BAD END INFO
For the purposes of the event, the rough outline of the BadEnd AU, dreamed up by forgo and mystified.
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER (whenever the hell the new semester at Princeton starts lol), 2009 »
»» The events of Revenge of the Fallen play out, as per the film
NOVEMBER, 2009 »
»» Megatron reemerges from hiding. Optimus' systems react badly to the systems given to him by Jetfire - the reaction in itself is not fatal, but the timing is, as it gives Megatron the opportunity to kill him. Without the Allspark or the Matrix, the Autobots find themselves once again without their leader. Megatron begins gaining ground and the battles soon escalate to all-out war.
MAY, 2011 »
»» Sam Witwicky is taken captive by the Decepticons. Both of his parents are killed in attempt to prevent his capture. He is then taken to Megatron's headquarters, where his brain is removed and hooked up to a machine - in order to both keep it alive and to grant Megatron access to the knowledge of the Allspark therein. This is a critical victory for Megatron, and the human/Autobot allied resistance is forced to flee underground.
»» Sam, though without a body and unable to move, is cognizant of the goings-on around him. At first, he tries valiantly to resist Megatron's invasions of his mind, but the Decepticon leader is quick to break him.
»» The Resistance begins formulating plans for Sam's rescue, but this is a long time in coming since he's heavily guarded and their intelligence on where he's being kept and if he's even alive is scarce.
OCTOBER, 2012 »
»» The rescue plan is finally put into effect. The battle is intense and bloody, but the plan seems to be working... until the machine housing Sam's brain is hit in the crossfire and malfunctions- and begins to kill Sam. Bumblebee, in a last-ditch effort to save his friend and charge, downloads Sam's consciousness into his own body, thereby erasing his own. In the ensuing escape, Major Lennox is severely injured and loses the ability to walk.
»» Once back at the Resistance's base of operations, Sam goes into seclusion, refusing to see or speak to anyone, even Mikaela.
»» Ratchet promises Will he'll find a cure for his paralysis, but he's hesitant to test Cybertronian technology on his friend, so Will is confined to a wheelchair for the time being. Also, at Sarah Lennox's insistence, Jolt begins training under the medic.
DECEMBER, 2012 »
»» A young Annabelle Lennox finds her way into Sam's quarters, curls up onto his lap and promptly falls asleep. Sam, unresponsive to any other form of contact until then, finally seems to snap out of it. Later that day, Annabelle takes Sam by the hand and gently guides him out of his room for the first time in months. The healing process is slow, and Sam is still mostly solitary, but it's a start. It's also the start of a fast friendship between Sam and Anna.
JUNE, 2015 »
»» Skids is killed while acting as a diversion to allow Sideswipe, Mudflap, and their human comrades a chance to escape an ambush by Decepticon forces. The usually boisterous Mudflap is changed dramatically by the loss of his brother.
DECEMBER, 2021 »
»» An attack on Megatron's Manhattan stronghold is finally staged. The Autobots and their allies manage to cripple a good deal of Megatron's forces, but the Decpticons have sheer numbers on their side. Ironhide and Ratchet are both critically injured in the battle, and Ratchet forgoes his own repairs in order to save Ironhide. Taking advantage of the medic's weakened state, Megatron violently kills Ratchet while Ironhide, too injured to move, is forced to watch.
»» The Resistance is eventually forced to retreat. Jolt, having come into the position of Chief Medical Officer, finishes Ironhide's repairs, but his friends are reluctant to leave the weapons specialist alone for fear of what he'll do in the wake of Ratchet's death. Ironhide is distant for quite some time, eventually sinking into a borderline catatonic state, responding only to a select few humans, and the call to arms.
»» Sideswipe takes the loss of his teacher's sanity badly, lashing out at Ironhide himself, and anyone within reach. Jolt remains the only one with some degree of tolerance and control over him. The only one he lets close, at any rate. The team begins to fall apart, and the Decepticons gain even more ground as the Autobots bicker, leaderless, amongst themselves.
OCTOBER, 2023 »
»» At Jolt's urging, Sideswipe steps forward into the vacant role of leader, forcing himself to mature almost overnight. He orders the symbols etched into Optimus carved onto himself, not fully understanding their meaning short of "Optimus had them, they must be important".
»» With an actual leader to follow, the Autobots and their human allies begin to slowly take back their planet.
SEPTEMBER, 2025 »
»» The Autobots win a decisive battle in Brazil, in which Ironhide, in a sudden fit of lucidity, manages to take down both Starscream and Soundwave, tearing them into pieces--in order to get to Megatron, whom he manages to wound in the chest. The weapons master suffers heavy damage, losing the use of his legs, and an arm, in the process. The resistance falls back to base, taking him with them, despite Jolt's diagnosis - it is unlikely Ironhide will ever recover.
»» With the loss of their weapons master, their heavy hitter, Sideswipe makes one last, desperate plan. They will throw everything they have at Megatron now, before he has a chance to gather his support again. If they lose now, they'll never recover, and the planet will be lost. But if they wait, Megatron can gather reinforcements. The resistance chooses to strike.
»» During the fight, Sideswipe gets a chance at Megatron. He takes it, and ends up engaging the over-powered, mad, Decepticon lord one-on-one. Megatron crushes his legs. Sideswipe gets one chance, and shoves his blade into Megatron's spark. The weapon is shattered, and Megatron dies. Sideswipe is rescued by Jolt, but never regains full functionality in his legs.
»» When the call comes in, Ironhide manages to rouse himself long enough from his stasis to hear it, before quietly slipping away. Major Lennox is the only one present for this, much to the dismay of many.
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER (whenever the hell the new semester at Princeton starts lol), 2009 »
»» The events of Revenge of the Fallen play out, as per the film
NOVEMBER, 2009 »
»» Megatron reemerges from hiding. Optimus' systems react badly to the systems given to him by Jetfire - the reaction in itself is not fatal, but the timing is, as it gives Megatron the opportunity to kill him. Without the Allspark or the Matrix, the Autobots find themselves once again without their leader. Megatron begins gaining ground and the battles soon escalate to all-out war.
MAY, 2011 »
»» Sam Witwicky is taken captive by the Decepticons. Both of his parents are killed in attempt to prevent his capture. He is then taken to Megatron's headquarters, where his brain is removed and hooked up to a machine - in order to both keep it alive and to grant Megatron access to the knowledge of the Allspark therein. This is a critical victory for Megatron, and the human/Autobot allied resistance is forced to flee underground.
»» Sam, though without a body and unable to move, is cognizant of the goings-on around him. At first, he tries valiantly to resist Megatron's invasions of his mind, but the Decepticon leader is quick to break him.
»» The Resistance begins formulating plans for Sam's rescue, but this is a long time in coming since he's heavily guarded and their intelligence on where he's being kept and if he's even alive is scarce.
OCTOBER, 2012 »
»» The rescue plan is finally put into effect. The battle is intense and bloody, but the plan seems to be working... until the machine housing Sam's brain is hit in the crossfire and malfunctions- and begins to kill Sam. Bumblebee, in a last-ditch effort to save his friend and charge, downloads Sam's consciousness into his own body, thereby erasing his own. In the ensuing escape, Major Lennox is severely injured and loses the ability to walk.
»» Once back at the Resistance's base of operations, Sam goes into seclusion, refusing to see or speak to anyone, even Mikaela.
»» Ratchet promises Will he'll find a cure for his paralysis, but he's hesitant to test Cybertronian technology on his friend, so Will is confined to a wheelchair for the time being. Also, at Sarah Lennox's insistence, Jolt begins training under the medic.
DECEMBER, 2012 »
»» A young Annabelle Lennox finds her way into Sam's quarters, curls up onto his lap and promptly falls asleep. Sam, unresponsive to any other form of contact until then, finally seems to snap out of it. Later that day, Annabelle takes Sam by the hand and gently guides him out of his room for the first time in months. The healing process is slow, and Sam is still mostly solitary, but it's a start. It's also the start of a fast friendship between Sam and Anna.
JUNE, 2015 »
»» Skids is killed while acting as a diversion to allow Sideswipe, Mudflap, and their human comrades a chance to escape an ambush by Decepticon forces. The usually boisterous Mudflap is changed dramatically by the loss of his brother.
DECEMBER, 2021 »
»» An attack on Megatron's Manhattan stronghold is finally staged. The Autobots and their allies manage to cripple a good deal of Megatron's forces, but the Decpticons have sheer numbers on their side. Ironhide and Ratchet are both critically injured in the battle, and Ratchet forgoes his own repairs in order to save Ironhide. Taking advantage of the medic's weakened state, Megatron violently kills Ratchet while Ironhide, too injured to move, is forced to watch.
»» The Resistance is eventually forced to retreat. Jolt, having come into the position of Chief Medical Officer, finishes Ironhide's repairs, but his friends are reluctant to leave the weapons specialist alone for fear of what he'll do in the wake of Ratchet's death. Ironhide is distant for quite some time, eventually sinking into a borderline catatonic state, responding only to a select few humans, and the call to arms.
»» Sideswipe takes the loss of his teacher's sanity badly, lashing out at Ironhide himself, and anyone within reach. Jolt remains the only one with some degree of tolerance and control over him. The only one he lets close, at any rate. The team begins to fall apart, and the Decepticons gain even more ground as the Autobots bicker, leaderless, amongst themselves.
OCTOBER, 2023 »
»» At Jolt's urging, Sideswipe steps forward into the vacant role of leader, forcing himself to mature almost overnight. He orders the symbols etched into Optimus carved onto himself, not fully understanding their meaning short of "Optimus had them, they must be important".
»» With an actual leader to follow, the Autobots and their human allies begin to slowly take back their planet.
SEPTEMBER, 2025 »
»» The Autobots win a decisive battle in Brazil, in which Ironhide, in a sudden fit of lucidity, manages to take down both Starscream and Soundwave, tearing them into pieces--in order to get to Megatron, whom he manages to wound in the chest. The weapons master suffers heavy damage, losing the use of his legs, and an arm, in the process. The resistance falls back to base, taking him with them, despite Jolt's diagnosis - it is unlikely Ironhide will ever recover.
»» With the loss of their weapons master, their heavy hitter, Sideswipe makes one last, desperate plan. They will throw everything they have at Megatron now, before he has a chance to gather his support again. If they lose now, they'll never recover, and the planet will be lost. But if they wait, Megatron can gather reinforcements. The resistance chooses to strike.
»» During the fight, Sideswipe gets a chance at Megatron. He takes it, and ends up engaging the over-powered, mad, Decepticon lord one-on-one. Megatron crushes his legs. Sideswipe gets one chance, and shoves his blade into Megatron's spark. The weapon is shattered, and Megatron dies. Sideswipe is rescued by Jolt, but never regains full functionality in his legs.
»» When the call comes in, Ironhide manages to rouse himself long enough from his stasis to hear it, before quietly slipping away. Major Lennox is the only one present for this, much to the dismay of many.