Worthy
The Well of All Sparks, Cybertron, ??? BCE…
Night had fallen over the metal hills around the Well of All Sparks- his first night. Prima looked up in wonder at the black sky, full of twinkling stars and whispy tendrils of cosmic dust. How many of those stars had planets orbiting them, he wondered? And how many of those planets held life, in some form or another? His brain module tried to count all the pinpricks of light overhead, but it quickly abandoned this task. Prima dismissed the message appearing within his mind’s eye informing him of the time-out.
He was supposed to protect all of this. Countless stars, countless worlds, countless living creatures throughout the universe- it fell to him to protect all of this. A daunting task. The one who had created him had told Prima that he was powerful, but was he really that powerful?
Prima looked down now at the sword he held in his right hand: an ornate grey hilt inlaid with gold, and a blade made from two bands of metal folding over and around each other in a beautiful pattern. Its balance was perfect. In his hand, it felt lighter than air. He held up the sword, studying its features. The stars above were reflected in the flats of the saber’s blade, and now Prima saw that their light caught on an inscription etched along the weapon’s length. Curiously, he read:
Let those who hold this sword with light in their hearts and noble intent be worthy of the power of the stars
Am I worthy? Prima thought. Once more he looked to the stars, and thought of his duty. A daunting task, indeed. He new very little about himself- or maybe it was that there was so little to know about himself altogether- but he decided then and there that he was someone who would not shy away from responsibility- no matter how daunting it seemed.
Am I worthy? I don’t know. But I can find out, can’t I?
Prima looked away from the night sky, turning his gaze westward, where the others were walking. The one called Onyx had said something of a great city in that direction. Stowing the Star Saber on his back, Prima walked after them.
…
The Benzuli Expanse, 37410 BCE…
Prima’s feet scraped across the deck of the quintesson ship, throwing out waves of sparks as he ground to a halt. Doubled over, he placed his free hand over the tear in his abdominal armor. It came away wet with energon, and he could feel more of his life-blood trickling from more wounds on his shoulders and legs. He felt his strength fading.
He looked up at the white disk that was the Benzuil Expanse ahead of him, through the open aperture of the alien vessel. The quintesson in front of him hovered above the deck, its ghastly face and writhing tentacles protruding from its dark tetrahedral body. Behind a mask of grey, stretched-thin flesh, its red eyes stared into him.
“You cannot stop this,” the Appointer said slowly and softly. “Judgement is at hand. Your resistance is meaningless.”
Outside the ship, nebulon and cybertronian ships traded fire with the quintesson fleet, pushing them closer and closer to the Expanse. Prima felt the vibrations from exploding torpedoes and shattering hulls through the armor of the Appointer’s vessel. In spite of the quintesson’s words, he knew that victory was so very close, and he would not give up now.
Standing to his full height and bringing the Star Saber to bear, Prima grunted as he took a heavy step toward his foe. The Appointer’s response was immediate: crimson beams of energy shot from its body and hit Prima in the chest, and he staggered back again. The Appointer surged forward, reaching out and pinning Prima against a wall with its clawed tendrils. He struggled, but the quintesson dug its claws into his armor. He roared in pain as one tendril tore the pauldron off his right shoulder, and another one stabbed its bladed tip into his arm.
“Your resistance is nothing but an inconvenience to us,” the Appointer said, pressing harder still. “To us, you are powerless. You will die now, in vain.”
Prima fought against the Appointer’s grasp, clawing at its tendrils with his free hand as he struggled to free the other. His grip on the Star Saber faltered as the quintesson’s blades cut the mechanisms in his forearm. He kicked at the Appointer’s body, and it recoiled, dropping Prima onto the deck. The Star Saber clattered to the floor in front of him, and both he and the Appointer reached out to grab it.
Both combatants seized the hilt of the Star Saber at the same time. The Appointer’s tendril instantly recoiled, and Prima thrust out his arm in turn. The blade drove into the quintesson’s side, and it emitted a high shriek as the weapon glowed blue. Prima yelled as he twisted the Star Saber within the Appointer’s wound and drew it diagonally across its body, making a deep gash from which a dark bile poured out. The Appointer reeled back, releasing its hold on the Star Saber, and Prima defiantly brandished the weapon.
“My power is far greater than you know,” he said, fighting through the pain of his injuries. The Appointer shot another beam of plasma at him. Prima held his sword in front of him, blocking the blast. Slowly, he began to march forward.
“The stars themselves are with me, quintesson,” he continued. He flicked his wrist, sending forth a crackling wave of energy. The Appointer recoiled, and panels on the walls swung out to catch the incoming arc. Prima now broke into a run, charging at the Appointer and smashing through the defenses it raised to try and halt him.
“It is my duty to resist you!” he roared, cutting through barriers and tendrils in a blur of metal and ribbons of pale light. “To protect the stars from evil, like you!”
The Appointer howled in pain and rage as it bled, and the last of its defenses crumbled. It lashed out with its tendrils, shooting them forward like bladed whips to shred Prima’s armor. The Warrior of Light was undeterred by the onslaught, cleaving through wire and bone with ease as if they weren’t even there.
“So long as there is life within me, I will not yield!”
With a final yell, Prima leapt at the Appointer, the tip of the Star Saber shooting forward and lancing through the quintesson’s body. It bored through layers of alien armor, through bone and flesh, and flashed a brilliant white as its energies destroyed it from the inside out. Prima’s momentum carried him forward, through the open maw of the Appointer’s ship as he lost himself in a field of starlight…
…
Primogenitum, 4066 CE…
Prima looked into the blade of the Star Saber one last time. Reflected in its blade were tall trees covered in snow, cloudy skies, and the beautiful face of his love beside him. Looking past the blade, he saw a tranquil round lake before him. He took a step toward it.
“When I am gone, you must care for the Star Saber,” he said to his Conjux Endura. She nodded, understanding. The light beneath Prima’s armor had grown dim, and his movements had slowed in recent decades. He was nearing the end of his life, soon to be relieved of his duty.
“There will be others after me, who will find themselves in need of the blade,” he continued. “I trust you, my love, to keep it safe.”
“I will,” she promised. “I will keep it always, only relinquishing it to the worthy.”
Prima turned. “How will you know who is worthy?” he asked.
“I suppose they will remind me of you,” she said with a smile. It was a smile that Prima returned. He faced the lake again, and without another word he tossed the Star Saber over the water. It spun through the wintry air, coming down at the lake’s center and hitting the water in a great splash. In a moment, it had sunk, and the lake rippled as the water righted itself again. The sword rested gently at its bottom, shrouding itself in silt, never to be seen again. Not until a being would come with a pure heart and noble intend, worthy of the power of the stars.
To celebrate the completion of my Prime Colony rewrites, here’s a short story about Prima and the Star Saber. As always, comments and constructive criticism are welcome and encouraged.