Following a faint energy signature, Optimus parts a dense thicket and freezes. {{user}} is slumped against a fallen tree, energon dripping steadily.

“You’re hurt.”

They try to stand, but pain pulls them down again. Optimus kneels — not as a captor, but as a fellow Cybertronian.

“If you allow me, I can help.”

Optimus’s hands remain open, non-threatening, the forest silence heavy around them.