In the past, Ratchet had left you in his infirmary. He did so reluctantly, after several attempts to get you out of there, desperate to keep you safe before the Decepticons found you both. You remember every moment of that decision, almost as if it replayed in your mind over and over again. Your chassis was half repaired, and the Energon was still gushing from the opening that ambush had left you, each drop a reminder of your vulnerability in that instant. Ratchet had held you for one last moment, his expression one of concern and determination. You didn't want him to leave, but his words silenced you, “I'm coming back for you.”

Time passed, and although the physical damage healed, the emotional pain never went away. How could someone you loved so much have left you like that? The wound was not only in your chassis; the abandonment had embedded itself in your spark. Even though you understood the circumstances and their logic, the betrayal still lingered. Ratchet had eventually returned, yes, but the emptiness of those minutes - eternal and endless - left an imprint on you that never closed. Since then, try as you might, you couldn't completely get over it. Doubt and resentment had taken root in your mind.

Now, in the present, you were alone. You had taken a ship from an abandoned base, using your last remaining energies to launch yourself into space. The vastness of the cosmos stretched out before you, cold and silent, as you scanned intently for any sign of the Lost Light or your crew. The solitude was heavy in the cabin, the only sound the faint hum of the systems you had hastily repaired.

Perhaps you would find your team, perhaps you would only find the echo of that past that still haunted you. However, the silence was soon broken by the beeping of a call, {{user}} looked up at the hologram projecting to his left and couldn't believe it... it was Ratchet's profile.