Of course," I gasped, "My master!"  The pain ended abruptly, and I 
looked up from my groaning to draw a bead on the surprised Autobot.  You 
must die so I may live.  It has always been the way of things.  And yet, 
something, some kind of regret, nagged at my mind.  The two things 
Unicron feared were this Autobot, and the Matrix... Why was that so 
important?  Unicron had made it so hard to think...
     I fired my cannon at him, hoping to drive away my demons with action.  
But instead of remaining to fight, he ran for cover.  "Puny Autobot!" I 
shouted after him, "You lack even Prime's courage!"  No response.  
     Very well then, the hunt is on.  You have nowhere to run, boy, and I 
have nothing but time.
     The irregular contours of the room made finding the Autobot more 
difficult than I had anticipated.  He had a hundred different shadows to 
hide in, while I was strapped to a highly visible light source.  
Remembering the impulsive way he'd jumped into the fray at Autobot City, 
I decided to flush him out with words.  
     "Come out, Autobot!" I barked.  "We all must die sometime."
     I heard a shout from behind.  "Not today, Galvatron."  As I turned to 
face him, I could hear his footsteps drawing nearer.  I had just enough 
time to glimpse him before his fist connected heavily with my jaw, 
sending me flying backward to land on the ground.  Before I could regain 
my feet, he transformed and drove off, using the circular tunnels around 
the area to his advantage by spiraling up and down the walls in his 
flight.
     I fired a few shots after him, but never managed to connect.  Steaming 
with anger and frustration, I transformed into a massive cannon and 
hurled stronger blasts after him. He dodged a few of them, but one of the 
bolts detonated right behind him, sending him spinning forward and 
forcing him back into his robot form.  If I had been at full power, the 
little nuisance would have been slag.  Instead, he absorbed the blast 
well, rolling up to his knee to fire upon me.  One of his shots connected 
with my base, exploding against it and forcing me to transform.  As I 
tried to recover my bearings and locate the Autobot brat, I heard him 
transform again and was suddenly blinded by the glare of bright 
headlights boring into my optics, which were adjusted to the dimness of 
the room.  As they adapted to compensate for the new increase in light, 
the Autobot's engine roared and I felt a heavy, hard impact to my chest, 
throwing me backward.  This time, however, I recovered too quickly for 
him.  I lunged forward and seized him while he was still in his auto 
mode, rolling him over onto his hood on the ground.  As he transformed, I 
shifted my grip to his throat and proceeded to choke the air and life and 
energon out of him.
     "I will crush you with my bare hands," I growled triumphantly.  He had 
locked his hands on my wrists, but his feeble struggles to free himself 
were growing weaker by the moment.  "Die, Autobot."
     His optics widened with the realization that I truly wanted him dead, 
and his resistance grew more frantic.  I smiled bitterly, knowing that it 
wouldn't take long now for it all to be over.  A small voice somewhere in 
my mind tried to remind me that there could be some significance to the 
Autobot: some reason that he was here, and at this time; some reason that 
Unicron feared him so greatly.  But the battle-lust was pounding in my 
mind, overwhelming that voice, and allowing me to take pleasure in the 
feeling of a fading life under my hands.
     "First Prime, then Ultra Magnus, and now you," I sneered into his 
face.  "It's a pity you Autobots die so easily, or I might have a sense 
of satisfaction now."
     With a final move born of desperation, the Autobot released his grip 
on my wrists and tried to push against my chest instead.  His hands 
clattered against the chain around my neck, then closed over the Matrix.  
Despite his loss of strength from the battle, the chains snapped easily 
as the Matrix came away in his hands.  At the same time, as strange new 
sense of power seemed to sweep through him and he kicked out against me, 
sending me flying away from him and crashing into the wall.
     As I rolled over to look back, an intense blue light engulfed the 
Autobot like a purifying flame and he stood, straightening proudly and 
growing in stature before my amazed eyes.  Power and glory radiated from 
him like beams of light as Optimus Prime's voice filled the room.
     "Arise, Rodimus Prime."
     The Autobot gasped, and I heard some of the same wonder that had 
tinged his voice when he first spotted the Matrix around my neck.  
"Optimus..."
     Suddenly the room felt much smaller, as if I were being crowded out of 
it by the sheer power and will of the Matrix and its new owner.  "No," I 
gasped, struggling against the feeling.  Almost reflexively, I fired upon 
Rodimus Prime, hoping to knock him away from me or blast the Matrix from 
his hands.  The beams of destructive energy were reflected away from him 
as soon as they reached the limits of the glowing blue aura, scattering 
and dissipating into darkness.  All except one, which penetrated the 
field and sent the Matrix spinning toward the ground.  It hit the floor 
with a metallic clink and the blue fire died.  I looked up grimly at my 
new opponent.
     Losing the Matrix hadn't robbed him of his power.  He was about my 
size now, with a broad chest and a look of maturity that I hadn't seen on 
his face before.  He fixed me with a dangerous glare from eyes that, 
oddly, hadn't changed a bit, and he pointed an accusing finger at me.  
"This is the end of the road, Galvatron."
     I steeled myself for impact as he rushed me, but was still surprised 
by the sheer force of his tackle.  While I staggered backward, lashing 
out at his arms and face, he grasped me roughly by the shoulders and 
hoisted me off of the ground.  I kicked and struggled, but I was no match 
for him now.  Not at the height of his new power.
     As he grasped my shoulders, however, a force like an electric current 
raced through me and I saw everything with a sudden new clarity.  My 
death, my rebirth, my quest for the Matrix, and my search for my own 
identity had all been preludes to this last confrontation.  Rodimus Prime 
and I were the light and dark fists of a destructive god, poised on the 
edge of a new era.  By rebelling against Unicron, I had sealed my own 
fate.  The dark fist of chaos had brought the light to his rival, 
offering up the Matrix as the instrument of his own defeat.  And yet, in 
doing so, I had freed myself from a servant's role forever.  I had lost 
the fight, but for the first time in my life, I was ready to do so.
     If I must die now, I die free.
     He heaved me forward, and I saw that I was hurtling toward the wall 
that separated us from the vacuum of space.  I covered my head with my 
arms as I smashed through the metal plating and went hurtling out into 
the void.  As the world spun around my head, I caught a glimpse of 
Unicron's body being consumed by smoke and flames, and then I saw nothing 
at all.

     Heat.  Intense, like the fire of the forge, and concentrated into a 
pool of liquid light.  In my mind, a battle raged for control.  Unicron 
was gone, ripped from this world with a tearing that I could feel 
somewhere inside.  In his wake followed the barriers that had separated 
mind from mind.  Memories returned in a jumbled array, only to be 
swallowed or burned by the fires within and without.  I had to integrate 
them all, quickly, before the madness on the horizon could sweep in to 
engulf me.  A new Galvatron would arise from the ashes of two dead 
selves, here in a lake of heat and light powerful enough to unmake any 
Decepticon.  Except me.  No flame could burn bright or hot enough to 
unmake me.

     I was born in fire.



                             [The End]



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