Chapter 40: This Planet Bears the Decepticon Mark
"Wow! What is this? Are you really a god? Am I… am I flying through the clouds?"
It was probably the first time a human on this planet had ever flown in an aircraft, so her astonishment was understandable. If Starscream decided to do even a single aerial maneuver, the girl in his cockpit would probably vomit on the spot…
Using the mental map extracted from the girl's brain and his unmatched reconnaissance abilities, Starscream located Lyriana's tribe in less than five minutes. Then, ignoring the terrified looks from the people below, he transformed back into robot form and landed squarely in the middle of the settlement.
At that moment, the tribe was in utter chaos. Strange, shirtless human warriors wielding blades were threatening the villagers ... pressing knives against their throats and tying up the strongest men.
Is this another case of banditry like the girl mentioned before? Starscream thought. I really don't understand why humans on this planet are so obsessed with fighting each other.
"Hey, girl, go find that elder you told me about. I don't have time to deal with your inferior-species squabbles. Don't bother me with such nonsense."
After all, Red Spider (Starscream) had no intention of staying on this planet. What he needed most was a place to recharge his energy reserves, not to get involved in the petty brawls of these primitive creatures.
However, something unexpected happened ... the armed humans, wearing crude leather armor and carrying iron swords, suddenly fell to their knees upon seeing Starscream. They began murmuring strange chants in a language even his system struggled to interpret.
"It's the true god! The true god has appeared!"
"The legends were real! The messenger of the gods has descended to guide us!"
What nonsense are they babbling now? Starscream frowned. Messenger of the gods? What does that even mean? These soldiers didn't look like the native villagers ... their weapons and clothing were different ... but they weren't acting like bandits either. At least they weren't killing anyone or burning the place down.
"Host, I believe I've found something," the Transformer System interjected. "Look to your six o'clock. There appears to be a stone pillar ... it seems to have been unearthed recently. I recommend you examine the markings on it."
Just as Starscream was about to lose his patience, the Transformer System scanned the object ... and what it discovered left him utterly stunned.
Perhaps because his system had now reached 50% functionality, its analytical ability was significantly enhanced, allowing it to process data much faster than before.
"What the…?"
When Starscream reached the massive stone structure, he froze in disbelief.
Although most of the engravings were weathered and partially eroded, the outline of the symbol remained recognizable ... sharp edges, angular lines, and distinctly mechanical etchings. It was the Decepticon insignia.
What kind of sick joke is this?! Why would there be a Decepticon emblem on a planet belonging to such a primitive civilization?
And based on isotopic analysis, the symbol was ancient ... impossibly old. Could it be that Starscream wasn't the first Decepticon to arrive here?
The stone slab appeared to have been extracted from some underground cavity ... perhaps the remains of an abandoned Decepticon laboratory?
Although unexpected, it was still plausible. Maybe this was evidence of a long-lost Decepticon expedition. But what baffled Starscream most was how familiar these armed humans seemed with the symbol!
In other words, they had bowed down to him because they recognized the same Decepticon insignia emblazoned across his chest in robot form.
But how could these low-level creatures possibly recognize it? Could these humans be biological experiments ... descendants of some genetic project initiated by the Decepticons eons ago?
"System, what is going on here? The more I see, the less I understand. What secrets does this planet hold? Did the Decepticons come here long ago? Don't tell me this place is crawling with prehistoric monsters, because otherwise I'm out of explanations!"
Without the Transformer System's help, even Starscream's onboard computer couldn't process all this data.
"Host, instead of speculating, perhaps we should ask the humans directly. They seem to worship the Decepticon symbol ... I'm sure they'll be eager to answer any questions. Look there ... that one seems important."
Starscream turned his gaze to a man wearing a fox pelt headdress, who had been following him nervously. Judging by the deference shown by the surrounding soldiers, he was clearly their leader.
"Human," Starscream commanded, "what is your connection to this symbol? And what do you know of me?"
Following the System's advice, Starscream pointed to the insignia on his chest. Upon meeting the Decepticon's piercing gaze, the man immediately dropped to his knees, muttering incomprehensible chants.
After bowing several times, the human leader straightened up, lowered his head respectfully, and spoke in a trembling voice:
"Honored divine messenger, we are warriors of the grasslands ... the Huns. We came to this tribe to recruit slaves. We discovered the sacred marks of our masters scattered across the plains beyond. To follow their path, we require more hands to help us find the trails they left behind. We did not expect that…"
Ah, so that was it.
While human logic was as primitive as ever, after the System processed and organized the information, the situation became clear.
In short, these ancient humans likely regarded the Decepticons as the creators of their world. The symbol had been deliberately left behind by some ancient Decepticon as a mark of dominance. This so-called "Hun" before them was probably searching for a lost Decepticon weapon, hoping to use it to conquer the plains. The villagers of Lyriana's tribe were nothing more than forced labor, enslaved to help in their search.
That was the truth.
(End of Chapter)