Space shimmered… then fractured.
What began as a soft pulse from the outer ring of the solar system became a cascade of solar flares, streams of magnetic energy surging like waves from a collapsing star. A minor starburst, the kind cataloged in ancient Atlantean charts, but this one was different.
It moved.
Not in a natural arc, but as if responding to something.
Aeloria's ship was the first to notice.
"Gravitational pull increasing," Talin reported, eyes fixed on the console. "Magnetic fields fluctuating in our path. This isn't normal solar activity."
The command lights flickered for half a second. It was barely noticeable, but enough to raise tension.
Aeloria stood. "Signal the fleet. Prepare for redistribution."
She didn't wait for confirmation. She knew what this was.
They were being scattered.
Elsewhere in the fleet, three support vessels shifted formation, attempting to stabilize around the lead ship's course.
On one of the smaller ships, named Soren's Reach, systems failed mid-burst.
In the hull corridors, Kaela clung to the rail as the lights flickered and the artificial gravity stuttered.
"We're losing formation!" someone shouted from the bridge.
Kaela fought her way to a console, eyes darting across the data stream.
"Do not engage full thrusters," she yelled. "Match the frequency of the flare. Drift with it. Let it carry us through!"
Her voice carried command and the crew listened.
As the flare surged, half the fleet was pulled along the outer arc… and separated.
Back on Aeloria's vessel, silence followed.
Then, static.
Talin stared at the screen.
"They're gone," he said quietly. "Half the fleet has been displaced by the anomaly."
"Do we have comms?" Aeloria asked.
"Not yet. The flare burst created a field of interference. Could be hours before we get them back online."
Aeloria inhaled slowly, steadying herself.
She turned to the crew on deck.
"We remain calm. We follow protocol. We move forward, together, even when we're apart."
Meanwhile, in deep space, far from the immediate chaos…
A pair of eyes watched.
Metal optics. Gold-ringed. Silent.
From behind the shadow of a drifting moon, a small Autobot scout vessel hovered, cloaked from standard scanners.
Inside, Cliffjumper leaned forward, replaying the radiation signature from the anomaly.
"Definitely not a natural flare," he muttered. "Something caused that shift. Something old."
He tapped the console, zooming in on a blurred data trail. The Atlantean fleet shimmered for a second on-screen before dispersing.
He opened a channel.
"Command, this is Scout 7. Target unknown has engaged with Cybertronian marker. Confirmed flare event. Half the fleet displaced."
A moment later, the reply came. Calm. Familiar.
"Scout 7, this is Prime. Hold position. Do not engage until further directive."
Cliffjumper smirked. "Copy that. But just so you know, Prime… whoever they are, they're not ordinary travelers."
"We never assumed they were," Optimus replied. "We're watching the same signal."
A beat.
"And we're almost ready to respond."
Back aboard Aeloria's ship, the flare had passed.
Damage was minimal with no breaches or casualties, but the weight of separation pressed heavy on the crew.
Talin stood over the relic.
It had pulsed during the anomaly. Just once, but strong.
"Do you think it caused this?" he asked.
Aeloria didn't answer immediately.
"No," she said at last. "But I think it knew it would happen."
The screen beside them blinked.
A new data stream.
Talin leaned in. "Coordinates. One set. Direct and clear."
Aeloria read them silently.
Not a reunion point.
A destination.
On one of the displaced ships, Soren's Reach, Kaela stood at the viewport.
Stars glimmered differently here. Quieter. Less dense.
She activated her personal journal log.
"We've lost contact with the others," she recorded. "But no fear. We'll find them again."
She looked out the window, toward the same point on the screen where the relic had sent its signal.
"And I don't think we're as lost as we think we are."