“Admiral Ross was the first to recover.  His whispered, “My god…. It’s full of stars…” broke the spell that had held the others.  Everyone who’d seen that graphic knew the probability of victory for the Allies was slight.  But, just as equally, each knew that surrender was no option.  In this fight, it was victory, or death.  There could be no other outcomes. “This is a much graver threat than we had imagined.” Prime said, his deep voice reverberating through the chamber.  “Our forces cannot hope to do more than hold the line for the moment, and even that may prove to tax our forces to the utmost.”

“Have faith in your allies, Prime.” Megatron replied.  “My Decepticons can keep those upstart Cybertronians away from your precious Autobots for as long as it takes you to find what little courage you posses.” he sneered.

Ross, still on edge over this horrific revelation, took umbrage at the exclusion of Terrans from the discussion.  “And I suppose you expect the Hegemony to just wait while you Transformers fight it out?” he demanded.  “We’ve seen the devastation that occurs when you’re left to settle things yourselves.  We intend to take a personal hand in this conflict, and I assure you, you’ll find Terran Marines to be the match of any Decepticon in bravery.”

Before it could degenerate into a full-out shouting match, Prime held his hands up, signaling for quiet.  “We are all shaken by what Soundwave has shown us.” he said, his voice calm and controlled as ever.  “However, let us not forget we are allies.  Against an enemy force this vast, our only hope is co-operation.  Terran and Transformer must stand together, or all are lost.”  There was again silence, as each delegate sought to master themselves, lest an ill-received word set them to fighting again. “Now,” Prime spoke up again, taking the initiative, “I suggest we all spend time conferring with our respective forces.  We must increase production, especially of weapons and ships, and prepare our people for this war.”  The other two nodded in agreement, though he could not know just how closely they were following his words.

“Very well.  Then let us adjourn for the moment.  May I suggest we reconvene in three hours?”  Again, the others accepted his suggestion, Ross signing off with a salute and a grim smile, and Megatron gathering his subordinates around him.  The Decepticon leader wasted no time exiting the chamber, leaving only Grimlock and Optimus to stare at the emerald arm of the galaxy. “This,” Grimlock muttered, “bad.”  Optimus couldn’t have agreed more.

“Get me the Senate!” Ross demanded loudly.  This new information would have to be relayed to them at once, and their orders received.  Kaji may have made him supreme commander of the Cybertronian theater, but this far outstripped his present abilities.   Besides, this was way too big to sit on for any amount of time.

“I have the Senate on Gold channel, sir.” someone reported.  Ross didn’t even bother to check with tech it was; he merely called the scene up on the main viewer.  Immediately, the visage of Michel Robert, firstborn son of the great European statesman Guy Robert, appeared.  The younger Robert had capitalized on his father’s prestige, and when it turned out he was a visionary man, his success was assured.  At the moment, he was the Hegemon of the Terran Hegemony, the leader of the entire Human race.  Of course, his decisions were still subject to approval by the Senate, but in all the years of the Hegemony, no Hegemon had ever tabled an idea that had not passed the Senate’s readings.  And no Hegemon had ever used that most fearsome power, the right to declare a state of Planetary Emergency and force through anything he deemed necessary.

“Greetings, Admiral.” Robert began, displaying that same charisma that had led him to his second term as Hegemon just months ago.  “As I’m sure you know, I have a rather full schedule.  So, if you could?”

“Of course, sir.” Ross replied.  “I’m afraid the news just got worse out here.  It turns out Jhiaxus and his troops were not the entirety of the Cybertronian Empire.  The Empire has returned in force; it was they who destroyed the Infinity and her charges, and started this whole conflict.  As well, they are advancing quickly across the galaxy, and they are intent on wiping out anything that does not meet their definition of perfection.  And I’m afraid we fall far short.” Ross finished.

Robert looked like a poleaxed ox for all of three seconds, before getting himself under control.  “That’s quite a mouthful, Admiral.  Obviously I can’t make any decision on this by myself.  I’ll need to speak with the Senate, and the military, before I can give you any clear instructions.” he explained.  It was unnecessary, of course; Ross knew the system well, especially the tedium of the bureaucracy.  Of course, this was a unique situation, so perhaps the great political machine could be coaxed along.  Ross certainly hoped so.

“Of course, sir.” Ross replied, nodding.  “I expected as much.  At the moment, however, do I have your permission to proceed as though the Hegemony has agreed to a military partnership with the Transformers?” he inquired.

“You may.” the Hegemon replied.  “Furthermore, I expect you to conduct yourself appropriately, Admiral.  You are Terra’s ambassador amongst the Transformers, for the moment.  You know what that entails.”

“Sir.” Ross answered.  Every naval officer above Captain was expected to exercise their own judgment whenever the situation required it, and were trained as such.  As well, on the off chance that a new alien species might be discovered, commodores and above were trained in first contact protocol, as well as diplomacy and negotiation.  Until now, Ross had thought they were just dead weight.  How wrong he’d been.

“Very good.” Robert replied.  “Carry on, Admiral.  And good luck.”

“Thank you, sir.”

The screen went black.

“So, those rejects from the scrap heap return again to challenge us?” Megatron muttered to himself.  “Very well.  We crushed them once; we can easily do it again.”

“Untrue.” Soundwave interjected.  “Our prior victory was owed almost entirely to the intervention of the Swarm.” he explained.  “Further intervention cannot be counted on, and indeed, should not be.”

“Bah.” Snaptrap replied.  “They’re just a bunch of modeless cowards.  It’ll be a pleasure smashing ‘em to pieces.”  He smacked his fist into his palm as he spoke, accentuating confident air.

“Modeless or not, they posses far superior numbers than we, even with the Autobots and Terrans now working with us.” Soundwave argued.  “Their might must not be underrated.  I would be self-defeating to underestimate the capabilities of the enemy, and lure ourselves into a false sense of superiority.”

“Enough.” Megatron growled, silencing them with that single word.  “I appreciate your ability to see all sides of the issue, but do try and think like a Decepticon, Soundwave.” he chided.  “And Snaptrap, your boundless enthusiasm is quaint, but do not let it distract you from the tactical reality of the matter.  Now, I have some things to take care of.  I will expect you back at the chamber at the appropriate time.”  His tone made it clear it was a dismissal, pure and simple.  Saluting, the two Decepticon aides broke away, each heading to their own tasks.  Megatron waited for a moment, before entering his dwelling. Such things as he had should not be seen by others.

Having sent Grimlock off for the time being to get some rest, Prime sat alone in the great Chamber, watching the representation of the Empire’s territory sullenly.  It was, he decided, not fair.  Not fair at all.  After more than four million years of warfare, the Transformer race had finally begun to take those first, halting steps towards peace.  And what happened?  A race of mechanical killers, totally assured of their perfection and intolerant of any other form of life, chooses to drive a wedge between them to conquer the universe.  And the ultimate irony was, it was still civil war, since they were Transformers, no matter how removed they might think they were from the Autobots and Decepticons.

“Oh Primus,” he muttered, “Why have you abandoned your children?  Are we nothing to you, now that the Chaos-Bringer is destroyed?  Have we accomplished our singular task, and now you want no more to do with us?”

“Perhaps you have it wrong,” a voice said from behind.  “Perhaps Primus knows we’re grown enough to handle this on our own.  Maybe he trusts us to save the galaxy again.”

Prime took a deep breath, and without turning, replied, “Hello Elita.”  She returned his greeting, coming to stand behind him, her arms resting on the back of the chair as she stared up at the emerald starfield.  “It’s a big job,” she observed, leaning a little lower.  “But we’ll get it done.”  He nodded, but couldn’t share her enthusiasm.  What if they couldn’t?  What if three stellar nations were destroyed, and nothing could be done?  What was that lovely smell? Hmm?

Prime blinked, and realized Elita had made her way around the chair and was now draped across his lap, her arms around his neck.  She leaned her head against his chest, the steady rhythm of his fluid-pump an unwavering pulse against the side of her head.  He could feel her relaxing against him, and his arms slid around her waist out of pure instinct.  Her head arched back, lips pressing against the solid wall of his faceplate.  Wordlessly, she got back to her feet, pulling him along behind.  Quickly, she led them to an out of the way office, unused, and had Prime seal the room with his own authorization code.  No point in being interrupted.

It was a much more relaxed Prime who arrived at the meeting when it resumed, and he noticed that Megatron looked less tense as well.  The subordinates emotions, however, had not changed, and nor had the Terrans.  In all, the Transformer leaders good spirits did not do much to lessen the distinctively tense attitude of the appointment.

“You look happy.” Grimlock whispered as he settled in beside Optimus.  If the Autobot supreme commander had had lips (well, lips he wanted anyone other than Elita to see), he would have displayed just the hint of a smile.

“Indeed.” he replied, making sure to keep his voice as steady as ever.  “And with good reason.  Several, actually.”