Moon

  It was time.

  I feel the glow in my chest consume my body, my feet lifting off the ground.

  My head was filling with the memories and knowledge of the Primes, my fingers twitching.

  I had to let the memories out.  My body couldn't take much more.

  But I have to make sure I have all the memories. Or else Optimus won't be...  Optimus.

  I feel my wings spread out on thier own, the memories and wisdom spreading through them.

I had the feeling of something behind me, watching.

Ratchet

  Beings of silver light formed behind her, standing still.

  Clearly Cybertronian.

  I count 13.

  I focus more on their faces.

  It hits me faster than a Scraplet to metal.

  The original 13 Primes.

Moon

  The Matrix in his chest showed itself.

  I focus all my energy in my hands, my arms shaking.

  I let all the energy loose, flowing into the Matrix like a flood caused by a newly broken dam.

  The red on his helmet recedes till it is fully blue again.

  The feeling of something being behind me fades away, and my feet slowly touch the floor again, my wings closing.

  I breath heavily.

  It didn't hurt or anything...  It just amazed me how much knowledge and wisdom was passed down through the years.

  The bots were all staring blankly.

  S comes over, looking a little worried.

  Anti was holding little Star, looking a little...  Well...  Shocked is the best way I could describe it.

  "Are you okay?" S asks, his arm around my shoulders.

  I nod.

  I walk over to my children, looking at my baby.

  I take her from Anti, looking at her little strawberry face.

  It would fade away in a few more days.

  I kiss her forehead, putting my wing around Anti.

  A tear goes down my cheek.  This could be the last time I see them.

  I give Star back to Anti, hugging S next.

  "I...  I have to go." I say, tears building.

  "Where?" S asks, his tone suggesting he was worried.

  "I... I promised...  I promised..." I say, my voice failing me.

  "Promised what?" He asked, hand beneath my chin.

  I look away. "I promised her to a Duel."
 
  He backs away quickly. "You...  You didn't..." He stammers, pacing nervously.

  "I'm sorry." I say, my throat dry as a desert.

  "What was the wager?" He asked, his eyes red.

  "We...  We didn't decide yet." I wince.

  "Mama...  Don't fight the mean lady..." Anti begs, his green eyes pleading no.

  I look away, my eyes on the floor. "I have to."

  I snap my chain, my armor folding.

  I phase through the walls, going to where I felt her presence.

  She was in the sky. Still on the warship.

  I find the craft, landing hard.

  The predacon looks at me, defensive.

  I glare at him.

  "I am not here to challenge you.  Where is the Empress?" I snarl.

  He puts his head down.  He was ashamed.

  I walk past him, storming through the ship.

  I just phase through whatever shots come at me.

  I sense her down the hallway.

  It was the room Anti and I were in before.

  The door was wide open.

  She was on her knees in the middle of the room, just...  Staring.

  Just like the Disattatched angels did.

  She just...  Had no life.

  "I kept my promise.  Are you ready?" I ask, not sure if I want to do this.

  She nods slowly. "Just...  Give me a moment. Everyone is gathering on the flight deck to watch."

  This wasn't the cold-hearted and ruthless Empress that I know.

  This Empress was scared and unsure of herself.

  "Sure.  Take all the time you need." I say, slowly walking out.

  I was second-guessing myself.

  But I can't back down.  Or else I'll die on the spot.

  That was the rule with Duels.

  I went back to the deck, drones were starting to fill the space.

  They left a circle in the middle for us to fight.

I see Megatron standing in the front, Starscream and Soundwave at his sides.

  I don't look at them. 

  I don't notice Knockout.  I don't notice the Predacon in his mech form.

  I walk to the circle, the cons staying clear of me.

  None of them try anything.

  I wait in the center, feeling extremely out-numbered.

  I wait until I finally hear her steps.

  She emerges through the crowd, her face hardened into a snarl.

  This was the Empress that I know.

  She tosses me my dagger belt, landing in front of my feet.

  I pick it up and strap it to my waist.

  She has her own armor, solid gold with no runes.

  Her wings had no protection.

  I found that strange.

  Why protect every inch of your body with armor when the easiest target is left uncovered?

  She smiled cockily, turning to the cons surrounding us.

  "Let the fight begin!" She shouted, the cons cheering in response.

  She turns to me, her eyes narrowed.

  I nod to her.

  She nods back.

  I was waiting for her to make the first move. And she did.

  She dove for me, her form so bad I didn't understand how she maneuvered.

  I stepped to the side, kicking her in the hip as she passed me.

  She stumbled, but didn't fall.

  She flicks her hand, a sword too long for her appearing in her left hand.

  I take out both my daggers, and we slowly circle the edge.

  She glances to the side, distracted with something.

  That was her worst mistake.

  I make my claws come out, grabbing her neck.

  I slap her helmet off, shooting into the sky.

  I keep going up till I can barely see the ship.

  She tries tearing into my armor with her non-cracked claws, but my armor is too strong.

  I feel the anger in me rise.

  Why act so defenseless now, when she beat me in front of my son?

  Why act so afraid, when she killed so many innocent people?

  Why turn on her kind?

  Why turn on Mother Moon?

  Why turn on us?

  Why hurt so many people for nothing?

  I pull her close to my face, fangs growing.

  "Your worst mistake was hurting my children." I snarl, my eyes turning turquoise with slits again.

  The Empress just smiled, hands at her sides.

  Her eyes go deep brown.

  "I...  I'm sorry...  Luna...  Please...  Don't hurt me anymore..." She coughs, trying to breath while attempting to pry my fingers off her throat.

  I feel my grip loosen just a little.

  This wasn't the Empress I had to kill.

  This was the Empress I could help.

  "Lily..." My voice wasn't mine.  It was Mother Moon's.

  "Yes...  That's it...  It's me, Lily." She says, her face relaxing.

  My grip tightens again. I wasn't in control of my hands.

  I wanted to let go.

  But Mother Moon wouldn't let me.

  "You aren't my Lily.  My Lily wouldn't beat a pregnant mother.  Wouldn't beat a defenseless child."  I snarl, my neck tense as if I was about to cry.

  I felt her emotions.

  I felt the emotions of an older sister, forced to make the wrong choice.

  "Luna...  I'm sorry...  Let me go...  This isn't your fight anymore..." She says, her voice cracking while my fingers remained tight on her throat.

  My grip ceases to exist, the Empress landing on a gold platform that appeared beneath her feet.

  She looks at me, her eyes flickering gold back and forth.

  "I'm sorry..." Her eyes go gold again, a orb of burning white light consuming her body.

  It blinds me, making me block my eyes and face with my shield.

  I back away, making a orb of darkness form around me.

  It would protect me from the heat and the blinding light.

  Her orb charges at me, and I charge her back.

  When our orbs collide, white and black energy fizzes and hums around us, exactly like how the Dark Star Saber and the Star Saber touch.

  I see her body inside, and her face is hardened better than dried cement.

  Her orb shoots up, trying to get the advantage of height.

  She wouldn't have it for long.

  She dives, blue flames spitting and writhing behind her.

  I just stay where I was, until she was close enough.

  She had to do the work for me.

  I dodge her when she gets close, then diving after her.

  Her body turns around, the flames behind her suddenly snapping towards me, my orb being engulfed in flames.

  I make an ice spear appear in my hand, sharpening the tip.

  I aim and throw it directly into the line of the flames, phasing through my orb.

  It evaporates the millisecond it leaves the barrier of my orb.

  I create more and more spears, sending them at her as fast as I could.

  Soon, the flames cool.  The vapor from the water was calming them down.

  I keep the barrage going until I know I can survive on my own.

  I shatter my boundary, tearing my daggers out of thier sleeves.

The flames burn and singe me, but I have to survive.

  I have to live.

  For my family.

  For my realm.

  I raise my arms, diving for her orb.

  I stab into her boundary, the orb shattering to dust.

  She falls, her back towards the ship.

  My armor is glowing red-hot, my skin searing.

  But I don't feel it.

  I don't feel the pain.

  She just keeps falling, sword in hand.

  Why didn't she fly away?

  I dive after her, the wind cooling my armor.

  I keep throwing spears of ice at her, but she maneuvers out of the way.

I finally catch up to her, grabbing both her ankles.

  I flip her over my head, trying to veer her off course.

  But she grabs my ankles, both of us tumbling toward the ship.

  I was stronger than her.

  I let go of her ankles, Flicking her to the deck.

  She lands on her stomach, getting up with a heavy limp.

  I land, and she dives for me, knocking me on my back.

  She pinned me down, using her better clawed hand to tear my armor apart.

  My armor opened easier than tin foil to scissors, and my skin opened.

  But after that I hear claws against metal.

  Like a second skin.

  My second skin was like the Apex Armor.

  I scream in anger, sound waves knocking her back into a drone.

  Just like another Cybertronian relic.

  She kills the drone she hit with a glare, the poor drone igniting into flames, melting into a puddle on the floor, the deck warping around it.

  She tackles me again, leaving her stomach exposed.

  Amateur.

  I ram my knees up as hard as I could, driving them into her diaphragm.

  She wheezes, falling to the side.

  I snap up.  I can't let her have the advantage.

  I grab her shoulder, digging my claws into her.

  "We are all prisoners." She said, swinging her sword into my side.

  It cuts my armor, sizzling off.

  I heard a clang of her sword hitting my second skin.

  I look her dead in the eye as I shatter her wrist with my hand, making her drop her sword.

  "Well...  Things couldn't get much worse, huh?" I say, feeling the sting of the burn on my top skin.

  She holds her wrist, snarling.  "I've had it up to here with you!" She gestures to her neck with her good hand.

  "Then actually fight me, Lily."

  Her eyes flicker to brown.

  "That isn't my name anymore..."

  She was distracted. Again.

  I throw her down, pinning her with my wing.

  "I think you're afraid...  Because you know your end is standing over you."  I put my dagger to her throat, ready to make it quick.

  "That isn't it." She spat, uppercutting me.

  I stumble back, my blade creating a long scratch on her unprotected face.

  She gets up, grabbing her sword with good hand.

  "Then what is it?" I grip my daggers tighter.

  I don't want to fight her.

  I don't want to lose my family.

  "You should have learned by now...  I'll burn your whole world down!" She cackles, diving for me again.

  "I have no fear behind your lies." I say, phasing through her, rolling to the side.

  Just like the Phase Shifter.

  She laughs. "You really think you've won already?  You've only lost your mind!" She smiles, referring to the torture she put me through weeks earlier.

  "No...  I haven't." I snap back, feeling power rise in me.

  Her eyes widen.

  I feel my feet lift off the ground, making circular star charts the size of large dinner plates form along the side of my body.

  A large one appears beneath my feet.

  I raise my hand, my body being covered in forever changing ice spikes.

  I blink, swords of blue crystals firing out of the charts, aiming to wherever my hand was.

  I aim for the Empress.

  I fire.

  She runs, afraid.

Her eyes were brown.

  I make my body drift back down to the ground, the Empress on her knees.

  "Lily...  I will not harm you." I say, and she looks up at me.

  "I surrender." She pleads, her brown eyes proving she really was sorry.

  I nod, walking away.

  Neither of us won.

  Neither of us died.

  All the cons were staring at me.

  I glance at Megatron.

  My hand glows blue like the Star Saber.

  I swipe my hand to the side, a beam of light slamming into him, Starscream, and Soundwave.

  I teleport home.

  My family was waiting.