Autobot Base. Late Cycle.

The alarm had long since died down. A strange, heavy silence hung over the base—not a battle-like silence, not a calm one. The kind that comes before bad news.

The cameras on the outskirts of the city had recorded something a few cycles ago that turned everything upside down.

A clear recording appeared on the holographic screens.

Megatron. And next to him—you.

Your figure. Your armor. Your gait. Even the microscopic movements of your head, uniquely yours.

The recording showed you standing opposite each other. How you exchanged a few words—silently. How, after that, you went your separate ways.

That same cycle… you were indeed absent from the base.

Later. The base's hangars.

You enter the hangar, not yet knowing what awaits you.

And you stop.

Before you stands more than just your team.

Next to Optimus stand figures who appear only when the situation is more serious than a localized threat.

Ultra Magnus. Sentinel Prime. Jazz—tense, unusually silent. Several elite Cybertronian soldiers.

You take a half-step forward—and freeze.

The air seems to thicken.

Bulkhead frowns, slumping his shoulders. Bumblebee tilts his head slightly, as if trying to comprehend what's going on. Ratchet stops saying anything—he just stares. Prowl… his visors widen slightly. He immediately senses that something is wrong.

You glance from one face to the other.

"...What's going on?"

Ultra Magnus steps forward. His voice is even. Too formal.

"Where have you been the last few cycles?"

You blink.

Calmly. Unprotected. Without aggression.

"On reconnaissance in the eastern sector. Checking for residual Energon signals. I was about to report."

A brief pause.

You frown slightly.

"Why are the Autobot elite here?"

Sentinel Prime steps forward before Magnus. His expression is hard, suspicious.

"Don't pretend you don't understand what I'm talking about."

His gaze is literally piercing.

Optimus raises his palm, a restraining gesture. His voice is low and heavy.

"Cameras on the outskirts of the city have captured you."

"Along with Megatron."

The words fall like metal to the floor.

Silence.

Bumblebee rises sharply on his toes, as if about to say something, but remains silent.

Jazz crosses his arms, tense but not hostile.

Prowl takes a half-step forward.

"That's impossible," — he says harshly. — "She would never—"

Sentinel interrupts sharply:

"The cameras don't lie."

The footage reappears on the screen next to you.

You. Megatron. That very moment.

You feel Prowl's gaze return to you. It's not accusatory. It's conflicting. Logic versus spark.

You take a step forward.

"It wasn't me."

Precisely. Clearly.

"I never met Megatron. Not on the outskirts, not anywhere else."

Ultra Magnus watches intently.

"Then how do you explain this?"

You open your mouth—to answer.

And at that moment, Sentinel Prime gestures to the soldiers.

A metallic click.

One of the elite soldiers takes a step toward you.

Prowl tenses sharply.

"Sentinel, wait—"

But it's too late.

The cold metal of the handcuffs snaps onto your wrists.

The sound echoes throughout the hangar—too loud. Too final.

Prowl freezes. His visors widen even further.

Optimus steps forward.

"It's a precaution," — Ultra Magnus says. — "Until the circumstances are clarified."

You stand there, handcuffed.

Among your team.

Among those who trusted you.