It had been decided that Athenia, a prominent planet located within the G Nebula, would host an urgent meeting between the Autobots – who formed part of a larger group of representatives from the Gamma Sector – and delegates from select planets within the G Nebula, in order to sanction emergency trade deals in an effort to delay the imminent energy shortage that had begun to affect Cybertron and several neighboring star systems. In the weeks leading up to the meeting, the energy crisis had become increasingly more apparent, particularly on Cybertron, to the point where the planet-wide restrictions that had been imposed upon energy usage by the Autobot Council of Elders were clearly no longer enough to prevent a critical shutdown from occurring.

The Athenians – a proud, astute race of cybernetic beings – lived on a rich, natural world that consisted of highly mechanized and technologically advanced cities, designed and built over millennia. On the day of the meeting, the team of Autobots landed at the planet's largest space port in a shuttle, and immediately upon their arrival were promptly escorted by an Athenian security team to their capital city of Technopolis, where the conference was to be held.

The team of Autobot representatives were ushered inside the great Palladium Hall, an architecturally significant, highly secure stateroom, where they took their seats at a long, rectangular table to await the start of the conference. The general ambience of the hall was both hectic and restless, as the attendees and their entourages made urgent preparations for their upcoming discussions.

It all made Kup feel out of his element, though it did not seem to bother Prowl nearly as much. Along with an accompanying team of guards to command, the two Autobots had been entrusted with the task of escorting the two members of their delegation – official Council members and designated spokes-mechs for the Autobot Elders – to Athenia, and to ensure their safety and security throughout the event.

When the meeting finally began, the doors closed and all in the room quieted down. The presiding chair-mech arose from his seat at the head of the table to officially open discussions. "As all of you are no doubt aware, the impending energy shortage that threatens several worlds within the Gamma Sector has already taken hold. Its debilitating effects, I have been told, are already being felt, and ever more strongly with each passing day. That is why we are gathered here today. Athenia, and other resourceful worlds from the G Nebula, at the behest of the Cybertronian Council, are here to help. Only by working together for the good of all might a solution be found, perhaps in the exchange of resources, so that the energy crisis may be delayed, or even avoided altogether." The tall Athenian paused to observe the faces seated before him. "My name is Arkelaos, and I am here, in my official capacity, representing the good denizens of Athenia." He pointed to a row of robots seated to his right – the delegates from the G Nebula. Each gave a small nod as he was introduced. "This is Jala of Jarr, Uhnta of Daros, and Pelagios representing Glithos." He turned to his left, where the representatives from the Gamma Sector were seated. "Cyrix from Prima, Monokel and Brix of Ghennix, Lammos of Methuselah, Nikkai of the planet Victoria; and, of course, Proteus and Xaaron of Cybertron." Arkelaos sat down again, and then took a sip of electrolytic from a transparent container on the table before him. "Since we are all here on a matter of urgency, let us immediately proceed with negotiations," he said, and they all began to speak at once.

The row of plasma converters positioned along the rear wall of the power distribution center inside Kolkular's fortress hummed and churned incessantly, casting a brilliant pink glow upon everything in their vicinity. It was the only source of illumination in the room, ever since the overhead lighting throughout the entire base had been switched off to conserve dwindling power reserves.

"How much longer will these generators be able to stay online?" Megatron asked his crew.

Starscream, Scrapper and Soundwave stood beside him, watching Thundercracker empty the last of their energon crystals into the funnel that fed them directly into the converters. Then the blue and grey seeker took a step back, and they observed the plasma inside the transparent cylinders increase in quantity and intensity. "At our current rate of consumption, I'd say another ten hours – maybe twenty at a stretch," Thundercracker informed them, answering their leader.

"And after that?" Starscream asked. He already knew what the answer to his question was going to be, he just needed it confirmed.

His trine mate crossed his arms and shrugged. "After that… either we find another source of energy in a hurry, or we can all start thinking about going into stasis."

There were no two ways about it; the energy situation was dire, and not just for the Decepticons. All over Cybertron, panic had already overtaken many city streets. Each day, more and more protesters gathered at the steps of the Iacon Command Center demanding that something be done to lift the energy restrictions, whilst gangs of rioters terrorized many of the industrial zones.

"We must avoid a total energy shortage at all costs. Not only would it result in a complete shutdown of the planet within a very short time, but Cybertron would be invaded in a single day," Megatron warned them, turning and pacing across the room in contemplation. "I can think of a number of malevolent worlds from the Draconis star system alone with both the wherewithal and the mercilessness to do just such a thing."

"No doubt. I guess it's do or die, at this point," Thundercracker replied.

There was momentary silence as they pondered the situation. "Are we close to finding an alternative source of energy?" Megatron asked, glancing at Scrapper.

"It's too early to say for sure, Megatron, but we've been experimenting with a form of high-spin monatomic crystal that Scavenger acquired from a Paradisian dealer some time ago. It has a structure that's very similar to that of energon, but with a far higher assimilatory co-efficient and energy potential. So far, it's too unstable to be used as a direct source of energy, but we're working on it," Scrapper said, and glanced towards Starscream. "I think we're getting close. We've got Starscream, Bombshell and Shockwave working on this around the clock."

"Don't worry, Megatron – we'll find a solution to our energy problem, one way or the other," Starscream declared in reassurance.

Megatron nodded hesitantly. "Good, but be sure to take the time to recharge. There's no sense in over-working yourselves to the point of exhaustion."

Renewing their efforts in Shockwave's laboratory after only one hour of recharge, Scrapper and his team continued to test and refine their newly developed energon compounds, as several other Decepticons gathered around them to watch with interest. Carefully placing a small sample of bright pink crystals into the analyzer at Shockwave's station, the Constructicon leader took a step back in satisfaction. He noticed Drag Strip, Breakdown, Swindle, Brawl and Dirge standing nearby with fascinated yet quizzical expressions, and turned to address them. "As you know, the plasma converters we have at the moment only work with naturally occurring energon crystals. And, as you already know, new deposits need to be located regularly to replace the existing ones that become depleted. The problem is that natural energon deposits have become very limited, and Cybertron isn't the only world in this sector reliant on them for its main source of energy. Of course, other fuel sources can be converted to energon, but that process usually takes more energy than what it is actually worth." He walked over to a bench and picked up a sample of their new, experimental compound. "However, if we can find a way to produce all the crystals that we need – or better yet, find a way to convert alternative, raw sources of fuel that are already in plentiful supply directly to energon in a way that is both highly efficient and also stable, well…" He trailed off, leaving them all to figure out the rest.

Stepping forwards, Swindle carefully took the sample from Scrapper's hand, examining it. "Is that what you've got here? A reliable, alternative source of energon?" he asked, intrigued.

"That's what we're hoping to prove," Scrapper replied, then took the crystals from Swindle and placed them back down on the bench. "Thanks to Scavenger's ormus crystals, we might have found a way to do just that."

"Huh. Imagine the possibilities," Swindle commented.

"Yeah, but won't those ormus things eventually run out as well?" Brawl asked.

"Ah, but that's the beauty of them," Scrapper answered. "You see, we'd only need an initial amount to start the whole process of assimilation. They'd behave just like seed crystals, only they'd work syntropically thanks to their superconductive, phase-fluid matrix."

"Or to put it in simpler terms, using only a small amount of seed crystals to start with, we should be able to convert unlimited quantities of any crude form of fuel into energon, without loss of energy, and without the need for more seed crystals," Starscream explained, for the benefit of those who weren't as scientifically minded.

"So, how much longer before we can start producing our own energon?" Drag Strip asked.

"Well, first we have to make sure we can actually convert the quantities we need to the required grade. Then we have to make sure that the final product is stable enough for transport, and that it will be compatible with our existing power distribution grid," Scrapper replied. "Shockwave's also helping to ensure that it'll be suitable for long-term storage, so that we won't have to rely on plasma converters anymore."

"I'd say another day of testing, if all goes well," Starscream added, as Bombshell stopped momentarily by the group on his way past.

"Yes, and then the next phase will be deciding on a suitable source of crude fuel to convert," the Insecticon scientist said, "and with so many unclaimed asteroids and planetoids rich in natural resources for us to choose from, that shouldn't be a problem." And with that, the conversation ended as he, Scrapper, Shockwave and Starscream returned to their all-important work.

The discussions had gotten so heated that the dignitaries were speaking over one another at what seemed to Kup like a million mechano-miles an hour, to the point that he had quickly lost track, unable to make heads or tails out of the negotiations. He leaned back in his seat and yawned, clasped his hands behind his head and glanced over at Prowl. "You following any of this?" he asked. When Sentinel's advisor gave him no response, his attention drifted towards Arkelaos' exchange with Proteus. He gave a small sigh and rose from his chair. "I'm going outside for some fresh air," he said, before leaving the conference table. "I'll be right back."

Proteus, a blue and red colored member of the Cybertronian Council of Elders, had been repeatedly demanding that Arkelaos offer the Autobots exclusive mining rights to one-third of one of Athenia's rare, energy-rich mineral deposits, in exchange for labor and diplomatic favors.

"The only resource you have that would be of any interest to us is cybertonium! Now, as I've told you repeatedly, we will only share our thorite deposits if your government can guarantee regular delivery of a minimal amount of cybertonium–"

Arkelaos was once again interrupted by Proteus' fervent rebuttal, as the Autobot abruptly rose from his seat to make his point, waving his arms in emphasis. "Cybertonium is unique to our physiology! It is only found on our world, and is already in very limited supply! I simply don't see why you won't consider something else of equal value in exchange!"

"Such as? We do not need to expand our labor force," Arkelaos insisted. "Our economy is finally showing positive growth after several stellar cycles of struggle and depression; our primary industries are now prospering, and our manufacturing sector is expanding beyond what we ever thought possible."

"I must point out, Honorable Arkelaos, that your economy is only doing well thanks to the recent interest in Athenia from certain well-off investors who I happen to know have close connections with our Elders," Xaaron explained over the loud chatter from the other delegates at the table. His approach was none too subtle, and as a relatively young and inexperienced states-mech, he had already shown much promise with both shrewdness and tenacity.

The Athenian straightened uncomfortably. "That is nothing but an unsubstantiated rumor. Regardless, I fail to see the relevancy."

Xaaron leaned forward in his seat. "The relevancy is that you have a reserve of energon crystals that you refuse to disclose, let alone offer in trade!"

The representative from Methuselah caught Xaaron's words, and turned to Arkelaos in incredulity. "Is this true, Arkelaos?"

"No! That is preposterous!" the stately Athenian defended. "Do not believe a word of it, Lammos. Rest assured, if there was any truth to it, I would be the first to put such a stockpile upon the negotiating table!"

And so, the discussions continued in this vein for several more hours, and whilst progress was steady, it was slow. Eventually, Proteus was able to secure a single shipment of energon crystals from both Jarr and Daros as part of a three-way agreement between their worlds, in exchange for the rights to select precious resources on Cybertron.

Heeding Megatron's advice and taking a break from the work in the lab at the end of the evening cycle, Starscream found his trine mates along with Megatron, Onslaught, and the Insecticon, Kickback, gathered in the sparsely lit common room, well beyond scheduled recharge. The general mood seemed contemplative, with only Skywarp's light-hearted remarks every now and again breaking the subdued tones of casual conversation. When Starscream walked up to their table, Skywarp immediately welcomed him with a cheerful smile, indicating for him to join them.

"What are you all still doing up? It's not the best use of our available resources, you know," Starscream reproached them all, though he did so in a half-hearted, casual manner.

"Eh, couldn't get any recharge after hearing the news broadcasts," Skywarp explained. "Besides, Megatron's been telling us all about the Council of Elders. Fascinating stuff."

"Really?" Starscream looked to their leader, who still reminded him of the controversial yet brilliant mathematician and inventor that he'd always known him to be; only now, the burden of leadership and the responsibility for the security and prosperity of an entire planet seemed to rest upon his broad shoulders. "I haven't had a chance to tune in to the broadcasts. What's the latest?" he asked, looking back at Skywarp.

"The rioting's become rampant. Mass arrests are happening in every city-state now, but mostly in the Destron dominated ones." The purple and black seeker shrugged. "Something about the Council implementing forced stasis on Destrons in select areas as a precautionary measure – you know, because of the riots, and the energy crisis."

Starscream's reaction was disbelief, as he sat down in the empty seat beside Skywarp. "Kolkular?"

His concerned query was answered by Thundercracker, who shook his head in mild reassurance. "Nah. As long as we don't venture outside this fortress, the Autobot troops are staying away. At least for now."

There was a momentary pause in discussion before Starscream spoke again. "It sounds like we don't have a lot of time, then." The others simply nodded in agreement, having nothing further to add. "So, tell us – what do you know about the Elders that we don't already know?" he asked Megatron, changing the subject as he relaxed back in his chair.

"You mean, other than the fact they're a bunch of rich, stuck-up jerks?" Thundercracker couldn't help share his sentiments about the Autobot elites who made up Cybertron's supreme ruling body.

"I hear Protus is a real piece of work," Onslaught said. "He'd sell his guardian's own fuel pump for some extra crystals."

"Hm. You mean Proteus," Megatron corrected him, "and that probably isn't too far from the truth." He leaned forwards slightly, clasping his hands together in contemplation. "But you must remember that Proteus, along with his contemporaries, is only a mouthpiece. He has no real say when it comes to Cybertron's affairs, however much he may claim otherwise."

"Really?" Thundercracker raised a brow. "What about that Galactic Peace Treaty? You know, the one he and Decimus both agreed to sign into law? We watched the event on live stream. You remember that, don't you?" he asked Starscream.

"Sure. I also recall Maximus promised to kill them all for it," Starscream replied.

Megatron listened patiently, and then nodded, looking back at Thundercracker. "If you observe that transmission closely, you'll notice that those two Autobots are not the ones calling the shots." He lowered his voice slightly. "Let me ask you all a question. Do any of you recall ever seeing any of the Elders? That is, have any of you ever cast an optic upon any of them, or perhaps encountered them in person?"

This question made Thundercracker shift uncomfortably in his seat. Starscream seemed contemplative, though his tiredness and need for rest was beginning to show.

Onslaught shook his head. "Nope, not me," he said.

"Have you ever questioned why?" Megatron continued.

This time Thundercracker shook his head in puzzlement. "I just assumed everyone deals with their representatives, you know? Plus, they're upper-class Autobots – they'd never be seen dead mixing with lower class mechs such as ourselves," he said acerbically, then turned to Megatron. "Why, have you ever met them?"

"No." The Decepticon leader paused in thought. "You probably aren't aware of this, but the Elders have made it an unspoken rule to never show their faces in public. They believe that they should never have to suffer the company of any Destron, or even of lower-class Autobots, for that matter."

"Suffer, huh? Well, then it's no wonder none of us have ever seen them," the blue and grey seeker responded.

"Wouldn't want to, from the sounds of 'em," Onslaught remarked.

"So, how do you know anything about them, then?" Skywarp asked, curious.

Megatron frowned slightly as he contemplated his reply. "Sentinel told me all that I know, back when I served as his military strategist." He looked at them each in turn until his gaze settled on Starscream. "He would always refer to them simply as 'The Overlords'. It is no secret that he has always despised me for being a Destron, but I think he despises them even more."

"Huh." Thundercracker shook his head in disbelief. "I had no idea."

"As far as everyone else is concerned, Proteus, Decimus, and the other states-mechs are the Council. However, there have been a select few who had claimed that this is not the case at all," Megatron continued, "that they are not the ones who make the ultimate decisions, and that they do not have the real power, though most Autobots are completely unaware of this fact."

Kickback, who had been silently listening, was intrigued with what their leader had revealed to them thus far. "What do you know about these Overlords, Megatron?"

The Decepticon leader acknowledged him with a glance, introspective. "Not a great deal. It is mostly hearsay."

"Tell us, anyway," Starscream said.

"As I said, I do not know anything for sure, but Sentinel believes that there exists a great imbalance of power between the rulers of the worlds within our sector of space, and the inhabitants of those worlds – that their combined wealth, supposedly, is of such great value and exclusivity that they hold controlling interest in all of Cybertron's affairs – and not only the affairs of this planet, but also the affairs of several other worlds as well. I have also heard that these Overlords do not reside on Cybertron, but off-world. Regardless, as I said, these are only rumors, and I have never been able to confirm their validity."

Whether there was any truth to them or not, the rumors that Megatron had just shared had impacted each of them in a way that they had not expected, and they remained seated around the table together in the common room for several more minutes in silence, before returning to their quarters for the night.

The following day in the communications room, the higher ranking Decepticons were watching a live feed that was being relayed back to them by Laserbeak. Soundwave had sent the Cassetticon spy on a covert mission to the Central Hall in Iacon, where another emergency announcement had been declared by Autobot Command – this time to try to ease the ensuing tensions due to the energy crisis.

An image of a balcony overlooking a large hall, viewed from a high perch above the entire scene, appeared on the room's large view screen. The hall was overcrowded with Autobot civilians anxious to hear the latest announcement. Upon the balcony, safe above the goings-on down below, the two designated speakers had to battle against the deafening clamor of the crowd in order to get it to quieten down. The Decepticons recognized the speakers as Trailbreaker and Ironhide, whom they'd previously encountered whilst they were in Iacon during the Nemesis Army invasion.

"We have just received word from our team in Athenia. They say that they've managed to secure a shipment of crystals–" Trailbreaker's voice was amplified over the public address system, though he was still cut off by the loud cheering interspersed with roars of protestations upon his announcement.

"At what cost?" a mech yelled out from the crowd.

"We want real answers to the energy crisis, not just temporary solutions!" said another.

"We want to hear from the High Council! What are they doing to safeguard our future well into the next Era?" said a third.

"We should have sent teams into the Red Nebula to look for new sources of energon a long time ago! We want an official statement!" called out a fourth Autobot, whose demand was followed by shouts of support.

"'We want, we want, we want' – ugh!" Ironhide said in disgust to Trailbreaker before taking his place in front of the microphone. "Look, we're not here to speak for the High Council. We're here to keep you all updated – let you mechs know what's going on." He continued to speak loudly into the microphone, ignoring the din of the crowd. "Now, as Trailbreaker was saying: thanks to the efforts of our negotiating team on Athenia, it looks like we've been able to secure a full shipment of energon crystals, which will go a long way towards easing our energy demands considerably, at least until we can come up with a more permanent solution." Ironhide paused, then stepped back to allow Trailbreaker to continue speaking.

"As a result of the negotiations, we have agreed to grant our partners controlling interest in all cybertonium mining operations in Kalis, plus a ninety per cent claim to our titanium ore in the Oilplains."

The crowd roared wildly upon hearing this news, so much so that it would have been virtually impossible for the Autobot spokes-mechs to go into further details or to answer any of their queries with any measure of success.

Megatron had heard enough, and he indicated for Soundwave to cut the feed. "Inform Laserbeak that he may return. We have learned all that we need to know," he said in a controlled tone, though going by the way he had clenched his fist, it was obvious that he was displeased, and he wasn't the only one.

"How dare the Autobots give away parts of Destron territory to off-worlders without our agreement?" Starscream said indignantly, voicing the same concerns that were shared by his fellow Decepticons. "And all for what? A single shipment of crystals?"

Shockwave nodded in agreement, his yellow optic flashing as he spoke. "Starscream is correct. We all depend on the cybertonium that is mined from Kalis. If we allow foreign interests to control it, the future of all our kind will be at risk. Further, if they set foot in Kaon to secure the titanium ore by force, it will be a direct violation of the peace treaty that we have established with the Autobot Prime, and a hostile act against us."

"Yeah, that's right," Dirge said. "But what can we do about it? The Autobots think they own Cybertron, and can do with it as they please."

"That shipment's going to last them how long – maybe three or four months – and then what?" Thundercracker added after a pause. "If we don't replenish our energy supplies soon, there won't be a damn thing we can do to stop them."

After hearing all their concerns and considering the situation, it was Megatron's turn to speak. "I see no other option but to try to persuade the Autobots into backing out of their agreement – by any means possible," he said. He was fully aware that his intention, if carried out in full, would more than likely be seen by the Autobots as an act of rebellion, and may possibly even extend to a declaration of war against the ruling faction, so it was not a decision that he made lightly. "In the meantime, I will pay Sentinel an overdue visit."

The room fell into silence as they all contemplated their leader's words. Then Starscream spoke up once more. "But without the use of the space bridge, and with our flight capabilities and weapons limited by the energy shortage, I don't see how we can possibly implement an effective persuasive strategy, Megatron," he said.

"That may be true, Starscream," Megatron replied. "However, I have full faith in all of you. If we are unable to come up with a working solution to our energy problem in time, we will simply have to make a stand without our weapons, on what limited supplies we have. Either that, or we do nothing while foreigners take possession of our planet's only source of cybertonium and do with it whatever they see fit." His tone of voice was heavy, yet it also clearly conveyed his own anger and frustration with the current situation.

But he had made a compelling argument; one that Starscream was unable to refute. "Far be it from me to back down from a good challenge," he answered with quiet determination.

Later that cycle, Sentinel Prime and his small contingent of dedicated troops watched the Autobot shuttle land at Cybertron's main space port, located above the Hydrax Plateau, from the main terminal lookout balcony. The team had just returned from its important mission to Athenia. Once the shuttle had docked at one of the landing platforms, its doors opened and passengers disembarked.

The Prime dismissed his team with instructions to go down and greet them ahead of him as he hung back for several moments, contemplating the new partnership that had just been established with the two worlds of the G Nebula. As he stepped back and turned to leave, he noticed the large figure of a mech leaning against the wall at the far end of the balcony, arms crossed and glowing red optics staring back at him. The leader of the Autobots did not fail to recognize him immediately. "Ah, Megatron! Fancy seeing you here, and on a momentous occasion such as this."

Megatron walked towards him, until they stood face-to-face. "Momentous occasion, indeed," he repeated sourly.

Sentinel ignored his disparaging remark. "You know, I never could quite figure out how you've always managed to evade our space port's security protocols," he said, snapping his fingers in a casual manner as if the issue was of no more importance for him than a passing thought.

"Your security protocols do leave a lot to be desired," Megatron replied, unimpressed.

"Hm. Yes, well, it's such a shame then that all the combined knowledge and wisdom of my best officers simply pales in comparison to yours," Sentinel flattered him, offering him an insincere smile. His shoulder-mounted cannon and well-armored form were a not-so-subtle reminder to all who dared challenge his authority. When his former military advisor displayed no favorable response, he prompted, "But, greeting our states-mechs upon arrival is not the reason you are here, I gather."

"Correct," Megatron replied, inching closer towards the Prime, his own powerful form a testament to his determination and strength of will. "I have come here to make it clear that we will not simply stand by and do nothing while you Autobots give away our planet's most precious resources to off-worlders, who ultimately don't give a slag about what happens to us."

The Prime seemed unperturbed by Megatron's candidness. "We?" he enquired, feigning ignorance.

"Yes, we: the Decepticons, and a multitude of Destrons who will be faced with an uncertain future if you allow this new agreement to go forward," Megatron answered him. "It is a direct violation of their territorial claim, and of the peace treaty that you and I have established."

Sentinel's expression hardened with regret. "I have no say in civilian matters, or diplomatic missions. I only command the Autobot army, and must do as I am ordered!"

Megatron quickly rebutted him. "I have known you for much longer than that, Sentinel Prime. You have far more influence over Autobot Command and their decisions than what you are willing to admit. This new agreement that has been made for our resources – it is more than just a civilian matter; it affects us all." He paused briefly as he gazed steadily at the Prime. "If you are not willing to put a stop to it, then I will," he warned.

Sentinel stood his ground, raising his voice in anger as he replied. "Our existing supply of crystals would not have lasted us another two days! At least now we have avoided an imminent shutdown. And consider this: even if we would be fortunate enough to locate a new deposit, it will already be too late! But now with both plenty of fuel to spare, and extraction equipment that is far superior to our own, our new partners will be able to locate any untapped reserves with ease – and not only on Cybertron, but also within the Gamma Sector – so that all worlds may benefit."

But Megatron remained unconvinced. "So, you are willing to hand over control of our only supply of cybertonium to foreigners who seem to have no qualms in taking advantage of a race that is currently in dire need?" Sentinel looked back at him stoically, unwilling to consider the full repercussions of what Megatron was implying. "Understand this, Sentinel Prime: you will do what you must, but know that I, too, must do what is best for Cybertron, and the Decepticons." And with that, he made his way back out through the entrance to the balcony and was gone.

The five Combaticons, accompanied by the two Constructicons, Hook and Scavenger, as well as several dedicated recruits, had headed out to Kaon's titanium mine, where they'd been assigned to find a way to safeguard it from the off-worlders, as best they could.

Upon returning from scouting the area surrounding the small mine that was located in the midst of the flat oil plains of Kaon, a triplet of recruits reported that the mine looked to have been abandoned for some time, most likely due to the current energy shortage, and that there was not another living mech around.

"There's a sign that says 'Closed for business' at the entrance. All the equipment's still there. We even spotted an abandoned truck half-loaded with the rocks, but there's nobody around," one of the triplet scouts explained, pointing back across the mine. All three scouts looked almost identical – a blue and white color scheme offset by a green chest component – except for the one who had just spoken, who also had a lens and shutter assembly in his torso.

Onslaught nodded and then gave the signal for his team to lead the way into the mine. Once inside, he began to come up with a plan that might enable the Decepticons to defend the mine against intruders whilst expending the least amount of energy or weapons fire. It would be difficult to accomplish, but not altogether impossible. He turned to the Constructicons' mining and salvage expert with an idea, pointing to the abandoned truck. "Scavenger, scan the composition of those rocks. Do they contain anything of worth, other than titanium – unusual minerals or elements, anything?"

Scavenger walked over to the truck, transformed into his excavator mode and initiated a general scan of its contents using his ultra-sensitive sensor shovel. "No, not really. They just contain the usual: titanium dioxide, iron compounds, zirconium, scandium…" He paused uncertainly before continuing. "Of course, there's other stuff in them, too, but the concentrations are so miniscule that they'd be practically useless for–"

"Never mind the concentrations," Onslaught told Scavenger, walking over to join him. "What's the rarest and most valuable substance you can detect – even if it is only a couple picograms?"

"Oh, okay." Scavenger carefully retraced his shovel over the pile of rocks loaded into the tray of the truck. This time, he took much longer. When he was finished, he transformed back into robot mode and gave Onslaught his findings.

While Shockwave, Scrapper, Mixmaster and Bombshell stayed behind in the lab to complete their work, Starscream led a team into Kalis that consisted of Skywarp, Thundercracker, Soundwave, Dirge, as well as a number of others – a tag-along mob of Destrons who sympathized with the Decepticon cause. Their goal was to stop the Autobots' new off-world allies from taking control of the cybertonium.

Flight-capable Decepticons filled the sky as they followed Starscream towards the main cybertonium deposit in Kalis, while the ground-dependent Destrons made their way steadily after them along the main route that headed north-west out from Kaon, until the two groups met up at the mine.

All about them, a multitude of miners and other workers – some Autobots, but most of them Destrons – hurried about their business in a state of great urgency. As one of them dashed past Starscream, the seeker reached out to grab his arm, stopping the mech in his tracks and jolting him out of his busy thoughts. "What's going on here?" he demanded.

The mech; a small, blue and green Destron, pulled away from his grasp in annoyance. "Haven't you heard?" He glanced about impatiently, not waiting for a reply. "We're making preparations to welcome our new allies–" he said, stopping suddenly as he noticed the large group that accompanied Starscream. "None of you work here, do you?"

"No," Starscream replied bluntly.

"Oh, okay. Well, it's probably best that you all leave then. Only authorized workers are allowed here," the mech said, and was about to turn away and head off when Starscream spoke to him again.

"Tell me what's going on," Starscream replied, ignoring his advice. "What allies?"

The Destron hesitated, meeting the seeker's gaze. "A new order just came in from Autobot Headquarters. Our new partners from Daros and Jarr are going to supply us with an entire shipment of crystals. Not only that, but they're going to help us locate new energon deposits – help secure our future," the Destron explained ecstatically. "Don't you get it? We've just managed to avoid another Great Shutdown!"

"Is that what they told you?" Starscream asked him, exchanging unsettled glances with his trine mates, but before he could return his attention to the mech to ask him some more questions, he had already gone, disappearing into the crowd on his way to join his fellow workers.

"Looks like Autobot Command's conveniently failed to mention the part about our so-called allies being given controlling interest in our cybertonium," Dirge said in a disgusted voice.

"Hm, yes… either that, or they are conveniently glossing it over," Starscream added.

"Better to gloss it over than face an imminent shutdown, right?" Thundercracker agreed.

Starscream watched as the workers and citizens of Kalis all gathered in anticipation of the arrival of their new allies. "So, what do we know about Kalis that might be of help to us?" he asked his team of Decepticons, but they only looked back at him blankly.

Kalis was the seat of their planet's primary energon reserves, though none of them had had much to do with it in the past. Only a specific sub-section of the Destron population had worked here their entire lives, and would know the ins and outs of the place better than anyone. Fortunately, however, they were in luck – two Destrons who had accompanied them; a small, light green mech, and a much larger one, stepped forwards. The smaller one pointed towards the depleted primary energon reserves nearby.

"There's an old fusion reactor right beneath the network of tunnels. It was abandoned long ago by our ancestors after they developed more efficient means of energy production," he informed Starscream. "Other than that, there's a long-held belief that Kalis still contains unexplored energon reserves, but these are supposedly inaccessible because of the vast channels of magma that completely surround them – not to mention the Primordial superstitions that've got everyone shaking in their berths at night."

Drawing upon all of his scientific expertise, Starscream considered the information the Destron miner had just shared with him. "Well, Primordial superstitions aside, what would happen if we were to reactivate the reactor?"

The small Destron looked back at him dumbfounded. "Ah, well, even if you managed to get it back online somehow… I have serious doubts that you could get it to work properly." He paused, his unspoken admiration for the Decepticon Air Commander conflicting with his capacity for rational thinking. "But why would you even want to do that, sir?"

Starscream was unperturbed by the mech's lack of faith or vision. "Who says we have to get it to work properly? What if, with slight modification, we could make the Autobots and their alien allies believe that we have, in our possession, oh, say – a neutron bomb?" he clarified carefully. "Of sorts."

"You want to blow 'em up?" Skywarp reacted in surprise.

"No – just make them think we do," Starscream corrected him, smirking. "But if they can be persuaded to return to their home world and leave our cybertonium deposits alone, then we won't be compelled to detonate our bomb, will we?"

Thundercracker turned to them both and inquired doubtfully, "Think they'd fall for it?"

His trine leader simply shrugged. "We won't know unless we try."

"Do you know how to get to the reactor?" Starscream asked the small miner, who was called Drillbit.

"If you follow the disused tunnels under the primary reserves–" Drillbit answered, pointing, but was interrupted by the Decepticon Air Commander's impatient voice.

"Good. Take us to it." Starscream surveyed his team. "Soundwave, you're with me. Dirge, you're in charge whilst we're gone. The rest of you; wait for us here and keep an optic out for company. If it arrives before we return, do whatever you have to, to hold them off. Don't let them near the cybertonium."

And so, with the help of their Destron guides, Drillbit, and his bulky partner, Heavy Load, Starscream and Soundwave experienced little trouble accessing the tunnel network. They moved quickly through the subterranean route and were largely unnoticed by the bulk of the workers, who were all but preoccupied with the pending arrival of their new foreign partners.

"Heavy Load here's a genius. If there's any mech who knows how to rig up a bomb, it's him," Drillbit said proudly, glancing up at his partner, whose expression was obscured by a full face mask.

"We'll see," Starscream replied simply.

The fusion reactor was housed in a disused control room that had long since been disconnected from the planetary power distribution grid. The underground chamber was dark, and a stillness that was devoid of any sign of life permeated the space all around them. As they stepped inside, they switched on their helm lights to compensate for the lack of lighting.

"The reactor itself is shielded within that capsule right over there. If you just release the locking mechanisms–" Drillbit started, pointing, but Starscream had already pushed past him with a casual wave of his hand.

"I know where it is," the Decepticon second-in-charge said simply. He stopped in front of the reactor and studied it for a brief moment, before proceeding to remove the lid of the covering that housed it with surprising speed and adeptness. "How many others know about this reactor?" he asked, without turning to face Drillbit.

"Oh, not that many – mostly just the long-time workers here." Drillbit paused in thought. "Like I said, it was abandoned generations ago – most of us have forgotten that it's still here." He watched as Starscream ejected the reactor core from the rest of the assembly and then carefully lifted it out, examining its state. It was an unnecessarily bulky object, but it appeared to be in better condition than he'd expected.

"A little antiquated," Starscream commented, "but it will do." He placed the core down onto a raised surface nearby, and looked over at Heavy Load. "Do you know anything about cold fusion plasma cores?"

The hulking frame of Heavy Load stepped towards him earnestly. "Do I ever!" he exclaimed, his deep voice laced with excitement.

"Good, then you can assist me," Starscream declared, and the two of them set to work.

When Starscream had still not returned after twenty minutes, Dirge began to worry. There had been an increase in activity around the cybertonium mines, accompanied by a growing sense of excitement amongst the Kalis workers, but just as the conehead was about to go and investigate, the lights emanating from the streets and buildings in the distance flickered and dimmed. Nearby, the whirring made by various machinery and equipment gradually but surely ground to a halt, and the dim glow from the lights that lined the entrances and walkways to the mines glitched before fading into nothingness. Several of the workers nearby stopped momentarily to look around, as the din of excitement quickly turned into a mix of confusion and irritation.

"Hey, who killed the main switch?" Skywarp quipped, before he heard renewed shouting in the distance.

"If you'll all just please remain calm!" the voice called out. "The Autobots are due to arrive any moment now, with some extra supplies. Please stay exactly where you are until we can organize some sort of backup power–" but then he was cut off as the crowd began to cheer and protest all at once, drowning out his voice. If the situation was not kept sufficiently under control at this point, it would quickly spiral into chaos.

In the distance, along the main highway that bordered the Sea of Rust and connected Kalis to Tagon Heights, a convoy of vehicles travelled towards their location in a flurry of bright lights. Thundercracker pointed towards it. "Looks like they've arrived just in time," he said.

Once Onslaught was satisfied that he and his assigned team had come up with a suitable plan, he led the way out of the mine and looked across the flat expanse of the Oilplains, which were dotted sporadically with built-up clusters of buildings and industrial complexes. He could make out the Kolkular fortress in the distance, a looming castle on the western horizon against the backdrop of the Alpha Centauri star system. "Is it just me, or do things seem a little quieter than usual?"

Blast Off stood beside him, taking in the surrounding landscape. It was difficult to say what the situation was with any amount of certainty without moving closer to the cities. "Things certainly do seem much quieter. If I didn't have to conserve fuel, I'd be inclined to investigate."

Then, the faint sound of an aircraft approaching from the north broke the stillness, and they all looked towards the sky. As it got closer, they realized that the craft was of alien design, and that it was headed for their location.

Hook walked up to stand beside Onslaught. "I hope our team back at the lab is making progress on the experimental source of energon, because I'd hate to think what might happen if a shutdown were to occur right about now." He watched as the aircraft began its descent to land, only a few mechano-meters away. "We'd be left defenseless."

Onslaught nodded in acknowledgement. "Don't worry, it won't come to that," he replied, and then added in a lowered voice, "I hope."

The convoy of Autobots, accompanied by an alien shuttle in the air, came to a stop amidst all the growing panic and confusion among the workers of Kalis, but it wasn't until the party of Autobots transformed into their robot modes to deliver the news to the large crowd that everyone's worst fears were confirmed. The shutdown had officially begun – the city-states that were most affected were Kaon, Polyhex, Kalis, Antihex, Tarn, Vos, and most of the neutral zones. The progressive blackout would continue to spread like a virus throughout the rest of the city-states and territories, until they would no longer be able to support life. While the shutdown was expected to take full effect within the next twenty hours, the last remaining safe place was Iacon. However, there was still hope.

"Please, all of you quieten down!" one of the Autobots shouted above the mayhem, his voice barely audible. "We will shortly have the situation under control! We expect our supply of crystals to be delivered well before then!"

Dirge recognized the Autobot to be Prowl, Sentinel's advisor. With him were Trailbreaker, Ironhide, and several other Autobots he did not know, as well as a small number of alien mechanoids. The Autobots all held active weapons. Emerging from the shuttle, which hovered slightly above the ground, several more of the aliens began to form a wide semi-circle just behind the Autobots, and numbered about a hundred or so altogether.

One of the alien mechs exchanged a few words with Prowl, before the Autobot addressed the crowd once more. "The Jarrians are willing to send us the shipment ahead of schedule!" he declared suddenly, and the gathered workers reacted with cheers of elation and relief, even while the shouts of protests slowly began to diminish, becoming fewer and farther between. "In the meantime, we trust that you will all do your best to assist our new allies and make them feel at home as much as possible. They will be overseeing our cybertonium extraction and processing operations from now on." There was a momentary pause as one of the Jarrians, who appeared to be a supervisor, conversed briefly with the Autobots before indicating to the large group of his alien kin behind them with a wave of his hand, and then they all began to move forward through the crowd, heading straight for the cybertonium mine.

Amidst all the activity and chaos due to the shutdown, followed by the arrival of the convoy, none of them were aware that the Decepticons had been standing in front of the entrance to the cybertonium mine the entire time, watching and waiting, essentially forming a physical blockade. If anything, it had been assumed that they were just more Destron workers, but when the Jarrians attempted to pass throughinto the mine, they were surprised to find the Decepticons standing their ground, weapons drawn. A formidable crowd of Destrons also stood with them, in an act of support and defiance. That's when Prowl and his crew of Autobots suddenly realized who they actually were.

"Oh, it's the Decepticons!" Ironhide exclaimed in both surprise and irritation. "Now what in Pit's sake could they possibly be doing here?"

The head Jarrian turned to him and uttered something in his native language, waving his arms furiously in the air. As he did so, Prowl walked over and reached out to place a hand on the alien mech's shoulder in order to reassure him. "I'm sure this is all just a minor misunderstanding. I'll take care of it," he said, exchanging glances with Ironhide before he began to make his way over to the party of Decepticons.

As Prowl came to a stop in front of Dirge, the conehead regarded him with an impassive expression. "What do you all think you're doing?" the Autobot army's second-in-charge asked, as if he were an instructor admonishing his students for bad behavior. "You all need to clear the area, right now."

But Dirge and the rest of his accomplices remained where they were, as Prowl was joined by a handful of other Autobots. "We're not going anywhere. Not until they leave," Dirge told him, indicating towards the Jarrians. "We won't allow them to take control of our cybertonium."

"You can't be serious?" Ironhide replied incredulously, eyeing the weapons the Decepticons were holding and wondering whether or not they actually intended on using them. Despite their show of fearlessness, they'd be no match against the Jarrians, who had a plentiful supply of energy to power up their weapons; the Decepticons' firepower would run out long before they'd be able to win any battle. "Well, what about that shipment of energon crystals they're giving us in return, haven't you even considered that?"

"They can keep it," Dirge responded. Behind them, the Jarrians were becoming more and more agitated with the unexpected delay. "You might not have a problem handing over control of our resources to them, but we certainly do."

"Now you look here – that's not your call to make!" Ironhide rebuked him angrily, his fists clenching into balls.

Prowl did not want to use force, but neither did he want to get into an argument with the Decepticons in front of their new allies. "If you don't all clear out of here immediately, I'll have to arrest you all under the latest emergency directive and have you placed in stasis until the energy crisis is over," Prowl threatened in a harsh whisper. However, it didn't look like the Decepticons would heed his warning. He turned to one of the other Autobot officers. "Trailbreaker, contact Prime and inform him of the situation. And call for reinforcements while you're at it." As Trailbreaker nodded and stepped away to do as he was asked, Prowl turned back to Dirge. "If you don't want this little situation to get any uglier, I suggest you all back down now. This is your last chance; otherwise, I will have to declare you all outlaws and treat you as such." He hesitated, and then added in a strained voice, "Is that what you really want?"

Dirge did not give him an answer. Instead, he held Prowl's gaze in unspoken defiance until the Autobot, shaking his head in frustration and disbelief, turned and walked away. Dirge exchanged glances with Thundercracker and then looked back towards the tunnels, hoping against hope that Starscream knew what he was doing. "C'mon, where the slag are you?" he muttered under his breath.

Samples of different kinds of crude fuel that had been collected for testing were contained within sealed vials and set upon the table in the lab. Carefully, Mixmaster took an ormus-modified crystal from a batch that Shockwave had just handed him and placed it in an empty receptacle near the vials. Then he stepped back to allow Scrapper to examine the new experimental batch. The Constructicon leader took a vial filled with a dark golden, oily substance and gently removed the seal. Then he carefully dropped one of the bright pink test crystals into the vial. Straightening, he watched intently at the reaction that was already beginning to take place.

Through a delicate, seemingly miraculous process, the oil in the vial responded to the high-energy crystal. Before their optics, its color changed to an iridescent pink, while its consistency, too, resembled that of plasma. The transformed crude oil appeared stable in its new form, shimmering in its small vial and swirling gently, almost as if it were self-aware. But, most importantly, the seed crystal that Scrapper had dropped into the oil was still clearly visible, and largely intact.

"It's definitely an improvement on the last sample, that's for sure," Mixmaster pronounced, "definitely an improvement for sure!"

His team mate turned to acknowledge him, as did Shockwave and Bombshell, who had stopped what they had been doing to observe the simple test. "The recalibration Shockwave made does seem to be working. Now we just need to make sure it's viable," Scrapper said, and tipped the vial upside down. The pinkish substance splattered onto the tabletop and then spread out into a thin puddle, but its molecular structure remained stable. He turned to address the others, "Well, I'd still like to do some proper tests before we think about–" but stopped mid-sentence when the lab's electrical equipment and overhead lighting flickered and then shut down, before essential emergency systems activated in the background. Glancing about him in the semi-darkness, he quickly realized what had just happened.

"Looks like we've run out of time," Mixmaster said.

The sounds of welding and laser cutting were interrupted by Soundwave's voice in the gloom. "Starscream, it looks like we have company." The seeker stopped his work and straightened, then turned to acknowledge the communications expert standing by the entrance to the chamber behind him. "Autobots, and a large number of non-Cybertronian mechanoids have just arrived," Soundwave clarified.

The Air Commander responded with a small nod. "Well, I'd say we're just about done here." He granted Heavy Load another few moments to complete the rewiring on the reactor core, before brushing the mech's hand away to pick up the device. Examining the result of their handiwork, he smiled in satisfaction. "Scrapper would be proud," he said, before following Soundwave out of the room and back through the tunnels to the surface, Drillbit and Heavy Load bringing up the rear.

The Combaticon-led team of Decepticons and recruits at Kaon's titanium mine watched as a small number of Autobots emerged from the alien craft, accompanied by humanoid organic beings who were dressed in flowing garments and adorned with gold jewellery. Upon seeing the Decepticons, the organics turned to the Autobots in puzzlement before they exchanged a few words, though Onslaught couldn't quite make out what they were saying. Finally, two of the Autobots began to walk towards them.

"Did Sentinel send you here?" asked the golden colored one, not bothering with any introductions.

"No," Onslaught replied simply, and then added, "Megatron did."

"Who?" the Autobot asked in irritation, looking towards his companion in confusion. "Do you know what this Destron is talking about?"

"We're Decepticons," Onslaught corrected him, before the second Autobot spoke up.

"Oh, yeah, I know who they are! They helped us stop the army of zombies from taking over," he told the golden mech, and then cast his gaze over the group of Decepticons. "I'm not sure if we've met before, though I recognize a few of you," he said, indicating towards the two Constructicons. "I'm Kup, by the way, and this here is Xaaron," he said.

The leader of the Combaticons looked back at the teal colored Autobot who had just introduced himself as Kup. "Onslaught," he replied, "and the Combaticons." Then he nodded towards the organics waiting by the aircraft a short distance behind them. "They're here from Daros, right?"

"Yeah, how'd you know that?" Kup said with mild surprise, though Xaaron was completely unamused.

"Never mind that. If Sentinel didn't send you, then what are you all doing here?" Xaaron cut in.

The two Autobots looked at Onslaught expectantly, so he decided to get straight to the point. "Well, as a matter of fact, we're here to safeguard the titanium deposits from foreign interests."

The look of perturbed puzzlement had not left Xaaron's face. "Foreign interests?! By whose authority?"

"Actually, the authority granted to us by Cybertronian law," Onslaught replied, and that's when it began to dawn on Xaaron that these unfamiliar Destrons, who called themselves Decepticons, might represent a problem.

"What law? What are you talking about?" Xaaron demanded.

Onslaught answered him with as much diplomacy as he could manage. "The laws that govern exactly what should happen to rare or precious deposits found on Cybertron," he stated.

Xaaron paused in consternation as he tried to fathom what he was hearing. "Titanium is hardly rare!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands up into the air. "I've heard enough of this! Now get out of our way!" He felt a strong hand on his shoulder holding him back, as he attempted to walk around the large Decepticon.

"I'm not just talking about titanium," Onslaught informed him. "We've found small quantities of rhodium contained within the rocks at this very site. Now, tell me if I'm wrong, but don't we have a little law somewhere that says we have to immediately secure the site and report what we've found?" Xaaron looked back at him in bafflement, as if Onslaught had just turned into a giant squid. "Which means that no one is allowed anywhere near this site until an official team's been sent out here to investigate and confirm our find," he continued.

The states-mech shook his head and looked to Kup for some sort of explanation, but the Autobot sergeant simply gave him a shrug. He let out an exasperated sigh, glancing back at the waiting Darosians. "But that could take days – even weeks! Besides, I'm not familiar with any such law!"

One of the other Combaticons stepped forwards after Onslaught signaled to him with a nod. "Article four, section seven – it's straight out of the High Council's Declaration of Autobot Powers – you can look it up," Swindle informed Xaaron. "A similar law was also proposed and then later passed as a result of the Galactic Peace Treaty, or have you forgotten? Essentially, any exceptionally rare or valuable archaeological discovery, as defined under sub-section seven point three, part one, must remain on the world that it was found, and may not be surrendered to any foreign party without the consent of a public vote."

Kup whistled in quiet astonishment, looking away from Xaaron's flabbergasted expression; he couldn't help but feel embarrassed for the young states-mech. The Decepticons sure seemed to be well-informed, he had to give them that.

But Xaaron wasn't about to give up so easily. "If there really is rhodium here, as you so claim, then why hasn't it been detected until now? Do you really expect me to believe that all our geological surveyors would have missed it?"

To answer him, Hook spoke up. "As a matter of fact, yes." He indicated towards his fellow Constructicon with a wave of his hand. "Scavenger here happens to be the finest surveyor in all of Cybertron. I can guarantee you that he can detect and pinpoint any element or mineral you can think to name hiding within those rocks in the span of only a few minutes – the same elements or minerals that would take your Autobots weeks to find." Scavenger smiled unassumingly in response.

Xaaron glared at the Decepticons for a moment, but then abruptly turned and walked away in a huff. "We'll soon get to the bottom of this charade! I'll be back before you know it!" he declared over his shoulder, as he moved off to rejoin the Darosians, who were waiting impatiently for a good explanation as to why they could not inspect the mine. When he shared with them the unexpected turn of events, the Darosians became exceedingly agitated, but then began to pile back into their aircraft, followed soon after by Xaaron and the rest of the Autobots.

Watching the aircraft take off into the sky and then head northward again, Onslaught let out a sigh of relief. "Well done, team. We've bought ourselves a little more time, at least," he said, and began to lead the way back to their base.

Mixmaster and Bombshell walked beside Scrapper as he navigated through the darkened hallways of the Central Tower, holding a sample of the energon seed crystals that they had just created. In the meantime, Shockwave had informed Megatron of their progress via a private link, along with the fact that the fortress was now running on final emergency power reserves.

Having returned from the main space port after his personal meeting with Sentinel, Megatron was in the control room when Scrapper and his companions met up with him. "The shutdown has already begun. All major roads and cities from here to the Hydrax Plateau are in darkness, save for a select number of Autobot-controlled relief points," he said to the three of them as they entered the room, even before turning to face them. "Soon we will have no other option but to go into hiding, if we are to avoid forced stasis." He slowly faced the Constructicon leader, placing no blame upon any of them for their circumstances; he simply sought to convey to them all the harsh reality of the current situation, and the difficult choices that they all might soon have to face. "If we don't manage to find a new source of energy by next cycle, our fate and the fate of our planet will fall into the hands of the Autobots."

Scrapper stepped forwards, hopeful. "It might not have to come to that, Megatron," he said, then held out an opened hand. In his palm was a small cluster of light pink crystals. "I would have liked to have done some more tests, but…" He trailed off, and then gave a shrug. "Considering we've just about run out of time, I'd say they're good enough." He held out his other hand expectantly towards Bombshell, who handed him a small vial. Without another word, he repeated the demonstration that he had performed in the lab earlier, this time in front of Megatron, who watched intently as Scrapper placed one of the crystals into the vial. Before their optics, the oily substance was instantly transmuted into a vibrant, shimmering plasmatic fluid. Even more astonishingly, however, the pink crystal that had initiated the transmutation was still intact.

Scrapper carefully handed Megatron the vial. "Energon," he declared with modest satisfaction. Megatron held the vial up to examine it. "Go ahead, try it," Scrapper encouraged him.

The Decepticon leader hesitated for only a brief moment, and then brought the vial to his mouth. The pink fuel was energizing, and of a purity and quality that he had not enjoyed for quite some time. He handed the vial back to Scrapper, leaving only the seed crystal inside it. "Magnificent," he said, highly impressed and extremely pleased with the result of the many long and intense hours that Scrapper and his team had spent in the lab. "You have done incredibly well," he said, glancing at the three of them with much pride. Then he paused in thought as he was reminded once again of the energy crisis that all of Cybertron was currently suffering. "How soon do you think you will be able to restore power to this fortress?"

"I'd say just as soon as we can get a hold of a sufficient quantity of crude fuel; it shouldn't take too long at all," Scrapper replied, thinking. "I haven't tested the new energon with our existing distribution systems, but it should be compatible."

Megatron nodded. His mood had already lifted considerably with the promising news. "Excellent." He looked across to see Shockwave patiently waiting by the entrance to the control room. "Shockwave, these three need to get to a local source of crude fuel for conversion as quickly as possible."

"Understood, Megatron. The Oilplains near Helex offer a plentiful supply. We'll leave immediately," the purple Decepticon stated, and without another word, began to lead the way out of Kolkular as Scrapper, Mixmaster and Bombshell followed him out to the Oilplains.

The flats of the Oilplains stretched out far and wide, and surrounded the pockets of built-up areas all around them as Shockwave led the way north-east towards Helex. No-one spoke for the duration of the short journey as they made their way quietly past the heavily industrialized zones, until they stopped just outside the city. Then Shockwave pointed Scrapper to an oil platform, and the two Constructicons got to work; Scrapper placed one of the seed crystals inside the tanker of Mixmaster's alt mode and began to siphon crude fuel directly into the mixer, extracted from one of the naturally occurring oil rivulets that were connected to the platform.

After about a breem, Scrapper stopped pumping the oil as Mixmaster began to fill an empty barrel with rich, clean energon that came pouring out of his discharge chute.

"Well, that's all of it," Mixmaster informed them, once the barrel was almost filled. "How much more do you want to make?"

"That should be enough to go around for everyone, and for replenishing our weapons," Scrapper said, satisfied. "For now, let's fill up your tank and a couple more barrels. We can always come back later for more."

"Sounds good," Mixmaster replied, and half hour later, their task was complete. Then Shockwave and Bombshell helped carry the filled barrels as they all headed back to base.

When Dirge saw the familiar shape of Soundwave approaching from the network of tunnels situated beneath the primary reserves, followed by three others, he exhaled a sigh of relief. "Our friends from Jarr have just arrived, although they don't look too happy. Plus, I don't think the Autobots like us very much, either," he informed Starscream with irony, as the small group rejoined him and the others.

"Oh, what a shame," the Air Commander responded in a similar fashion. "Are we ruining their little party?" He handed Drillbit the makeshift bomb. "Here, hold this while I go and see if there's anything I can do to make it up to them," he added with sarcasm, and began to make his way towards the gathering of Autobots nearby.

As Starscream approached, Prowl turned to him, dispensing with any greetings. "I hope you've all decided to change your minds and go home peacefully," he said.

"On the contrary – we're here to kindly request that you call off your deal, immediately," Starscream told him bluntly, "and just in case you need a little encouragement, I've brought along something that might help you make the right choice." He indicated behind him at Drillbit and the modified plasma core.

Standing behind Prowl, Ironhide scowled at the Decepticon seeker. "What are you talking about? What in the Pit is that thing?"

"It looks like a bomb," Trailbreaker answered him tersely.

They received a smug look from Starscream. "Very good, Autobot – a neutron bomb, to be precise. Now, if you don't tell your new friends to leave our cybertonium alone," he said in no uncertain terms, indicating the Jarrians, "I'll be forced to blow this whole place sky high, along with anybody who may be stupid enough to still be standing around."

"What in the – are you threatening us, Decepti-crud?!" Ironhide scowled at him. He couldn't help the insult. "Have you completely lost your ball bearings?"

"Wait, Ironhide. He could be bluffing," Trailbreaker interjected. "With the energy shortage, I doubt they've got enough spare energon to power their weapons, let alone build a bomb."

Before Prowl could respond to him, Starscream cut in. "As a matter of fact, we have plenty of energon to spare. Now, if you don't do as I say, I'll give Drillbit the instruction to begin the countdown. Once he has started that process, there won't be any time to stop the reaction."

"You would be risking the lives of all these innocent workers, let alone the lives of your friends," Prowl told him, his frustration at the Decepticon now plain for all to see. "This just isn't worth it!"

"Perhaps not, but if we allow those Jarrians to take what is ours now, what's going to stop them, or any of their allies, from eventually taking control of our planet, bit by bit, until we're all nothing more than a slave race, forced to do their will in exchange for our basic necessities?" Starscream replied.

Prowl shook his head in bewilderment. "Don't you think you're being just a little over-dramatic? Such a scenario won't happen – I can assure you – and, besides, the agreement that we made is a very fair one."

"We'll all be begging for necessities, anyway, without a new supply of energy," Trailbreaker supported him.

"Not that we owe you Decepti-cons any explanations," Ironhide spoke up bitterly. "But for what it's worth, Prowl's right."

But Starscream remained unconvinced. "Very well. It looks like your minds are made up, then." He turned to glance behind him and shouted, "Drillbit, activate the timer–"

"No, wait!" Prowl interrupted him. He let out a sigh of consternation. "Just – let me speak to the Jarrians, okay?" Then, just before he turned to leave, he said, "But don't think for an astro-second that you're going to get away with your crazy scheme."

As he watched Prowl approach the Jarrian representative, Starscream was joined by his companions. "So… what if it doesn't work, Starscream?" Thundercracker asked him in a low voice.

His trine leader gave him a small shrug. "Then, get ready to give 'em all you've got. We're not backing down without a fight."

A short distance away, Prowl exchanged a few private words with the Jarrians and, after about a minute or so, the leader of the Jarrian mechs began to raise his voice and wave his arms around in a manner that indicated he was most upset. Starscream began to slowly raise his null rays at the visitors, ready for a confrontation, but then the Jarrian turned to his team and frantically motioned for them to move away. After some confusion and hesitation, the alien visitors finally turned around and returned to their shuttle. Their leader soon followed them aboard, and before Prowl could stop them or try to change their minds, the shuttle was already in the air and moving away.

The large number of workers and the Autobots watched the shuttle leave in confusion, and when they finally understood that the Jarrians were not coming back, they became disgruntled.

Prowl quickly made his way back to Starscream and the other Decepticons. "There – are you happy now? They've just called off the deal for us," he informed them in an exasperated tone. "Sentinel Prime is not going to be happy when he finds out."

"Maybe not, though he should be happy to know that we just stopped you Autobots from making a very stupid mistake," Starscream answered smugly.

Prowl shook his head in disdain and then began to push his way back through the crowd of onlookers, who had begun to coalesce and move closer towards the Decepticons, raising their fists in frustration and shouting promises of vengeance if they didn't apologize to the Jarrians and convince them to return.

Starscream became alerted to the mob and started to back away. "Aren't you going to back them off?" he called out to Prowl.

Prowl gave him an incredulous look, briefly pausing to glance back at him. "It's not our fault that they're angry – it's yours. I'll let you deal with them," he said in disgust, before disappearing into the crowd.

After a few moments, Starscream turned to his own team. "Looks like we're done here – let's go," he told them, then transformed into his jet mode and shot up into the sky. The rest of the Decepticons followed after him as they evacuated the Kalis mines, but the horde of disgruntled workers would not give up so easily, as they started along the main road to follow them back to Kolkular.

By the time Shockwave and his team arrived back at the fortress almost one hour after they'd left, they were confronted with a difficult situation. No longer quiet and almost deserted, the Kolkular Decepticon base was surrounded by a mob of angry protesters intent on forcing their way inside.

"What's going on here?" Scrapper asked, but then immediately regretted it as several of the mob turned their attention to the new arrivals.

"Look – Decepticons!" one of the mechs shouted at the others, pointing. He did not sound pleased.

The mob, who were a mix of both Autobots and Destrons, recognized Shockwave and his team and began to move away from the main gates to converge upon them, roaring in protest and shouting various threats and accusations.

"We want our shipment of energon!" one cried out.

"You've brought the Great Shutdown upon us all!" another wailed.

As the angry horde closed in around the four of them, Shockwave stepped forwards, transformed his left hand into a laser cannon and aimed it at the ground close to the nearest rabble-rouser. Then he fired off a series of shots, intentionally missing any of the living targets but delivering an impressive display of laser fireworks. Frightened, the crowd immediately dove for cover and dispersed, allowing the guardian and his companions to walk through to their main gates unhindered. Bombshell entered in his security code, and they all quickly slipped inside the safety of the fortress grounds.

Once inside, Shockwave and Bombshell joined Soundwave, Dirge, Starscream, and his trine mates – who had just returned from Kalis – in the dimness of the common room, while Scrapper and Mixmaster headed directly to the power distribution center with their barrels of newly produced fuel.

"They were out for our energon, figuratively speaking," Bombshell explained of the mob outside, "though it's a good thing they weren't curious about our barrels." He placed the barrel of energon he had been carrying down onto one of the tables and began to siphon some of the pink fuel into empty canisters. Once he was done, he passed the refills around. "So, what do you think?" he asked eagerly, taking a refill for himself.

The room fell quiet as the Decepticons sampled their newly produced energon, and after a few tentative moments, exclamations of amazement and nods of approval broke out all at once.

"Wow, this is really good stuff. It's pure – tastes like high-grade," Thundercracker said, impressed. "Congratulations."

"We did it," Starscream agreed, smiling happily. "We actually did it. Where's Scrapper? He deserves a commendation – as do the two of you, Shockwave and Bombshell." The last two mentioned mechs returned nods of appreciation.

"Let's not forget your own contributions, Starscream," Bombshell replied. "We couldn't have done it without your expertise, not to mention your stubborn determination."

"Well, yes, that goes without saying – but thank you, regardless," Starscream replied smugly, earning him a round of good-natured laughter at his satirical self-admiration.

More energon was shared around, and the room was soon filled with much laughter and everyone all talking at once. For the Decepticons – at least – the energy crisis was over.

While the Decepticons stood at the forefront of a new paradigm shift that was about to revolutionize the planet, the Autobots found themselves on the brink of a devastating energy crisis, not helped by a failed inter-planetary agreement with two of the most influential and abundant worlds in the known galaxy.

When Sentinel Prime eventually met up with Prowl and his team at the Kalis mines with reinforcements, he soon learned that their Jarrian partners had backed out of the deal.

"How could you have let that happen?" the Prime asked his advisor, none too pleased as he watched the dispersed crowd of workers, the majority of which had pursued the Decepticons back to Kaon.

Prowl frowned, and replied defensively, "Sir, the Decepticons threatened to blow this entire place up – they had a neutron bomb."

Sentinel was incredulous, his anger now obvious. "A neutron bomb?!" There was an awkward silence as he shook his head in bewilderment. "And how do you suppose that they got their hands on a neutron bomb? It was a trick, you idiot!" he blurted out, and then inhaled deeply before issuing his next orders. "Mobilize all available troops to Kolkular. I think it's time we showed Megatron who truly runs things around here."

In the power distribution center, Megatron watched as Scrapper disconnected the plasma converters and input the necessary adjustments to the control computer. Meanwhile, Mixmaster pumped his tanker full of energon directly into the reservoir for the distribution grid.

"We should be able to modify our generators to automate the conversion process, but for now, a manual feed will have to do," Scrapper explained.

"Let's first get this place back online, shall we? We can worry about the fine tuning later," Megatron said.

"Of course, Megatron," Scrapper replied. Once Mixmaster had finished emptying his tank and had transformed into robot mode, everything was set for the distribution grid to be powered up again. Scrapper flicked a few switches and hit a key on the computer's control console. The familiar sounds of whirring and beeping greeted their audial sensors as the entire room returned to normal functioning, the overhead lights blinking back to life once more. "Looks like we're back online," Scrapper announced happily, as he checked the readout on the monitoring station.

Megatron gave them a nod of approval. "Excellent work – both of you." As he turned to leave, he said over his shoulder, "Let us assemble in the Control Tower for a briefing – there is still much that we need to discuss with the others."

Scrapper paused briefly to smile in satisfaction, before he and Mixmaster followed their leader out of the power distribution center and up to the control room.

Shouts of cheer and celebratory laughter rang throughout the fully lit hallways of the Kolkular fortress towers as the Decepticons headed to the control room for a briefing, completely immune to the civil unrest that continued to plague the outer regions of Kaon, and extending all across Cybertron to the much poorer, non-Autobot run city-states.

The effects of a shutdown were gripping the planet, driving mechs of all designations and backgrounds alike to aggression, each fighting for the last precious drops of energon they could pilfer or scrape out of discarded canisters. Law and order on the streets was at an all-time low, quickly discarded for the much more effective alternative of violence, pillaging and mayhem. In response, teams of Autobot soldiers were being sent out into the main streets, rounding up the worst offenders and driving back others. They acted under direct orders issued by the highest authority on Cybertron – the Council of Elders, and enforced by Sentinel Prime, the Commander of the Autobot military.

In Kolkular, Starscream finished briefing Megatron and the gathered Decepticons on the outcome of his team's successful mission into Kalis, concluding succinctly, "So, while we managed to – how shall I say – persuade the Jarrians to back out of their agreement with the Autobots, I've no doubt that they'll probably be back to renegotiate, and probably sooner than we anticipate."

"Yeah, and what's more, we've just become everyone's worst enemy. We can't even step outside this fortress without being chased down and having our chassis hauled through the sludge by an angry mob," Dirge added, his tone sour.

"That is unfortunate. Perhaps, once the Autobots learn of our new method of energy production, they may want to start establishing some agreements with us, rather than relying upon off-worlders and their grossly unfair deals for their energy needs," Megatron said.

"Megatron?" Soundwave cut in, turning momentarily away from the console where he had been monitoring the situation directly outside. He sounded more urgent than usual. "Sentinel Prime is demanding that he speak with you directly."

Of course, an urgent message incoming from the Prime had been fully expected, considering the Decepticons' recent interference with official inter-planetary affairs. "Put him on audio, Soundwave, so that we may all hear what he has to say," Megatron replied.

"He is waiting outside, and is demanding that we surrender," Soundwave immediately informed him. The security monitor in front of him displayed a visual of the exterior of their fortress, where a large portion of the Autobot army was gathered, ready to carry out orders from their Prime Commander. The civilian protesters who had followed Starscream's team back to Kaon were being rounded up by several of the armed forces and escorted away to the nearest Autobot relief point that had been set up in the neighboring region of Tyrest.

The room fell quiet for several moments as they all considered the potential outcome of defying the Prime's demand. "If we surrender now, everything we have achieved thus far will come to nought," Starscream said, breaking the silence.

"Agreed, Starscream," Megatron replied, almost in a casual manner, "and don't worry – I have no intention of surrendering." He returned his attention to their communications expert. "Soundwave, are you able to determine whether the Autobots have enough energy to infiltrate this fortress and engage us directly in battle?"

There was a tentative pause as the blue and white communications officer initiated a short-range scan of the area occupied by the Autobots just outside their gates. "They do not appear to have a supply of energon in reserve with them, Megatron. I estimate that, with our replenished supply, we would outlast them ten to one in a battle; however, it is not likely that they will be able to break through our defenses."

"That is most excellent," Megatron replied, exhaling with a relieved nod. "It means that they have not received their needed shipment." After a few moments in thought, he turned to the room full of Decepticons to relay his next instructions. "I will go and speak with the Prime. Meanwhile, prepare your weapons and ready yourselves for whatever may happen, but do not make your presence known to them. If all goes well, we will not have to resort to force." As he turned to leave, Onslaught and Starscream spoke up at once.

"Perhaps it would be wise to allow a security team to accompany you, Megatron?" Starscream advised him hastily. "Just in case the Autobots refuse to listen and decide to arrest you, or worse."

"Let my team provide you with some backup," Onslaught offered, not comfortable with the notion of allowing their leader to confront an entire army of Autobots on his own.

"Your concerns are noted; however, that won't be necessary," Megatron responded, even as he swiftly made his way out of the control room in the Central Tower, pausing only briefly to give them his final thoughts on the matter. "Just be ready."

As soon as he had disappeared down the hallway and out of sight, Starscream took charge of the situation. "Well, you all know what to do. Let's go." With that, the meeting ended, and they began to disperse, organizing themselves in a manner that reflected their military training and background.

The sight of what appeared to be a significant portion of the Autobot army surrounding the perimeter of the fortress, weapons drawn and battle ready, would have intimidated most other mechs, but not Megatron. With fearless determination, he emerged from the top of the Central Tower and, still in robot mode, dropped down through the air to land on top of the perimeter wall, looking out at the hostile troops. The Autobot soldiers immediately pointed their weapons at him, but he ignored them and instead kept his gaze steady upon the Prime. "We do not surrender, Sentinel Prime," he immediately announced.

Sentinel raised a hand at his army, indicating for them to take no action as he watched his former military advisor with both regret and disdain. He slowly shook his head, walking closer until he stood directly below the Decepticon leader. "Do not make this difficult for yourself, Megatron. You and your followers cannot possibly stand against the Autobot army. Surrender now, and I will show leniencies–"

"We have discovered a new source of energon," Megatron stated clearly, ignoring the other's coercion. "We need no longer give our power or resources away in exchange for a limited supply of energy. If your inter-planetary arrangement is allowed to continue, we will become highly dependent on our foreign benefactors, not to mention complacent. There would be no stopping them, should they decide to take advantage of us all."

The Prime shook his head, completely skeptical of what the other had said. "Your insufferable Air Commander may have fooled us all once, but there will be no tricking us again," he replied, then paused briefly before continuing, his voice harsher. "If you disagree with the decisions of the Council, then you are more than welcome to go and put forth your case to them. But until then, they are Cybertron's only true authority, and only they may represent our planet's interests in official dealings – not you, Megatron."

"Spare me the pretentious speech. And do you really think for one moment that they would listen to anything I have to say?"

As Megatron finished speaking, an alien craft appeared low in the sky close by and then proceeded to land only a short distance behind the large crowd. They all turned to watch as a small team of Autobots disembarked and their leader, a golden colored bot, pushed his way to the front of the crowd, intent on having a word with Sentinel. Megatron recognized him as the young states-mech who had played a part in securing the three-way deal on Athenia.

After a tense moment in private discussion, Sentinel addressed him once more. "It has come to my attention that your Decepticons have hijacked the titanium mine in Kaon. This kind of rebellion and blatant disregard for our laws will not be tolerated. Now, I will ask you one more time, back down from your position and begin to make your way to the closest check point in Tyrest. Don't make me have to escort you and your merry mechs – by force, if necessary."

"My Decepticons have not broken any laws. On the contrary, it is the corrupt Elders and their masters who have already broken multiple laws against all Cybertronians, along with the Autobots who protect them and carry out their bidding. It is their tyranny that we will no longer tolerate," Megatron replied firmly. "However, if you insist on using force against us, then we will have no choice but to defend ourselves."

Sentinel Prime's countenance lost its poise, and he became angered. "How dare you even suggest–" But then his irritation dropped away unexpectedly, as Megatron's words struck a chord, and he found himself battling his own doubts and conscience. He realized that Megatron was right, but also that there would be no changing the Decepticon leader's mind in order to convince him to back down, if even for his own good. "Perhaps, Megatron, but this is neither the time nor the place for staging a revolt. How do you expect to resist an entire army of Autobots, with no energy?"

"As I have already mentioned, we have developed a new method of energon production that does not require mining for existing energon crystals," Megatron replied simply. "A method which I would be willing to share with you… provided that you denounce the Council, dissolve the hierarchy that lays claim to its power, and institute a new administration – one that ensures equal representation for all."

The large gathering of Autobots fell silent, unsure of what to make of Megatron's radical proposal. Most appeared to be highly uncomfortable with it. "As I have already stated, you will not trick us again with your ridiculous schemes," Sentinel replied vehemently. "Listen – there's not been a single one of our greatest scientists, throughout all of our history, who has ever been able to manufacture energon without the required crystals – it is unheard of!" he insisted, as if it all should have been obvious to the Decepticon leader. "And besides, I do not have the authority to dissolve the Council and form a new government – none of us have!" He sounded exasperated, though almost a little regretful as well.

"Then, it is unfortunate that the situation has come to this. So be it," Megatron said, and jumped down from the perimeter wall, into the fortress grounds and out of sight, before Sentinel could give the order.

After a few tense astro-seconds, the Prime motioned his troops forward, and all at once, the Autobots charged towards the fortress, attempting to leap over or scale the wall. Failing that, they would attempt to blast a hole through its force field with their laser weapons.

"The Autobots are attempting to breach our perimeter," Soundwave informed the Decepticons' second-in-command, who had been watching the exchange between Megatron and Sentinel Prime on one of the security monitors with intense interest.

"Will it hold?"

"It should hold for as long as we have enough energon to power it," Soundwave replied. "The force field is functioning at full capacity."

Starscream allowed his tension to ease a little. "Good. If it weren't for our recent breakthrough, we wouldn't have been able to defend our base," he said aloud, reminding himself of their recent triumph over the energy crisis. Glancing back at the screen, he watched their aerial teams emerge from the North Tower to take up their attack positions, whilst the Stunticons and triple-changers arranged themselves in an offensive formation just inside the perimeter, weapons fully charged and ready for battle at the first sign of a breach. Each Combaticon commanded a squad that comprised both new and experienced recruits, and together, they formed a formidable defense force that protected the entire fortress.

On the visual display, they could see that Megatron was standing beside Motormaster and Blitzwing, just inside the main gates. Soundwave stepped away from his monitoring station and began to lead the way out of the control room to join the others outside. The Air Commander silently followed after him, on his way to join his own aerial unit.

Megatron watched as the Autobots began bombardment of the fortress, pummeling the outer wall and main gates with grenades and cannon blasts. He turned to Soundwave, Starscream and Onslaught as they joined him outside the Central Tower.

"All our teams are fully armed and in position," Onslaught reported. "We're ready for them."

"They're wasting all their time and resources trying to break through our barriers. Wouldn't they be better off simply to wait for us to run dry, so that we are forced to surrender?" Starscream asked, pondering the Autobots' strategy based upon the opposing faction's likely assumptions of the Decepticons' energy-starved situation.

"It seems that they believe we don't have the power to keep our force field up," Megatron replied.

"So, they'll expend whatever energy they have left to try to draw us out? I'd have thought Sentinel Prime had a little more sense than that," the Combaticon leader commented, amid the noise of explosions and an energized battering ram. "Besides, you'd think the Autobots have more important things to worry about right now, like – oh, I dunno – say, the energy crisis?"

Megatron smirked at his sarcasm. "Indeed. However, I suspect that Sentinel Prime has no choice in the matter; either he has been issued with a directive, or…" He trailed off in thought.

"Or what?" Starscream prompted.

"Or they have renegotiated the agreement for that shipment of crystals – only this time, with an added condition," Megatron explained.

"What added condition?" Onslaught asked warily, though he already suspected the answer.

Starscream confirmed his suspicions. "Provided that they take us out of the equation first."

Just outside the fortress, the Autobots were relentless, but despite their efforts, their offensive was beginning to drain their limited energy reserves.

"How much longer before we've broken through their force field?" Sentinel Prime demanded in irritation. This entire stand-off against Megatron and the Decepticons had greatly bothered him from the start.

No matter how much Prowl tried to conceal his worry, his expression gave it away. "I don't understand it, Prime, but their energy shield is still at full capacity. We should have at least put a dent in it by now."

The Prime considered the situation, until eventually he was forced to face the possibility that what Megatron had told him was true. "This is futile. Power down your weapons!" he called out suddenly in frustration.

"Sir?" Prowl queried.

"Sentinel Prime, if I may make a suggestion–" Xaaron interrupted in a frustrated tone, displeased with the results of their attempts to secure the Decepticon fortress thus far.

"Yes, yes – I said power down!" Sentinel repeated for Prowl's benefit, whilst ignoring the states-mech standing beside him.

Prowl did as he had been ordered and passed on the new instructions to the ground troops. The sound of energy weapons being discharged suddenly ceased, and quietness fell around them once again. There was a long, awkward pause as Sentinel paced back and forth in contemplation.

"Sir, what's going on?" his advisor asked.

Sentinel released a sigh of frustration, stopping to face Prowl. "They must have replenished their energon supply somehow – our own resources will run out long before we have managed to bring down their automated defenses."

Prowl had a perplexed look on his face. "Sentinel, sir… that's not possible. We've detected no new sources of crystals for several weeks. If they'd managed to import some, somehow – the scanners at our space port's entry points would have picked up the crystals' energy signature."

"Don't you think I know that?!" Sentinel fought the urge to take his frustrations out on Prowl, and then glanced back up at the fortress that loomed in front of them. He could see the Decepticons' aerial teams standing in robot mode atop each of the three towers, watching and waiting for any sign of break in. Even if the Autobots did manage to sufficiently weaken the fortress' invisible force field, Sentinel realized, their own aerial warriors would be no match against the Decepticon seekers.

If they could not defeat the Decepticons on their home turf, he decided, then he was just going to have to find a way to lure them away from Kolkular.

"Enough of this. We return to Iacon immediately. There's been a change of plans," Sentinel Prime told Prowl tersely.

As the Prime began to stride away, he was intercepted by Xaaron, who spoke to him in a lowered voice. "Need I remind you that the Elders are not pleased. If you are incapable of dealing with these pests, then they will just have to replace you with someone who is!"

Sentinel grimaced at his words, but then brushed the smaller mech aside before continuing on his way. "Well, good luck to them!" he said derisively, without turning back.

As soon as the bombardment upon their fortress ceased, Soundwave informed the others of the latest turn of events. "The Autobots are retreating," he said.

It was a small victory for them, albeit a temporary one; if their disagreement with Autobot Command over planetary resources wasn't resolved, they could eventually find themselves trapped inside their own fortress whilst the Autobots engaged in a siege against them, until they were all apprehended.

"Send Laserbeak to track them," Megatron told the communications specialist, who immediately deployed the requested Cassetticon by ejecting him from his chest compartment.

"Laserbeak: follow the Autobots," Soundwave commanded, as the compact form of the spy transformed into a condor in mid-air. Then Laserbeak took off into the sky without a sound, passing through the fortress' force field with ease as his Decepticon signature was instantly recognized by their automated security protocols.

Later that day, the Jarrian delegate, Jala, awaited Sentinel Prime's arrival at the Council Pavilions in Central Iacon, along with the two Cybertronian High Council representatives, Xaaron and Proteus. Also present for the impromptu meeting was Arkelaos of Athenia, whose presence had been requested by the Elders at short notice in order to help stem the resistance by the Decepticons and thereby ensure the Jarrians' full endorsement and co-operation. The Darosians had preferred to take a passive role, awaiting the outcome of events before returning to the titanium mine as per the original agreement; thus, Uhnta was notably absent from this meeting.

"Commander Jala, your visit affords me much pleasure in welcoming you to Cybertron. Unfortunately, I wish it were under better circumstances," Sentinel greeted him, speaking even as he entered through the arch doors to the majestic central chamber that lay beyond, where the others awaited him. The two high-ranking officers who had accompanied him, Prowl and Trailbreaker, waited just outside.

The Jarrian, a tall and spindly, well-armed mechanoid covered in black, reflective armoring, watched the Prime as he ascended the small run of steps towards them. "Xaaron tells me that you have been made aware of our current position regarding our future relations with your world, Commander Prime?" he asked simply.

"Ah, yes, of course," Sentinel replied, pausing to acknowledge the other attendees.

"Have the rebels been apprehended?" Arkelaos queried him, getting to the point before the Prime could say anything more.

"Rebels?" Sentinel looked at him in puzzlement for a quick astro-second. "Oh, you mean the Decepticons. Well, you see, not entirely, however–" he conceded.

"Sentinel Prime, you have been granted full authority to arrest them all. Why the delay? Surely it isn't a problem for our armed forces to deal with a single rogue group?" Proteus demanded, cutting him short.

"Normally it wouldn't be, but considering the minor problem of our energy crisis, it's not so simple!" Sentinel retorted with derision, raising his voice impatiently.

The red and blue Council representative considered his words for a moment. "Still, they cannot possibly have an unlimited supply. I'm sure that, with the Jarrians' help, we'll make certain that these Decepticons don't interfere with official business again," he advised, tilting his head briefly at Jala.

However, Jala was not happy. He gave the Cybertronians a cold glare. "We would like to begin installing our cybertonium extractors in Kalis tomorrow. If those rebels have not already been dealt with by the time we arrive, your shipment of crystals will be withheld indefinitely." And with that, Jala's word was final. He left the meeting, swiftly descended the steps, and disappeared out of sight.

Silently, Sentinel looked back at Arkelaos and the two councilors, shaking his head in disparagement before he, too, made his way out of the chambers in a hurry. None of them noticed the avian spy, who had been perched atop one of the balconies that overlooked the central chamber, observing them.

Once Laserbeak had returned to Kolkular to relay the latest information he'd picked up during his reconnaissance, the Decepticons began to make preparations, coming up with a plan to prevent the Jarrians from establishing a permanent mining outpost tomorrow in Kalis which, if permitted, would essentially hand over all control of the planet's cybertonium to them. Regardless of whether or not Proteus' agreement was sanctioned by the Cybertronian High Council – the highest law-making body on Cybertron – the Decepticons were willing to do everything in their power to try to put a stop to it.

While the other high-ranking Decepticons discussed tomorrow's plans, Scrapper had taken the opportunity to spend a little more time in the lab, in order to complete the final tests on their newly produced energon.

It did not take long for him to confirm the results, and less than an hour later, he had found himself eager to share the good news. "Not only does this energon have a far higher energy potential than ordinary energon, but it's very stable, which means that we can store it indefinitely without the need for keeping it in sealed containers or precision-controlled environments," Scrapper said, barely waiting to get everyone's attention as he rushed into the common room holding a canister of the prized fuel. He paused as the other Decepticons stopped to acknowledge him, then cleared his vocal processor when he realized he had interrupted them mid-conversation. However, no one seemed to mind – they were all very interested to hear what he had to say.

"So, the plasma converters – they won't be needed anymore?" Starscream said, breaking the momentary silence.

Scrapper shook his head assuredly, approaching the table where Megatron, Soundwave, Shockwave, Bombshell, Kickback, Mixmaster and Starscream were gathered. "No. They're already offline. As a matter of fact, this entire base has been running on nothing but our energon since we restored it to full power," he said excitedly.

"Do we have enough for tomorrow?" the Air Commander asked.

"Plenty – and if not, we can easily produce more."

"That's great news," Starscream answered. That simple statement, nevertheless, echoed the profundity of their monumental achievement. Certainly, it would make tomorrow's mission much easier, let alone help them avoid another energy crisis in future.

Scrapper nodded, and then continued. "Not only is it easy to collect and store, but it's easily compressed as well. Plus, its unique matrix allows it to respond to certain cymatic frequencies. I've only conducted some preliminary tests in this area so far, but I'll demonstrate." He placed the clear container he'd been holding down on the table in front of him and pointed a spectral wave modulator – a hand-held tool that resembled a light pen – at its contents. Upon activating the modulator, the pink energon suddenly changed into a swirling iridescence of rainbow colors, its total volume diminishing and becoming compact until it took up less than a third of the space it had originally occupied inside the container. Then Scrapper reversed the setting on the modulator, and immediately, the plasma-like fuel reverted to its normal density and volume again, its color returning to pink.

All previous known forms of energon that existed in the galaxy could not be manipulated in this fashion, and even though the superior form they'd recently created was nothing short of a breakthrough, they had only just begun to explore its remarkable properties.

Of course, while cymatics and all things related to the sound spectrum were not Scrapper's usual area of expertise, they certainly were Soundwave's. He was a master in this field, possessing unique capabilities that far exceeded those of any other mech.

Without saying a word, Soundwave took the container of energon still on the table, and drank its contents. He was able to do so without retracting his face mask, thanks to its superconductive, phase-fluid matrix – something that was impossible to do with previous forms. Once he'd emptied the container of its contents, he rose from his seat and a few moments later, the entire area of his chest compartment glowed brightly for a few seconds. Then, as the light began to diminish, a transparent cube, constructed entirely of this new energon, materialized out of his chest compartment and dropped lightly onto the table. It continued to retain its solid shape, even as Scrapper reached out to pick it up and examine it.

"Energon cube," Soundwave explained simply, "for storage."

The next day, the Decepticons, led by Megatron, made their way through the darkened and empty streets, flying low over the main route that led north-west into Kalis. Only a small team of recruits had been left behind to monitor communications and security back at the Kolkular fortress, supervised by Shockwave, since most Decepticon mech-power had been diverted to Kalis in anticipation of a possible confrontation with the Autobots and their Jarrian allies.

When they arrived at the cybertonium deposit, they immediately took up their positions around the mine, and then waited. Due to the progress of the planet-wide shutdown, they no longer needed to contend with unruly mobs or protesters – the majority of whom had been rounded up by Autobot forces and escorted to the nearest check point, where they would then be placed into stasis if the shutdown proceeded to enter into the next phase.

"So, this is what a Great Shutdown looks like," Skywarp commented. "Everything's just stopped. It's kind of eerie."

"Not quite as eerie as a full-scale zombie invasion," Thundercracker replied, "though it comes close."

It wasn't long before the first sign of activity disturbed the unnatural quietnes – an alien ship, followed by a small fleet of fighter craft, became visible on the horizon, approaching their location, crossing over the Rust Sea from the direction of the main space port. A convoy of vehicles also appeared, speeding along the main thoroughfare connected to Tagon Heights – the Autobots, led by the large form of Sentinel Prime's alt mode – a heavy, modified tank.

The Decepticons stood their ground, even when the ship landed in front of them and a large number of Jarrians – approximately twice as many as there had been the day before – emerged from the main craft to meet with Sentinel Prime and the Autobots at their agreed rendezvous point. It was plain to see that among them were Jarrian foot soldiers who carried weapons, while the rest consisted of the same mining team of the day before, only this time, Jala commanded them. The fleet of fighter jets remained in the air, circling and hovering at low speeds but keeping a good distance away.

The Jarrian delegate exchanged a few heated words with Sentinel Prime, before the leader of the Autobots approached Megatron, but the Decepticon leader showed no signs of being intimidated by either the Autobots or their foreign allies.

"This is your final warning, Megatron. Leave, now," Sentinel told him, before his tone softened somewhat. "Please, save yourselves the embarrassment of having to be forcibly removed in front of our allies."

Standing beside Megatron with his arms crossed in front of him, Starscream responded without hesitation. "Not a chance, Sentinel Prime. Tell your so-called allies that they can either go back to their home world willingly, or we'll force them to leave. What's it going to be?"

The Prime tried to ignore the Decepticon Air Commander to instead focus his attention on Megatron, but if he had been expecting a different response from him, then he was very quickly disappointed. He shook his head in frustration. "Very well, have it your way. But never say I didn't warn you!" he rebuked them harshly, before turning and walking brusquely back to Jala and his entourage.

Less than a minute later, the Jarrian soldiers began to approach the Decepticons, quickly closing the distance between them on foot, their laser blasters raised and aimed at the rebels. At the same time, the fleet of fighter jets fell into a combat spread formation and began heading towards them.

Onslaught transformed into his anti-aircraft truck alt mode, aiming his photon missile launcher at the air-borne targets. Vortex and Blast Off transformed and took to the air, while the rest of the Combaticons and the triple-changers created an impenetrable barrier against the ground army.

"Surrender!" one of the Jarrian sergeants yelled out, motioning for his mechs to surround the mine.

"Sorry, but we don't understand what that means," Astrotrain retorted, and a moment later, ten soldiers came charging towards him, firing their laser blasters. He countered their move with his ionic displacer rifle, watching as the ionic charge sent two of the mechs flying backwards.

There was an eruption of weapons fire as the Jarrians began their assault, targeting the Decepticons from all sides, both on the ground and in the air.

The Decepticons reacted in less than a split second. The seekers, led by Starscream, quickly transformed and took to the air, circling around the Jarrian crafts on either side and targeting each with torpedoes. The crafts turned and banked steeply, locking their targeting systems on to the Decepticon seekers in pursuit before firing off several missiles. However, the seekers avoided being hit by the warheads, weaving and dodging away from the trajectories with ease.

Meanwhile, the Decepticons on the ground responded to the Jarrian army of foot soldiers by laying down heavy covering fire, taking them all by surprise and scattering them in all directions. The Autobots, in particular, looked on in disbelief; with their available energy severely limited, they could only form a secondary line of defense behind the Jarrians.

Prowl and Ironhide led a small team of Autobots around the mine, intending to secure its rear entry point, but were greeted by a group of Decepticons standing just inside the entrance.

"Stand down peacefully, and no one needs to get hurt," Prowl told them. He recognized them as the Constructicons – the same ones who had formed the giant combiner to rid Iacon of the Nemesis Army.

"But, if we do that, how do you expect us to protect our cybertonium deposits?" one of them, their leader, said in a facetious manner.

"Look, it's not your cybertonium," Prowl told him impatiently. He tried to ignore the sounds of distant torpedoes and weapons blasts being fired, but he was already distracted by the fact that due to the energy crisis, the Autobots would not be able to sustain a prolonged conflict.

"It's more ours than theirs," the Constructicon pointed out, indicating towards the Jarrians nearby.

Prowl raised his weapon at the six green and purple mechs and hoped that he would not be forced to use it, while the Autobots who were with him, six in all, copied his action. He was well aware of the fact that if they were not able to stop the Decepticons from interfering in official business – they desperately required that shipment of crystals – then it would all be a lost cause, anyway. "Can't you see what you're doing – this is a mistake!" he blurted out in frustration.

"You're right – this is a mistake," the Constructicon responded. Then six fully charged weapons were suddenly being aimed directly back at Prowl and his team.

Neither the Autobots nor the Jarrians had expected the Decepticons to be able to respond with such great force and firepower, or to have superior forms of weaponry at their disposal, which they used with such readiness and ease that Sentinel could not comprehend just how it was even possible, considering that they all found themselves right in the middle of a planet-wide shutdown. Even with greater numbers than the Decepticons, it soon became apparent that the Jarrians would not be able to avoid an embarrassing defeat, no matter how much more prepared they were than the previous day.

Sentinel Prime soon came to the sobering realization that the only reason both the Jarrians and the Autobots had not yet been completely decimated in this battle was because of the Decepticons' mercifulness, and not for a lack of capability – it truly appeared that they were not after a massacre, but only to dissuade the Jarrians from ever asserting any dominion over the planet or its precious resources. Not only had Megatron meant what he had told him at the space port, but it was also now apparent that he clearly had the means to back up his intentions.

Megatron and his group of loyal Decepticons continued to color the air with laser blasts and photon missiles, quickly overpowering and outgunning the hostile army of Jarrian soldiers until they had no other choice but to retreat and take cover inside their mother ship, while the Autobots did what they could to maintain their own positions and dignity, helping the wounded escape the mayhem and guiding them to safety, every now and again firing a couple of shots back at the Decepticons.

It was a similar story in the air. The small Jarrian fleet was not able to match the Decepticons' superior maneuverability or skill, as the teams of seekers quickly took out the engines of the non-sentient jets yet allowed the fighter pilots to eject from their crafts just before they crashed into the ground, leaving heavy trails of smoke until they burst into flames upon impact.

"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Sentinel ordered, brushing past a dejected Jala, holding up both hands to indicate his intention for both the Autobots and the Decepticons alike. In response, Megatron gave the signal for the Decepticons to stop firing, and moments later, the sound of weapons blasts died down. The battleground soon became still, and only the low moans of injured mechs, as well as energy weapons being powered down, could be heard. The aerial team circled around and then returned to the ground, transforming back to robot mode. Onslaught and his team also returned to their normal forms, as did the triple-changers.

Once he was certain the fighting had stopped, Sentinel turned and walked back to join Jala, who was outraged, not to mention extremely embarrassed by their surprise defeat.

Jala spoke first. "You should have done something about these – these meddling outlaws – much sooner, when your Autobots had the chance! Mark my words, Sentinel Prime, your Elders will most certainly be hearing about this–"

"Just take your company, and leave," Sentinel said, cutting him off quickly, and before the Jarrian had a chance to respond, Sentinel stepped away again, returning to face the Decepticons once more.

"Well, you've just sealed our fate, and brought the Great Shutdown upon us all," Sentinel said harshly, expressing his own grievance towards his former military advisor. "I must admit, I do not know how you did it, Megatron, but I certainly hope that you are now happy."

Megatron gave nothing away with his expression, maintaining an unemotional façade. "Oh, very." Then, when Scrapper and the Constructicons emerged from behind the mine to rejoin the rest of the Decepticons, he hinted at a smile. Soon after, Prowl and his team also emerged, walking past until they stood beside the Prime, unharmed though looking quite dejected. "How about a little demonstration for the Prime – Soundwave?"

The blue and white Decepticon stepped forwards and, as they all watched, his chest compartment began to glow brightly until an astro-second later, a glowing, transparent cube constructed of solid energon emerged from his chest compartment. When the process was complete, the cube dropped lightly to the ground.

"What–?" Sentinel looked on in puzzlement, and for a moment, he was unsure of the Decepticons' intentions, bracing himself for further hostility. Behind him, several of the Autobots had stopped to watch the demonstration, their attention transfixed upon Soundwave and the cube. Even a handful of Jarrians, who still lingered behind as they slowly returned to their ship, couldn't help but stop to watch.

The Constructicon leader nodded at Soundwave, and then prompted his team mate. "Mixmaster?"

Immediately, the chemist transformed into his mixer alt mode and positioned himself so that the outlet from his mixer tank was directly over the cube. A moment later, pink, velvety fuel began to pour out of his chute and straight into the cube. When it was completely filled, he stopped and transformed back into robot mode. "It's one hundred percent pure energon – made just this morning," he explained delightedly to a very bewildered crowd of onlookers. As he did so, Scrapper picked up the large cube and held it out to Sentinel Prime.

"Take it. We have more than enough energon for you and your Autobots in Iacon to avoid stasis – at least until you can secure an alternative source of crystals," Megatron prompted, as Sentinel continued to stare at the cube in Scrapper's hands while he slowly reached out to take it.

"It might be weeks before we are able to come across another opportunity for a full shipment… perhaps even months!" Sentinel began, still frustrated despite the small gift. "What do you expect us to do in the meantime?"

"I am willing to send you more of this energon, until then – so long as you can promise us that our planet's natural resources, including all the cybertonium, remains under Cybertronian control, of course," Megatron replied, making sure that Sentinel understood his terms. "So, do we have a deal, Sentinel Prime?"

"I…" Sentinel was about to protest, claiming that he had no authority to sanction any such deal with him, but then he reconsidered. As Prime Commander of the Autobot army and carrier of the Matrix of Leadership he did, in fact, possess executive powers under Cybertronian military law, which allowed him to take any emergency action against any foreign threat, as he deemed necessary. A potential invasion by outside forces such as the Jarrians, brought on by an imminent shutdown, could certainly be construed as a foreign threat. If the Council didn't like his decision, then they would need to prove his incompetence in a public trial, a process which they would be unwilling to instigate considering the unlikelihood of an outcome in their favor. "Very well, then. We have a deal."

"Excellent. I will have more energon delivered to you tomorrow." Megatron gave him a final nod. As he turned to leave, Sentinel called out after him.

"Wait – how on Cybertron were you able to procure this energon?"

Megatron paused for a moment. "That information must remain with us. I am sure you can appreciate the reasoning behind my precaution, Sentinel Prime," he replied, before walking away.

One week later, Starscream stood just inside the door to one of the storage rooms, appraising their ever-increasing pile of energon cubes with satisfaction. Their work in the lab had turned out to be far more significant than he'd ever imagined, not only for the Decepticons, but for the entire planet as well.

"At our current rate of production, we will never need to worry about another energy shortage again."

The seeker was startled from his thoughts; he had not realized that Megatron had been standing behind him. When he turned to acknowledge the Decepticon leader, he saw that Scrapper, Mixmaster, Hook, Soundwave and Onslaught were also present, admiring their stockpile.

"Yes, we have done well," Starscream said after a long pause. "And to think, none of this would have been possible had it not been for Scavenger's ormus crystals, and a little Decepticon ingenuity," he contemplated.

"Speaking of Decepticon ingenuity, that neutron bomb of yours was magnificent, Screamer," Onslaught said, ribbing him. The bemused look he received from the Air Commander made them all laugh.

"What can I say? It served its purpose," Starscream replied smugly, then gave them a smirk. He would probably never live it down.

"It sure was one crazy idea, but it was brilliant – I've got to admit," Onslaught conceded.

"I still can't believe the Autobots fell for it," Hook said, shaking his head in amusement.

The activity in Iacon Central slowly but surely returned to normal, the city saved from a devastating fuel shortage thanks to the Decepticons' new source of energon. It would take some time, however, before the majority of Cybertron's regions and city-states could fully recover, as energy to spare gradually became available to those locations according to each area's level of priority. Meanwhile, the Autobot-controlled industrial and military zones were the first to become fully operational, since they were considered to be areas of highest importance. Furthermore, whilst many of the planet's inhabitants had already been placed into stasis, Autobot Command was not in any hurry to order their reawakening – all "non-essential civilians", as they put it, could wait. Of course, with their own independent and – to the Autobots, at least – mysterious source of energon, the Decepticons in Kolkular were the only exception.

When Sentinel had informed Cybertron Command via Proteus of his decision to officially annul the inter-planetary agreement the Autobots had made with the Jarrians and Darosians in favor of accepting Megatron's terms, the Elders were beyond livid. However, Sentinel had been prepared for such a response.

Alone inside the control room of Iacon's Command Center, he sat back in his chair, steepling his fingers in thought as he replayed in his mind the message that Proteus had just conveyed to him from the ruling elite.

"They want these Decepticons stopped," Proteus had told him. "The High Council cannot have their authority challenged by some rogue group." He had leaned over Sentinel's station, one hand placed firmly upon the control panel. "The law must be enforced! Without proper rulership, our society will fall apart, and chaos will be the result, or worse – this could lead to civil war. Do you really want to have that on your conscience?"

Sentinel had avoided his gaze. If the Elders had something they wanted to say to him, they could do so without the messenger. Regardless, he would stand by his decision. "We have always had Destron rebels to contend with – why should this particular group be of such a concern to you now?" he had asked, though he'd already known the answer.

Proteus had become tight-lipped on that. "Oh, and one more thing… you have been instructed to seize their new source of energon – make sure it's under Autobot control. We can't afford to have it in the wrong hands," he'd replied simply, walking out before Sentinel could ask him how in the Pits they expected him to do such a thing when their own energy needs depended upon the very same group they sought to bring down…

He had not known it then, but his question was about to be answered.

His advisor appeared at the entrance to the control room, and he looked up. "What is it, Prowl?"

"Sir, we've just received an unscheduled delivery. What do you want me to do with it?"

Sentinel leaned forwards, looking back at him in puzzlement. "What kind of delivery? Energon cubes?" Megatron had already sent them a generous truck-load earlier in the week, just as he had promised, so Sentinel couldn't imagine why the Decepticons would be sending more so soon.

"No," Prowl responded, and then hesitated. He seemed to be a little unnerved. "It's… sir, it's a container load of energon crystals."

The Prime stood up suddenly and rushed over to the senior Autobot. "What?" He began to lead the way quickly down the hallway and then down to the ground floor of the Command Center. "Who could have sent us energon crystals?"

Again, Prowl replied in the negative. "I'm not sure, sir. They're not from–"

He was stopped short as Sentinel spun around to face him, grabbing hold of his upper arms with both hands. "Who, Prowl? Who has sent us crystals?" he demanded impatiently. It should have been good news, he knew, but something about it just didn't feel right. Had the Jarrians changed their minds concerning Proteus' original agreement, demanding that it be enforced? Perhaps they planned to take control of Cybertron by force, this time with a larger fleet and a far greater army?

"It arrived via our main space port on an unknown cruiser." Prowl paused, unsure of what else he could tell him. "I can contact the flight center, see if I can get a positive i.d. on the owner of the cruiser," he offered after a moment.

But Sentinel shook his head, releasing his grip on Prowl. "No, don't bother. You won't find it," he stated with certainty before motioning for the other to keep pace with him, as he continued to make his way outside.

"Prime?" Prowl asked, perplexed. "I'm not following."

The precious cargo was waiting in an unmarked transport container just outside the Command Center, simply left there as if it were nothing more than a container loaded with construction off-cuts. When Sentinel released the latch to open the container door and examine the contents, he was momentarily taken aback by the large amount of crystals stashed neatly inside – in total, there must have been over one hundred thousand large cases full.

He gave an inaudible sigh, and then slammed the door closed again, turning to Prowl. "Get these inside," he ordered simply, and began to leave.

"Prime!" Prowl called out after him, more confused than ever. "It's against regular procedure to accept unmarked–"

However, he was quickly cut off by the Prime Commander, who waved a hand dismissively in the air at him. "Just do it!" he commanded impatiently, before disappearing back inside the Command Center.

For the Decepticons, the end to the energy crisis heralded the beginning of a new and prosperous era, one in which the endless struggle for survival, and the fight to become a distinct political and military entity in their own right, would gradually give way to new scientific discoveries and technological innovation, enhanced space exploration, and the continually unfolding expansion of what was eventually to become the great Decepticon Empire.

The vision of a much brighter future for all, which the Decepticons offered – a future in which independence and freedom from all forms of oppression were both fiercely defended and highly valued – would draw in many new recruits over the following weeks and beyond, though even with their ever-increasing and very busy schedules, the senior ranking Decepticons always made the effort to spend time together every week, enjoying energon breaks whilst discussing the latest planetary current events, or sharing all the details of their recent missions. These regular get-togethers would become a revered aspect of the Decepticon lifestyle, a token of the mutual trust and camaraderie that continued to grow strong among them – and a way to honor and acknowledge the unique sense of pride, and of accomplishment and connectedness, they all shared.

That evening, Swindle was analyzing a data pad when Onslaught joined him, taking a seat at one of the tables amidst a crowded and noisy common room.

"Must be intriguing," the Combation leader stated.

"Huh?" the munitions expert reacted, startled, and looked up. "Oh. Hi, Ons."

"Whatever it is you're studying there – must be intriguing," Onslaught clarified, leaning over to take a better look. The data on the display looked foreign to him – a bunch of numbers and graphs with values that were continually updating.

Swindle showed him the data pad. "Yeah, I guess you could say that." He glanced around and noticed that Megatron had just entered the common with Starscream and Soundwave. When they met his gaze, he waved for them all to join him. "Hey, check this out," he said, handing Megatron the data pad. The Decepticon leader took one look at it and then nodded, before showing the hand-held device to Starscream and Soundwave. Then he handed it back to Swindle.

"It looks like we've avoided a market crash – Cybertron would be in a far worse position right now had the Jarrians gotten what they wanted," Megatron said.

"Market crash? What's he talking about, Swin?" Onslaught asked perplexed, looking at his team mate with curiosity.

"The CredEx market," Swindle explained. He pointed to an increasing line graph on the data pad screen. "See – the value of our cybertonium has gone through the ceiling over the past week, yet the shanix has remained relatively stable – if anything, it's actually increased in value."

Onslaught looked at him as though he were speaking in ancient Cybertronian. He rubbed the back of his helm in thought. "That's a good thing, right?" he asked uncertainly. Financial market analytics was not one of his strong points.

Swindle nodded. "Yeah, it is. Like Megatron said, if the Jarrians had gained controlling interest of our cybertonium, they would have made a fortune on the inter-galactic exchange simply by limiting its availability, while also raising its price–"

"Which, in turn, would have destabilized our economy," Onslaught concluded, suddenly catching on and seeing the larger picture, as well as the wider repercussions that would have resulted thanks to an economic disaster of that magnitude. Utter chaos, not unlike the one that had occurred due to the recent threat of a planet-wide shutdown.

"That's right – if not collapsed it entirely," Swindle confirmed.

"Maybe that's what they were after all along?" Starscream suggested. "Collapsing our economy would have certainly made an invasion much easier."

"I wouldn't rule out the possibility," Megatron agreed.

"Still, there's something that bothers me more, though," Onslaught pondered.

"What's that?" Starscream asked.

"The fact that the Autobots never even saw a potential problem in the first place. I mean, they were willing to hand over our cybertonium, just like that. It doesn't make sense, when you think about it – unless, of course, they actually wanted an invasion. I don't generally agree with the way they do things or anything, but I wouldn't go so far as to believe that about 'em." The table fell quiet for a moment, realizing that he'd raised a valid point.

Then Megatron spoke up, selecting his words carefully. "You are correct – it doesn't make sense… that is, until you consider the nature of those who are in charge."

They all looked back at him inquisitively, and then recalled the conversation they'd had with the Decepticon leader over a week ago.

"You mean… the Overlords, right?" Onslaught said in reflection. He received no verbal response, only a nod of acknowledgement.

"Speaking of the Autobots, I have just received a communication request from Iacon," Soundwave said, his unusually synthesized voice cutting into their conversation. He turned to the silver and black mech beside him. "They wish to speak with you, Megatron."

Megatron hesitated, glancing at the gathered Decepticons. He had been looking forward to spending the rest of the evening enjoying their company, without any unwanted interruptions. "Very well. Let's see what they have to say."

It was Prowl this time, rather than the Prime himself, who appeared on their communications room visual display. His message was short.

"Megatron, this is Prowl from Autobot Headquarters," the black and white mech began. Once he had the Decepticon leader's full attention, he cleared his vocal processor, ignoring the other Decepticons also present as they all focused their attention upon the view screen, waiting expectantly for him to continue. "Sentinel Prime wishes to thank you for all the energon that you have supplied us with in recent days." He paused, looking a little uncomfortable. "However… he is pleased to inform you that, at least for the foreseeable future, we have no need of any further deliveries. That is all."

Prowl's message, though straightforward enough, left Megatron feeling a little doubtful. "May I enquire as to why?"

Sentinel's advisor grimaced. He was about to say something in response, but then seemed to change his mind and released a soft sigh. "We have received a very large quantity of crystals… from an anonymous donor," he said, glancing off screen and offering no further explanation.

Megatron noted his body language, and gave Prowl a nod. "Understood," he said, and pressed a button on the communications terminal. The screen went blank.

"A large quantity of crystals from an anonymous donor? But – the energy crisis – then, it was… it was set up?" Starscream uttered in realization as Megatron turned away from the comms station to face them.

Indeed, why had this anonymous donor waited until Cybertron had reached the point of an imminent shutdown before offering the Autobots the much-needed crystals?

But the Decepticon leader had no sure answers for them. Instead, he rested an encouraging hand upon the Air Commander's back as he walked past him on his way out of the room. "It seems the problem was never an energy shortage, Starscream," Megatron replied, "but rather an imbalance of power."