The main basis for this was Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogy: Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, and The Last Command. In that the Rebels have won and formed the New Republic but Thrawn unites the Imperials and begins pushing to take back the Empire.
In my story the Autobots and humans have won and killed Megatron in the process. Since humans were never great at fighting Transformers, I made them good at building starships that help the Autobots defeat the Decepticons in space.
Not long after the Autobots and humans win, some humans start feeling like the Autobots are conquerors, not liberators. And they start working to drive the Autobots from the planet by staging riots that turn violent. And they work in secret to build essentially Veritechs, planes that transform into giant robots that look very much like Jetfire.
There were a couple of other things going on too. Optimus Prime stepped down as leader after the war and there was an election for a new leader that's won by Hot Rod. Except Hot Rod and some other Autobots were infected with a virus during the war and so he's not really very stable. Optimus has meanwhile gone off on a trip to explore the far reaches of space, where he and his escort find some new source of energy.
There are some Decepticons left that are reunited by Megatron's secret consort, who during the war was a secret agent working with Jetfire on a way to create new sparks sort of like human breeding. They were successful in creating their own "daughter," but the project got shut down before they could try to do it again.
The consort along with Bugly and some other lesser characters I liked bring the remnants of the Decepticons back together. A crux of their plan is to find a new energy source. And it happens that the consort's "daughter" is the one who was with Optimus and tells her mother about what they found.
When the first story ended there were still a lot of moving pieces for sequels. But like The Skyfire Adventures I just didn't have time and energy with college and working part-time. And there wasn't a big response to the first one. So I wrote a prologue and maybe a couple of chapters of the sequel but then didn't get any farther.
Here's a description I wrote for the second story that was supposed to be called Spoils of War:
Spoils of War is the sequel to Transformers: Xenophobia and picks up about two weeks later. In this Transformers universe the humans and Autobots, victorious over the Decepticons, have been divided by racial hatred and paranoia. The Decepticons, led by the evil consort of Megatron, Omitron, are rebuilding an army and are preparing to restore the Decepticon Empire to glory. Now a wormhole to another galaxy has been discovered. More importantly, this galaxy contains a large supply of nucleon, a powerful, but unstable energy source. Now the humans, Autobots, and Decepticons race to be the first to get the nucleon and harness its power. To the victor will go...The Spoils of War!What was supposed to happen in the second book was that everyone would race to get the nucleon. And of course no one trusts each other so there'd be some big fight between Autobots, Decepticons, and humans. Meanwhile Jetfire has been captured by a race of Transformers who control the nucleon. He would try to escape and warn everyone about the real threat.
In the third book then the Autobots, Decepticons, and humans have to band together to fight the alien Transformers and their nucleon-powered weapons. Eventually some would die and others would live. I have no idea anymore about who would live or die, but it'd be epic!
Like everything from that time it's not great in terms of grammar, but I think it's a fun story. Better than anything Michael Bay's movies did. It'd be nice to finish it someday, but what would be the point? It's just a fanfic, so there wouldn't be money.
Here's the 3500-ish words of the Prologue. Try to ignore the bad writing.
Prologue
A single white dwarf star
brightened the murky blackness of the space all around the small courier ship.
Camshaft saw the system’s single planet in the viewscreen and called up
information on the system. Billions of years ago it had been as hospitable as the
Solar System, probably possessing multiple worlds. However, the medium-size
star had devoured all but one as it grew into a red giant. Eventually the star
had been unable to support its size and contracted into a small, hot white
dwarf. The only remaining world was at the outer edge of the system and
careened along a chaotic orbit due to the loss of gravity from the star’s
shrinkage. Halfway between the star and its satellite was what Camshaft was
interested in: a large platform that was a Vulcan-class engineering station.
"Red Wing, this is Vulcan, we
have you on our sensors and you are cleared to dock," the platform called
to Camshaft’s ship. Beside him, the young Autobot pilot of the ship named
Rapido grunted.
"I don’t see why we are out in
the middle of nowhere to rendezvous with an engineering station," Rapido
complained.
"It may not look like much
right now, but eventually this will be the site of the Autobot’s greatest
triumph," Camshaft replied.
"What do you mean?"
"You’ll find out soon enough."
Rapido and Camshaft were the only two on board the ship which had left their
home of Cybertron over a week ago. The courier ship docked with the station and
the airlock mated with that of the platform and then opened. Camshaft hurriedly
left the ship, leaving Rapido to shut it down. Just inside the airlock he met
two of his comrades: Downshift and Grapple.
"Nice hiding place,"
Camshaft commented. "Nothing worthwhile anywhere nearby to attract
attention. Just how did you get this monstrosity out here, though?"
Grapple, Cybertron’s premiere
architect, smiled. "The Vulcan-class platforms were meant to be portable
so they could be moved if an enemy broke through the lines and discovered them.
Thus they’re able to transform into a crude starship complete with a
hyperdrive."
"I see," Camshaft replied
as they walked down dark, narrow corridors towards the operations center of the
station. He looked over at Downshift and asked, "How’d you get it here?
These things are obviously pretty valuable."
"Not as much as you might
think. The mobile platforms were decommissioned after the war because there
wasn’t a need for production away from an orbital shipyards. Grapple and I got
this one liberated from a storehouse with some help from a few friends. We
created some papers to cover our tracks that show that this unit was scrapped
for parts and its remains sent to Junkion."
The three Autobots got in an
elevator that took them up to the operations center of the station. It was a
large, diamond-shaped room with a holographic operations table on the left
side, various computer terminals on the right, and the helm and propulsion
stations at the front for when the station needed to move. Downshift led them
to the left side and they sat down at a conference table. Camshaft immediately
asked, "So, what’s your status?"
Downshift, in command of the
station, replied, "We’re nearly operational. Most of the heavy machinery
is on-line and the rest will be in a day. Grapple’s engineering teams arrived
yesterday and are going over the plans."
Grapple nodded and continued,
"We estimate five years minimum for this project to be completed. With all
of Cybertron’s resources it would take at least three, but since we’re doing
this in secret we aren’t going to have the ‘Bots and materials to do this
quickly."
"That’s about what I expected.
I doubt that Optimus’s discovery will remain secret for that long…"
"Camshaft, there's a message
for you. It's sender won't identify itself but indicated that it was
urgent," Rewind, the communications officer of the station, told Camshaft
excitedly.
"Is there somewhere private I
can take this?" He asked Grapple.
"Sure. I'll show you to my
office." Grapple led Camshaft out of the room and up an elevator to a
smaller level which was made up of five offices. Grapple's was at the end of
the corridor and was the largest one. Inside Camshaft saw that it was littered
with plans, technical readouts, and computer disks. A couple of crooked
pictures showed some of Grapple's greatest Cybertronian masterpieces in all
their glory. "Sorry about the mess, I haven't had much time to move in
yet."
"I understand. I shouldn't be
long." Grapple nodded and left. Camshaft sat at his desk and activated the
computer terminal. "This is Camshaft, please identify yourself."
The screen turned from mutely
showing the symbol of the United Cybertronian Government to showing the face of
a human male that was a few years past middle age. "Sorry about the
secrecy, but I didn't want anyone to find out I was calling."
"I sympathize with you,
President Chandler. How is it that you were able to locate me?"
"I just arrived on Avalon and
Captain Hunter told me that some of your people had made contact with him. I
took a chance that you would be here, wherever you are."
"I don't really want to say,
not right now anyway. What can I do for you?"
"As you know, relations with
the UCG since Rodimus took over have been icy. You seem a bit more reasonable,
so I wanted to contact you and see if I could interest you in coming
here."
"I see. What would this
meeting be about?"
"I don't really want to say,
not right now anyway. It has to do with the future of both our peoples."
Camshaft thought for a few moments
and looked at the former president of the Terran Confederation's face. Optimus
Prime had forged an alliance and a friendship with Raymond Chandler and
together they had managed to push the Decepticon menace to the verge of
extinction. If Optimus could trust Chandler, could Camshaft do no less?
"I'll be there in about two weeks. I look forward to meeting you in
person."
"As do I. Safe journey."
The connection ended and Camshaft hurried from Grapple's office. He went down
to the operations center and stopped Rapido just as he was rushing into the
room.
"Get the ship warmed up, we'll
be heading out for Avalon right away."
Rapido sighed, "I just got the
ship powered down. What's this Avalon place anyway?"
"It's a mystical paradise from
human mythology, but more importantly it's where the human defectors are
building a new colony," Camshaft replied impatiently.
"Oh. Do we have the
coordinates in the computer?"
"Never mind that, I'll get
them before I leave." Rapido nodded and left slowly. Camshaft turned and
found Downshift and Grapple.
"What was that about?"
Downshift asked.
"President Chandler called me
and asked for a meeting on Avalon. I'll be leaving right away to meet with
him."
"I wonder what he wants?"
Grapple questioned.
"He said it was important to
both our races. I guess I'll find out. I should be back in a couple of months
to see how you're doing."
"I'll look forward to
it," Downshift replied and shook his friend's hand. Camshaft smiled and left,
hoping that this wasn't the last time he would see his friends again.
***
"We're coming up on the
wormhole," Chromedome reported on board the Striking Eagle.
"Any signs of the two ships
assigned to guarding it?" Arcee, the cruiser's captain asked nervously.
"Nothing conclusive, but some
signs of wreckage."
"Any ion trails?"
"Nothing."
"The 'Cons must have covered
their tracks." Arcee stood up and thought for a moment. "All right,
take us through the wormhole. As soon as we're through, put shields up and
ready all weapons. Be sure to call Landmine and tell him to have the Raptors
ready to go."
"Yes, sir." Chromedome
replied. Arcee knew that going through the wormhole was dangerous, especially
since there could be Decepticons on the other side. Optimus Prime had assigned
two ships to guard the wormhole, and since neither was present, she had to
assume the Decepticons had taken them out. She resumed her seat and prayed to
the Matrix that she wouldn't be staring down a fleet of Decepticon warships on
the other end of the wormhole.
"Nucleon levels are off the
scale," Bugly reported on the Decepticon frigate Imperium.
"Excellent. Where are the
readings centered?"
"The second planet of the
system."
"Tell the rogues to head for
that world immediately. Once they arrive, they are to transport down to the
surface and begin collecting samples of nucleon crystals as well as securing
the planet."
"What about us?"
"We will wait in orbit until
they are gone. Then we will take their ship and wait for them to return and
protect the planet from any trespassers."
Bugly smiled and sent a message to
the rogue Autobot ship. Ultra Magnus was less than enthusiastic about
abandoning his ship, but cooperated. He knew that the only way that the rogues
could defeat their brethren was to work with Omitron. However, Bugly knew that
it wouldn't be long before the rogues were at the end of their usefulness. With
the construction of about forty new bodies for Decepticon sparks, the rogues
would be a liability once the nucleon was recovered.
There was a flash of green and then
the Striking Eagle was redeposited in normal space. "Report!" Arcee
called out.
"One frigate and one heavily
modified Autobot ship are on a course for the second planet," Red Alert
reported.
"Shields are up, weapons
ready, and Landmine reports that the Aerialbots are on standby if you need
them."
Arcee thought for a moment. The
Striking Eagle was a powerful warship, probably more so than either of the
enemy vessels, but not compared to both. Plus there had to be Decepticons and
rogue Autobots on those ships. If they were after the nucleon then they
probably outnumbered the Raptors and crew. The Decepticons had not detected the
Striking Eagle yet, which meant there was still time to retreat back to Autobot
space.
"Pull us back through the
wormhole. We'll send off a message to Cybertron for reinforcements once we're
through," Arcee commanded.
"Then what?"
"Then we go back after
them."
***
It was yet another unproductive
meeting, Prowl mused. He and several other United Cybertronian Government
leaders were sitting in the main conference room of the central command
building in Iacon. Since Rodimus Prime had taken power, the meetings every three
days had been achieving nothing. Rodimus seemed not to care about anything
other than hunting down Decepticons. He ignored issues about internal matters
like taxes, building projects, and settling disputes between colonies. After
the election, and his failed bid for president, Prowl had taken the job of
monitoring all Cybertronian colonies and informing Rodimus about any problems
on the many worlds in the government's possession. It was a definite step down,
but it kept him within the power structure of the government, which was
critical to helping Camshaft and the others in their secret construction of a
second Ark.
In this meeting Prowl had tried to
alert Rodimus of a possible war between Isis III and Hermes II. Rodimus had
interrupted Prowl in the middle of his explanation and curtly ordered a pair of
UCG ships be deployed to the area and that both colonial governors be removed
from office. Then he had simply moved on with the agenda, half-listening to the
department heads and giving orders without much thought. It seemed that only
when the Decepticons were involved did Rodimus really start to perk up.
"What about our efforts in
locating the Decepticons?" Rodimus asked.
Springer, the Minister of Defense,
was about to answer when the door burst open. An excited courier handed
Springer a message and he frowned. "It looks like we've found the
Decepticons. The Striking Eagle reports that the Decepticons have gone through
a wormhole and are going after a large store of nucleon."
The rest of the room gasped, save
for Rodimus, who looked unmoved. "Order all available ships around
Cybertron to prepare to move out. We'll be leaving as soon as I get
aboard."
"I'll go with you,"
Springer said. Arcee was aboard the Eagle and he wasn't about to let her die
alone out there.
"Excellent. Prowl, you'll be
in charge while we're gone."
Prowl nodded, but objected,
"Sir, isn't leaving Cybertron virtually undefended dangerous?"
"Not as dangerous as
Decepticons having nucleon. It should only be for a month or so, just take some
ships off our borders with the humans and reassign them here." Prowl was
about to protest, but Rodimus was on his feet and leaving the room. Prowl
watched him go and sighed. Only he and Bumblebee, the director of Intelligence,
remained.
"Congratulations,"
Bumblebee said flatly.
"Thanks. What's the situation
on the human border these days?"
"Their ships keep an eye on us
and we keep an eye on them. They haven't made any significant movements lately
or scheduled any exercises near our space. In other words things are as quiet
as they can be."
"What do you think will happen
if I start pulling ships from the line?"
"Probably nothing. The humans
don't want to invade us, they just want to keep us away from them."
"Still, if we leave ourselves
open, they could swallow some of our colonies along the border with no
problem."
"I don't think that's likely,
but it's possible. Still, you heard what Rodimus said."
"I know, I know." Prowl
looked at the table for a few moments and then at his friend. "Bumblebee,
I've known you for a long time, and I know that you're the best in the business
when it comes to intelligence and spy stuff. There's something that I need you
to do, something that is of the utmost importance for all of us."
Bumblebee looked intrigued and
leaned forward in his seat. "What is it?"
"Find Optimus Prime. I know he
doesn't want to be found, but if anyone can locate him, it's you."
"If Prime doesn't want to be
found, then I doubt anything could find him. He gave the Matrix to Hot Rod, he
won't come back and take it from him."
"Maybe not, but I have a bad
feeling we're going to need him here soon. You've seen Rodimus, all he cares
about is finding the Decepticons. It's like he's on some kind of vendetta
because of what they did to him."
Bumblebee frowned, "They did
the same thing to Springer and I, as well as all the rogues, but you don't
understand. That virus or whatever was planted in us made Hot Rod destroy
thousands, maybe even millions of lives. He was in command, he was responsible
for what we all did during the civil war and he knows it. Maybe he is on a
vendetta, maybe he's out to bring the Decepticons to justice, but he isn't
dangerous."
Prowl shook his head, "He's
consumed with rage, so what happens after the last Decepticon has fallen, then
what does he do? That's what I'm worried about and that's why we need Optimus
here. If Rodimus comes back and wants to turn on the humans or even us, Optimus
is the only one who can stop him."
"All right, I'll try, but I
won't promise anything."
"Thank-you." Bumblebee
nodded and left, leaving Prowl all alone in the conference room. These days it
always seemed that he was alone. Kup had retired to some distant colony and
most of his old comrades were either dead or dispersed across the galaxy. Kup
had been right, the Autobot spirit was fading away.
***
"How are you planning on
getting across the border?" Dr. Simon James asked.
The only other occupant of the
small office, General Celia Marshall, smiled. "We're going to use the same
way the Decepticons got in. We'll just go up to this point of the border and
then into the virtually unexplored regions here. The Autobots don't keep ships
in that area because they don't even have any colonies there," Marshall
explained, pointing to locations on a star map.
"What about any Autobot ships
we run into?"
"We'll disable them and leave
them adrift. Command authorized me to destroy them, but I know how you feel
about that."
"Don't disobey orders on my
behalf," James snorted.
"It's not just because of you.
I want to make this as bloodless as possible. We're just to obtain a supply of
nucleon and take it back to Earth, not to provoke a war."
"Good. How long until we
arrive at this wormhole?"
"Two weeks at most. Hopefully
it'll be a quiet two weeks."
"Let's hope so."
"Now then, what about the
Phoenixes?"
"We're ready to go. The pilots
are familiar with the controls and have performed well in the simulators. It
was a little tricky getting them to understand the transformation sequences,
but I think they'll be able to hold their own in a fight."
"Excellent. We'll need them if
something goes wrong, which it probably will. If you ask me it all seems a
little too convenient."
"How so?"
"There hasn't been a sighting
of nucleon in a long time, and now all the sudden we're picking up readings
coming from some wormhole. It sounds like a trap: bait us with the nucleon and
once we walk into it, destroy us."
"No one has the technology to
fabricate wormholes or nucleon. I'm sure it's all a happy coincidence."
"Maybe. Still, we're going to
have to go in prepared, especially if someone else beats us to it. If we
detected the wormhole and nucleon, then it's highly likely someone else did
too."
"Very likely. If the Autobots
are there and are mining nucleon for themselves, what are our orders?"
"I don't know, Command didn't
give any. They don't want us to provoke a war with the Autobots, but they want
the nucleon. We'll just have to try and negotiate a settlement."
"And if that doesn't
work?"
"Then we start a war."
***
It was unlike anything Jetfire had
ever experienced before. The alien ship he had been riding in was more advanced
than anything on Earth or Cybertron. He had woke up only hours ago, but his
scans told him that the walls of his cell were made of a material that was only
an inch thick and yet stronger than even the best Cybertronian alloys. A
machine in the corner of the small room was actually able to synthesize energon
from a mixture of basic elements. The top of the bed was composed of a soft
material that would conform to his body to provide maximum comfort. Whoever his
jailers were they had advanced technology and no wish to harm or torture their
prisoners.
The door to his cell suddenly
opened and a trio of the robotic insectoids that had captured him stood there.
Jetfire took a step forward and demanded, "What do you want with me?"
In perfect Cybertronian the lead
insect replied, "We are taking you to our home. There it will be decided
whether the children of Primus will be terminated or allowed to exist."
"Why do you keep speaking of
the 'children of Primus'? How do you know who he is?"
"I am not allowed to explain
that to you. The Conclave will tell you all that you need to know once we
arrive."
"Then why are you here?"
"We wanted to check on you and
see if you had regained consciousness. We are sorry that we had to damage you,
but we strictly ordered that any children of Primus must be taken alive and to
the Conclave immediately. We were overzealous in our duties."
"Thank-you. Maybe once I meet
this Conclave I can straighten things out. In the meantime, I don't suppose you
can explain how you're able to synthesize energon?"
"Negative. If you are
permitted to live, then perhaps there will be time on the return trip."
"I'm looking forward to
it," Jetfire replied and the door closed. He sighed and sat down on the
bed. Escape had only fleetingly crossed his mind before, but now he knew that
he had to stay. If he didn't meet this Conclave then perhaps all of Cybertron
would be destroyed. He wasn't sure who these aliens were or how they knew about
the Cybertronian god Primus, who had created all Transformers millions of years
ago, but he hoped that he would soon find out. Everything was counting on it.
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