A metal table in the center of the hangar was littered with colorful cards. Soft spotlights flickered on the walls, and cooling fans hummed somewhere in the corner — even the machines needed a rest after a mission.

Bumblebee laughed loudly, tossing another card onto the pile, the screen on his chest flashing green.

"Uno!" — he squeaked through his modulator, eliciting a collective groan from the others.

"Oh, come on, Bee," — Ratchet grumbled, fanning the cards.

"You're clearly cheating."

"I'm not cheating!" — flashed the screen, and Bumblebee stuck his tongue out at him, his headlights flashing comically.

"I'm telling you, you're cheating," — Ratchet muttered.

"You got Uno suspiciously fast last time, too."

"Maybe he's just lucky," — Optimus interjected with a slight smile, not even looking up from his cards. His massive fingers held them carefully, with the same imperturbable air he usually had when holding a weapon.

You couldn't help but laugh softly.

And just as you were about to put the card down, you blinked.

One moment. And the world seemed to shake.

Behind Optimus — where just a moment ago there had been only a shadow from a spotlight — stood Sentinel Prime.

His tall silhouette was almost transparent, but every line of his armor, every familiar curve of his shield stood out painfully clearly. His optics were cold, full of fury and... resentment. He looked at Optimus with the same expression he had frozen in that last moment, before the sword sliced through his neck.

Your breath caught. Something in your chest seemed to tighten.

No.. No, it can't be.

You shook your head, forcing yourself to exhale. "I imagined it." Probably just fatigue.

Your fingers trembled slightly as you drew a new card. You glanced at Bumblebee, and at that very moment, a second shadow flickered behind him. Jazz.

Cheerful, bold, radiant, as if he'd returned from that distant day when everything had collapsed. He stood with his hands behind his back, grinning broadly, watching Bee play with the cards. You froze, a memory flashing in your head, the impact, the scream, the flying pieces, the echoing silence after death.

You closed your eyes.

Goosebumps ran down the back of your neck. Just a vision. Just... a memory.

"Everything alright?" — Ratchet asked quietly, noticing how you tensed.

You nodded quickly, too sharply.

"Y-yes, everything's fine. Just lost in thought."

He frowned, but said nothing.

You placed a card.

"Skip, Optimus."

He exhaled through his filters and looked at you with barely perceptible irritation.

"Again?" — he asked calmly, but his gaze grew more intent.

He saw that you weren't just tired. Your gaze was... empty. Frightened.

"Is something wrong?" — he asked, a little quieter.

You looked up, and everything collapsed again.

Four figures now stood behind him. Their images were translucent, as if woven from light and dust.

On the left was Solus Prime, tall and dazzlingly beautiful, with smooth armor lines like liquid silver.

"This is what our kind has come to.. A Prime plays human games. Where is honor? Where is duty?"

Vector Prime stood next to her, his hands clasped behind his back, smiling softly.

"Solus, don't be so stern. Even Primes have the right to rest."

Next, Alpha Trion, the eldest, with long crystalline lines on his face, nodded with a hint of sadness.

"Sometimes rest is the best way to remember what we fought for."

And behind them, Nexus Prime, sly, his armor shimmering with blue light, chuckled.

"Ha, Uno! Humans are brilliant. I would gladly play a game."

You watched, unable to move. They were so.. alive. Real. Their voices did not sound like an echo, but close by, in the air.

And suddenly near your shoulder, to the right an exhalation. Cold, old, like the sands of time.

You turned around, and froze.

Beside you stood Prima, the first of the Primes. His armor, faded and ancient, glowed with a faint golden light. There is curiosity in his gaze.

"You hear us.. you see us.. How did you do this, child?"