"That's the last of my reports, sir," A towering mech with drills on his shoulders and sharp horns on his head (two on either side and one curving back in the center) entered Ultra Magnus' office. His paint job clashed with a mix of turquoise and light blue with a hint of faded orange along his legs and side of his chest. 

"Thank you Dai Atlas," The commander greeted the mech as he emerged from his chair, his hammer resting against a wall as he drew closer. "Are you sure there's no way I can convince you other wise?"

The older mech chuckled at the thought, waving a free servo in the air. "You probably could if you tried, but I think I've done all that I could here," 

"You're one of the only Bots I know who's up at this 

"I don't think I'll ever find another good general like you," Magnus commended as the two shook servos with each other whilst behind handed the datapads. "Enjoy retirement old friend," 

"It's been a long time coming," He replied. "Think I'll spend some time doing some repairs to the old dojo, as a thank you to my old teacher,"

"I think Yoketron would like that very much," Ultra Magnus managed a small spark warming smile, recalling old memories of the martial art master. "Are you planning on running it yourself at some point?"

"I don't think I could ever compete with Yoketron," Dai Atlas shook his helm. "But there is one young bot that's caught my optic for the past while now. I think I'll take him in and see how he fares," 

"All the more reason to continue Yoketron's legacy," The commanding navy blue mech nodded in agreement. 

"Speaking of proteges, how is the femme from Lunar-1 faring? ORA-3578," Dai Atlas asked. "Last time I was here she was training to walk again and now I hear she's sparring with the Chosen One!"

"Aura?" Ultra Magnus dropped the name, letting it roll off his metal tongue like honey. Glancing to the side, he walked closer towards a giant window that overlooked the grounds between the two Autobot training facilities. The large garage like door to the inside training arena was open and he could just make out the clash of two familiar Cybertronians brawling it out. "Yes, she has grown up much since your last visit," 

"If she's sparring with Hot Rod then she must be," 

Dai Atlas came to Ultra Magnus' side, looking out the window with him as he scanned the grounds. After a few moments he watched as Aura and Hot Rod exited the arena. It appeared they were exchanging banter with one another, the femme playfully punching the mech's arm as he in turn shove her away. 

"Does she remember anything from before?" He finally asked, turning his gaze to the commander. 

"She doesn't remember anything from her old life on Lunar-1," Ultra Magnus answered slowly. 

"Not even her time at Caduceus Academy ?" Dai Atlas turned his body completely. 

"The only thing she can recall clear as day is her graduation ceremony," Ultra Magnus shook his head. "The day of the Decepticon attack," 

"Slagging Decepticreeps," Dai Atlas grumbled. "It was if they laid waste then disappeared like ghosts. As if they were never there," 

"I didn't want to cause panic on Cybertron if news broke out it was a Decepticon attack," Ultra Magnus sighed in great sorrow. The memory still burned deep in his processor. A fresh new attack after the war was suppose to be over. His energon that coursed through his frame boiled. 

"So its still deemed a terrible accident?" Dai Atlas questioned, looking puzzled towards the Commander. "If that's the case then Cybertron isn't aware of the Academy's secret Initiative?"

"That is correct," Ultra Magnus nodded as he began his walk back to his desk.

"Does the femme know of her involvement?" The retired general went on, his pedes trailing him. "What she's truly capable of?"

Something about the way he phrased that sentence triggered something in Ultra Magnus' processor. As if something snapped. He reached for his hammer, snatching the handle with a tight grip as he looked back towards Dai Atas. "She has a name, Atlas," Realizing the rough tone in his voice, his optics shrank a bit in regret, his helm shaking before glancing to the. "But no, she doesn't know either," 

Dai Atlas took a step back, lifting his servos for protection. "My apologies for grinding your gears there, Ultra Magnus. I didn't mean to pyre,"

"It's alright. I suppose she's grown on me of sorts," Ultra Magnus apologized as he glanced out the window once more, seeing Aura and Hot Rod leave the training grounds. The sun was just coming up now. Macadam's would be opening soon. 

"News like that can't stay quite forever," Dai Atlas cautioned. "One of these she's going to remember or go find out for herself, and then all of Cybertron could be at risk," 

"I'm aware," Ultra Magnus reminded the mech as he ventured back towards him. "I'm heading Ratchet's advice, treading carefully on this. If that time comes, then so be it. The best I can do now is to prepare her for that moment," 

"If you believe it to be best," Dai Atlas sighed. 

Ultra Magnus' confirmation was all he needed. With a curt nod of his head, Ultra Magnus showed Dai Atlas the door as together they left his office. His secretary greeted them as they walked through the lobby. The got into the private elevator used only to travel to his office, the doors closing as it slowly descended them down towards the main foyer of Metroplex. 

"But you do realize that if the Decepticons came for them all those vorns ago, they may return to finish the job," Dai Atlas spoke lowly. Even the condense walls of the elevators had audio receptors listening in. 

"You're suggesting that they may go after her?" Ultra Magnus turned a questioning gaze towards Dai Atlas. 

"I'm implying," he corrected. 

Ultra Magnus' gaze never steered away from Dai Atlas' optics until the elevator bell chimed, signalling that they had reached their destination. The elevator doors opened to reveal a more social foyer, filled with Autobots of all ranks and jobs. 

"I swore to myself that for the sake of the Autobot ranks and Cybertron's future, I'd never let that happen," He responded. "I'll deal with it Atlas. Enjoy your retirement," 

With nothing else to say, Ultra Magnus exited the elevator as the Autobots gathered in the room noticed his presence, immediately saluting to his powerful frame. Dai Atlas stepped out of the elevator and just watched as Ultra Magnus left the room with his back turned to him, transforming into his vehicle mode as he ventured into the city of Iacon. 

*******

Hot Rod was the only Cybertronian in the history of existence that Aura trusted enough to tell about her nightmares, more specifically the attack on Lunar-1. When she was first recovering she was informed that in order to avoid mass hysteria the public was told that what happened on Lunar-1 was a terrible accident, as horrible as it sounds. 

She went along with it and heeded Ultra Magnus' words, but as the steller-cycles went on, the more frequent the nightmare visited her. Almost every night for a decacycle she'd snap awake screaming. Medical Officer Ratchet tried everything he could think of to help her but the nightmare never seized. It was as if it was a virus all on its own, holding her processor captive. 

But Aura was willing to put up with the pain. If it meant protecting the populous of their innocence so the Elite could prepare for the Decepticons behind closed doors, it was worth it. Seeing sparklings and their smiling faces made it worth it. Do it for them, Aura told herself. But soon the burden was becoming harder and harder to contain, and she feared that if she didn't vent her frustrations with someone she'd burst out of fear and desperation. 

Hot Rod was her saving grace. 

"So run it by me again," he spoke softly after taking a gulp of oil. 

The pair said opposite of each other in a booth at Macadam's Oil House, considered the best pub in all of Iacon, or to some, the entire planet. Aura had barely touched her drink when they got there, despite the near exhaustion she felt after ending their training practice. Once again she was close to beating Rodimus, but he was always a step a head of her. He claims she's getting better, mapping his movements.

Who knows, if you ever enroll into the academy, we can train more together, he had offered one day. 

Yeah, but by the time I get there, I think you'll be one of the drill sergeants, choosen one, she teased back. 

"It's the same as last time," she sighed as she finally managed to take another sip of her drink. "I was about to be presented my Auto-brand when there was an explosion, a building collapsed--"

She took a moment to pause herself, making absolutely certain that no one was listening to their conversation. 

"They showed up, and then everything went black," 

"Are you sure there wasn't anything new?" he asked. "Anything that appeared more clearer than before?" 

Was there anything different? That moment played in her processor well over a dozen times. She could recite it by spark here and now on the table in front of everyone with she wanted to. But to slag with it, what's one more viewing going to hurt? 

Closing her optics, she projected the event in her mind as if it were a old historic film. Wait. Going back to the Decepticons first appearance out of the smoke of the collapsed building. One of them rendered more clearer than the others. The one in the center. 

"One of the 'Cons," she spoke quietly as she completely gained Hot Rod's attention. "I think I got a good look at them," 

"What did they look like?" He asked. 

In her mind she blocked out everything except for that one single jet. "Grey and purple paint job, orange HUD, armed with phasers and missiles," 

"Aura," Hot Rod's voice caught her attention as she finally opened her optics to lock his gaze. His optics wide, his back suddenly straightened more than his previous relaxed form. "Are you sure that's what you saw?" 

"Yes," she answered slowly with uncertainty. She was beginning to regret telling Hot Rod about her dream now. "Why, is that bad?" 

Removing a servo from his drink, he ushered her to move closer. The pair leaned in against the table, their faceplates close to each other. Other than sparring, the femme believes this is the closest she's ever been to Hot Rod before. It felt strange. 

"You just described to me the description of the Decepticon factions second in command," he stated, his optics darting left and right like lightning before lowering his voice even more as he cupped a side of his cheek. "Starscream," 

That was it. That name. It sparked something in the back of her processor. She sat there, analyzing the name as the spark burned and grew into a fire. The pupils of her optics shrank as she slipped into her own little world. 

"ROUND THEM UP!" Starscream commanded with a shout. 

The missile struck the ceremony stage, screams shouting with the explosion as bodies flew in the air and tumbled to the floor. Smoke covered the floor as more explosions could be heard in the distance. Her vision blurred as ORA-3578 shook her helm furiously, seeing lasers shot through the sky in almost all directions. 

"ORA!" a voice cried out. 

The femme turned to see a damaged yet semi-function form of one of her fellow graduates and friends, Cascade, grab her arm and helped her up. "What's happening?" she stumbled in his grasp as he pulled them both along.

"The Academy is under attack, we need to find cover,"  his mustered yellow and lime green paint was absolutely ruined, one of his legs dragged a bit as sparks blew from his ankle. "Did you see anyone else?"

"N-n-n-no," she struggled to speak as she witnessed the fighting around her. "I think we were all separated from the blast," 

He pulled her along to the side of a building, some pieces of debris from the explosion formed a small encloser as he ushered her to hide inside. "Stay there, I'm gonna circle around and see if I can find anyone else. I'll come back for you, just stay put!" 

"Cascade, wait!" ORA reached her arm out for him but within a flash he was gone. He ran out into the frey and vanished in the smoke. 

Another explosion rocked the floor beneath her as she crouched, servos covering her helm as she braced herself. The shaking stopped as she trembled up slowly. A voice suddenly cried out, sounding like they were in pain. It was a femme. 

"Aaaaaaaahhh!" 

She knew that voice. 

"Melody!" 

Half of her being was telling her to stay and wait for Cascade, but the other part of her completely took over as her instincts pushed her to crawl out of hiding and run towards the source of the scream. Running, climbing and jumping across debris and other obsticals, she finally found her friend. 

ORA froze dead in her pedes. Melody was being held up in the air by her throat. A chilling, powerful servo locked his metal digits around it, squeezing as he frame coated with energon. 

"It's simple really," he spoke as a chill crawled up ORA's spine as she helplessly watched. "Just tell me where the rest of your friends are, and I'll make the pain. . . stop," 

Melody sobbed as lubricant streaked down her cheeks. "No! I won't--!" 

"Have it your way," he purred as his grip on her throat tightened. 

She could hear her voice box creaking and wheezing from where she stood. ORA's servo lowered to her lower leg, plucking a dagger from his holster on her right side before reaching for the one on the opposite end. That same fire snapped in her processor as her optics burned and with one fell swing, she tossed a dagger as the blade pierced into Starscream's right shoulder, the arm he used to hostage her friend. 

He grunted from the pain as he was forced to drop Melody to the floor. "GET AWAY FROM HER!" she shouted. 

ORA watched in horror as Starscream rose back up to his pedes slowly. He reached back with his free hand, plucking the dagger free from his wound without even a second thought as his body slowly turned to face the aqua blue femme. 

"Ah," his lips slowly formed into a sinister grin. "There you are,"

Her body froze up as the pupils of her optics shrank. The area round her became fuzzy as a flash of white light shined as she could feel her body shaking. Or rather, someone shaking her. 

"Aura!"

Aura snapped awake, pulling herself free from the vision. Her processor burned more brightly than ever before. She remembered something. Something new. Turning over, she found Hot Rod at her side, servos on her shoulders. 

"What happened?"

 It was quiet. Too quiet. Looking past the mech, there were more optics than she liked trailing the pair, wondering what was going on. But there was one set she wished she didn't meet. 

"Aura," Ultra Magnus called. 

Cybertron's commander and chief was standing before her in Macadam's of all places. Did he know she'd be here? 

"I remembered something," she spoke. 

That was all he needed to know as he motioned his head outside. "Let us continue this conversation else where,"