Editing Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

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[[File:mtmte 50 chromedome's last wishes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|What it's like being IDW Chromedome.]]
An ex-copper and quiet academic with burning passions, '''Chromedome''' falls easily in love and even more easily into really bad ideas and self destructive habits. But he can totally quit [[mnemosurgery]] any time, guys! He just has a ''reason'' why this one time, it's okay. 

He's [[Conjunx Endura]] with [[Rewind (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rewind]]. Deep down, Chromedome's sure Rewind would leave him for [[Dominus Ambus|his previous partner]].

:*''First Appearance:'' [[Chaos Part One: Lamentations|''Transformers vol. 1'' #24]]

{{TOCclear}}

==Fiction==
===A scientist before the war===
[[File:MTMTE9 early Chromedome.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.4|In addition to neuroscience, his other interests include funny cat GIFs and ''[[Sherlock Holmes|Sherlock]]'' slashfic.]]
'''Tumbler of Iacon''' was [[Reproduction|constructed cold]] long before he adopted the name "Chromedome". {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

Before the [[Great War (G1)|war]], during the days of the [[Clampdown (event)|Clampdown]], Tumbler was a mechaforensic scientist in the police force. The poor bugger was nicknamed "Unlucky" because he had to work with [[Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Prowl]], the most anal, full-autopsy loving officer of all time. Despite Prowl's Prowlness, the two had an ambiguous, more-than-partners relationship. Tumbler had a strong interest in [[mnemosurgery]], the science of hacking into Transformer minds and "reading" their memories, and was fascinated by the conspiracy theories of the [[Institute]], a supposed secret group used by the authorities to brainwash dissidents.

Tumbler and Prowl investigated the assassination of [[Sherma|Senator Sherma]], whose corpse had been marked with a Decepticon insignia, and backtracked his whereabouts to the posh [[Translucentica Heights]]. Unfortunately, the killer had struck again before they arrived, murdering a second senator! {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} Tumbler attempted to chase down a suspect, who perished in a fiery crash. Investigating the second victim's home, the two police 'bots learned from the warden [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] that the senator, [[Momus]] was secretly a Decepticon. The group were suddenly set upon a second attacker, but were saved by the timely arrival of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Orion Pax]], a fellow law enforcement officer. Pax had learned from his senator friend, [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]], that Sherma was also a secret Decepticon sympathizer, making it clear that the murders being committed ''against'' Decepticons, rather than ''by'' them. 

[[File:Chromedome notices hands Patternism.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1]]
Pax was able to identify that the killers had been using borrowed bodies, so Prowl and Tumbler set out to investigate the nearest [[Relinquishment Clinic]], passing a Decepticon protest along the way. Although innocuous at first glance, the pair eventually found a secret facility beneath the clinic Tumbler believed to be the Institute. Along with proof that the killers had indeed been using borrowed bodies, Tumbler also discovered a list of citizens organized by threat level. Meeting back up in [[Rodion]], Orion Pax was able to use the list and other evidence he'd gathered to realize the true plot in motion: the Senate had arranged for the pro-Decepticon senators' murders so that the swift solving of the crimes would boost Decepticon faith in the Senate, increasing the turn-out for the recently created [[Decepticon Registration Act]]. The Senate then planned to detonate a bomb at the late [[Nominus Prime]]'s memorial service, hidden inside a fake [[Matrix of Leadership]], and blame it on the Decepticons, giving them an excuse to use the Registration Act list, found by Tumbler, to round up and brainwash the dissidents. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}}

With a plan to stop the bomb plot in place, Tumbler borrowed a replica Matrix from police armorer [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]], to be switched by Pax for the Matrix-bomb. At a concerned Prowl's insistence, Tumbler was left behind during the 'heist' to switch the Matrix, and was instead assigned to guard Shockwave with Pax's colleague [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]] at a safehouse. Unfortunately, the safehouse was attacked by Senate thugs, and whilst Pax arrived back there in time, he was forced to allow the enforcers to take Shockwave in return for Roller's life. Tumbler quickly led Pax to the Institute facility he had found with Prowl, only to find it deserted. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:BeforeandAfter-TheWorseTheDeath.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|right|"Everyone calls me Chromedome, but my real name is MySpace -- wait, wait, no."]]
In the aftermath of the full-scale Decepticon rebellion, the new Prime, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta]], moved the Institute to a new, remote location, "rebranding" it as the 'New Institute'. Knowing of Tumbler's interest in neuroscience through Prowl, Zeta recruited the forensics officer as an apprentice cerebroscientist under [[Trepan]]. Working at the New Institute, he acquired the nickname "Chromedome" in reference to his prodigious skills as a mnemosurgeon and lobotomist, which he would eventually adopt as his regular name. When [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] located and attacked the facility, Chromedome was in the middle of a procedure on the Decepticon [[Soundwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Soundwave]], but was interrupted by a blast through his midsection. Luckily, the medic [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]] was on hand to save the mnemosurgeon's life. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Over time, after the war had begun proper, Chromedome came to resent his mnenosurgical abilities and became cynical over their use. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} Many things he had to do during wartime were things that, in hindsight, he would regret. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} Eventually, Chromedome was on the verge of suicide due to the immense burden of his abilities and the terrible side-effects they had on his own mental health. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}} It was then, at his lowest point, that he went to a repurposed Relinquishment Clinic to end it, but found [[Rewind (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rewind]] searching fruitlessly for [[Dominus Ambus]]. {{storylink|Before & After}} He formed a deep friendship with the diminutive archivist. Chromedome credited Rewind's optimism and caring nature as having saved his life, and the two were nearly inseparable since. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}} Indeed, [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] has been known to claim them as being "closer than [[Rack'n'Ruin (G1)|Rack'n'Ruin]]" {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} and Rewind had named Chromedome as his [[Conjunx Endura]]. {{storylink|Before & After}}
 
[[File:Brainstorm Chromedome infodump.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.55|A little known earlier detonation of the [[Metafictional bomb|meta bomb]].]]
Chromedome was stationed at [[Kimia Facility]] when [[Cyclonus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Cyclonus]] and the [[Sweep (G1)|Sweep]]s invaded. {{storylink|Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} He survived and managed to escape before the facility's destruction, leaving in an escape pod together with Brainstorm and a number of other Autobots. They were soon rescued by, as he put it, [[Arcee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|a psychopath in pink armor]], and made a joke at Swerve's expense. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As Arcee told the survivors about [[Galvatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Galvatron]] and [[D-Void]]'s master plan to bring the [[Dead Universe]] into the actual universe, Chromedome and [[Brainstorm (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Brainstorm]] felt a bit overwhelmed by the massive "info dump" and wondered if other species ever had to worry about saving the universe. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

[[File:Chromedome Prowl RemembranceDay.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|One prick deserves another... or five.]]
Weeks later, after D-Void's threat had ended and Cybertron had been reborn, Prowl summoned Chromedome and revealed to him that Overlord, recently defeated and captured by the [[Wrecker]]s, had not in fact had his spark removed and imprisoned, as the official story had claimed. Instead, he had been rebuilt, as part of an initiative by Prowl to uncover the secret to the immense power and endurance of Overlord and the other [[Phase Sixer]]s. With interrogation and the gift of a new body ineffective in making the Decepticon prisoner talk, Chromedome's former partner now sought for him to interface with Overlord and find the secret in his memories, a complex procedure that would be highly dangerous to the mnemosurgeon. When Chromedome refused, not wanting to break his promise to Rewind to stop interfacing, Prowl attempted to blackmail him with an unsavoury secret from the mnemosurgeon's past. Desperate to avoid Rewind learning this story, Chromedome attacked Prowl and forcibly interfaced with him, erasing from his old friend's memory both the blackmail threat and the knowledge that let him make it. He subsequently left the office, telling Prowl, oblivious to his attack, that he'd consider the proposal to work on Overlord. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Somewhere around that time, Chromedome and Rewind attended the Festival of Lost Light. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}}

===The ''Lost Light''===
[[File:Chromedome Prowl Liars.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|"And another thing! You ''deserved'' that memory wi- aaah... I mean, what memory wipe?"]]

After Optimus Prime's subsequent appearance and departure from Cybertron, Chromedome chose to join the [[Hot Rod (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rodimus]]'s crew of the ''[[Lost Light]]'', alongside Rewind. Prowl, angry with this decision, tried to persuade him to stay, noting that Chromedome was "gifted" and his talents were still required on Cybertron, with the plan regarding Overlord left unspoken due to Rewind's presence. Eventually, realizing he wouldn't get anywhere with the argument, Chromedome gave up and left with Rewind, leaving Prowl to fume alone in his office. 

Not long afterwards, Chromedome, Rewind, and [[Ratchet (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ratchet]] were headed to the ''Lost Light'', with Chromedome verbally jabbing at Rewind's impractical [[Alternate mode|alt mode]] along the way. Suddenly, a fight between [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] and [[Cyclonus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Cyclonus]] crossed their paths, as well as [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], who had just escaped being trapped underground for six million years. Chromedome helped Tailgate out of the ground, but the small Cybertronian fainted when he saw that his escape had accidentally injured Whirl. Chromedome and the rest decided to take both Whirl and Tailgate aboard ''Lost Light'' for repairs. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

After the ''Lost Light'' suffered a premature [[Quantum generator|quantum jump]] and ended up halfway across the galaxy, forty Autobots were sucked out of a hull breach and sent plummeting to the surface of a nearby planetoid. Once the ship had landed there, Chromedome, Rewind, and [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] aided in the recovery of missing crew members, pulling the stowaway Cyclonus from a lake. Later, Chromedome and others came across [[Skids (G1)|Skids]], who had also crash-landed on the planet and was being pursued by some unknown [[Legislator|sword-carrying robots]]. After Chromedome removed the "fiddly" [[inhibitor claw]] attached to Skids, the long thought-dead Autobot sprung into action and defeated his one remaining pursuer, much to the amazement of the others. Later, Chromedome was present when Rodimus addressed the crew. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}}

[[File:Chromedome mnemosurgery ChaosOfWarmThings.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|You know, sometime I'd just like games night NOT to end in me sticking my fingers in a corpse.]]
When a [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] was thought to have been let loose aboard the ''Lost Light'', Rodimus asked Chromedome to use his abilities to help identify it. Despite Rewind's reservations, Chromedome complied, hacking into [[Shock (G1)|Shock]]'s mind to see the deceased Autobot's last memories. They did indeed tell of a violent attack by a Sparkeater, and Chromedome recoiled in pain and collapsed. After Chromedome recovered, he described the Sparkeater's appearance to the others. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} After the Sparkeater business had been resolved, Chromedome and Rewind were present for the grand opening of [[Swerve's]]. {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} A few days after, he enjoyed a drink with Rewind and a tipsy Skids in [[Swerve's|Swerve's new bar]]. {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}} When the Lost Light was hit by [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]'s thumb (disconnected from its owner) Chromedome helped Brainstorm, Highbrow seal the hole while Trailbreaker used his forcefield to prevent them from being sucked out into the vacuum of space. He was presented with a [[Rodimus Star]] for his part in repairing the ship. Chromedome and Highbrow then discussed Rodimus Stars with Tailgate, who noted their shared "head-themed" nicknames. Later, he was paralyzed along with (nearly) everyone else on board of the ship when Brainstorm accidentally activated one of his experimental weapons. He eventually recovered, and was awarded another Rodimus Star "for exceptional endurance in the face of adversity". {{storylink|The Reluctant Specialist}} Curious about Skids's ever-present handgun (and the mental block which seemingly kept Skids from remembering it), Chromedome swiped the gun at the bar and turned it over to Brainstorm for analysis. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}} 

Days later, over another round of drinks, Chromedome demonstrated his talent of being able to identify someone by the sound of their transformation alone. He offered some sympathy to Tailgate over the latter's studying under Ultra Magnus and displayed disgust when Tailgate mentioned trying to invite Cyclonus over to the table. However, the casual atmosphere came to a violent end when a mentally-disturbed Fortress Maximus entered the bar and abruptly shot [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] at pointblank range. {{storylink|Interiors}}

Chromedome later checked in with Brainstorm to find out what was up with Skids' gun. Brainstorm managed to blow the thing up while examining it, but also named it a "binary gun" after recognizing it could only hold two cartridges. He also noted that its engineering seemed to indicate that the gun came from the Institute. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Chromedome mnemosurgery MTMTEAnnual2012.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Existential angst!]]
Chromedome suffered a brief bout of false recall, where he re-experienced the memory of [[Skyfall (G1)|Skyfall]]'s death- one of the unpleasant side-effects of his mnemosurgeries. He attended Tailgate's Autobot initiation ceremony, and he, Rewind, and Brainstorm placed bets with [[Jackpot (G1)|Jackpot]] as to how long it would take for Rodimus to say "[['Til all are one]]" in his speech. After representatives of the [[Galactic Council]] showed up, Chromedome was among the Autobots teleported to the surface of [[Theophany]] to explore the ruins of [[Crystal City]], which had been subject to some unknown siege and left desolate. They discovered an inert [[Titan (group)|Titan]] under the city, and Rodimus ordered Chromedome to hack into the giant's [[brain module]] and read its memories, hoping to discover what happened to Crystal City. While preparing to do so, Chromedome and Skids had a brief chat about their similar outlooks on life and its larger meaning. With a disapproving Rewind looking on, Chromedome hacked into the Titan's memory, and discovered it was still alive. Chromedome collapsed in pain, images torn from the Titan's brain reverberating through his mind, as the giant woke with a start and fired an eye-blast that struck the Galactic Council's ship in orbit. Once recovered, Chromedome explained that the Titan was attempting to will its [[spark]] to leave its body, having barely any power left and being totally paralyzed. Chromedome wanted to attempt to re-enter the Titan's mind, as the glimpses he caught indicated that its memories contained much of the information that they were seeking. With the Galactic Council's troops bearing down on them and the ''Lost Light'' under attack, Rodimus chose to set the Titan free instead of pillaging its mind. After some of its mass was shrunk by Brainstorm, the Titan had enough power to teleport the Autobots back to their ship, and the ''Lost Light'' quantum-jumped to safety. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}}

Days later Skids, inspired by his discussion with Chromedome in Crystal City, wanted to let the mnemosurgeon unlock his missing memories. Chromedome admitted that he himself was curious about the mystery of Skids' past and agreed to do it. After hacking into Skids' mind, Chromedome discovered the memories of the year prior to Skids' joining the crew of the ''Lost Light'' had been replaced by an imperative to escape. Chromedome dug deeper and found the erased memories still locked inside Skids' head, but once he caught a glimpse of them, he quickly withdrew. Chromedome told Skids that the buried memories were so horrifying and traumatic that it was better for everyone, Skids himself included, that they never resurface. Skids reluctantly agreed, but asked Chromedome about a piece of music he kept hearing in his head. Chromedome admitted that he heard it in there too, identified it as "[[The Empyrean Suite]]", and prayed that Skids would never come to understand its significance. {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}} 

In order to restore the recovering [[Rung (G1)|Rung]]'s mind, Chromedome and others were assembled by Rewind to tell a story from the Clampdown era. Chromedome explained to the others that the story would help reestablish critical neural connections in Rung's brain. He started off the story, but he and Rewind got briefly distracted trying to figure out how many times Prowl had flipped a table over in their presence. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} By the end of the story, the ship's alarms were sounding, and Chromedome scrambled for battle stations with the others. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:BeforeandAfter-SilentTreatment.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|Not "''like'' an old married couple", they literally ''are'' an old married couple.]]

As they headed to [[Temptoria]] in the ''[[Leading Light]]'', Chromedome and Rewind argued over the latter's insistence of joining them in battle, despite being technically exempt from combat. Though Chromedome enthusiastically took part in the battle on Temptoria against a small force of Decepticons, when he returned to the shuttle, he found that Rewind had been gravely injured in an explosion. Back on the ''Lost Light'', [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] talked Chromedome into performing a jumpstart on Rewind to save the smaller 'Bot's spark. While waiting to hear if the procedure had worked or not, Chromedome got to chatting with Tailgate about how he and Rewind had met, of Rewind's lost “master”, (a progressive ‘Bot by the name of [[Dominus Ambus]]). Rewind had never stopped looking for the missing Ambus and even made Chromedome promise to continue the search if anything ever happened to him.

The jumpstart procedure failed, as Chromedome's own spark was "low yield". Sent to his quarters to recharge, an emotionally vulnerable Chromedome spoke to Brainstorm through his door. Brainstorm offered to show him something in the basement that would give the Autobots an advantage and prevent any more tragedies like Rewind's from ever happening again. Before Chromedome could answer, however, First Aid contacted him with the news that Whirl had a compatible spark to be used to save Rewind. A happy reunion ensued. {{storylink|Before & After}}

Despite this, Chromedome met with Brainstorm and Drift and learned the secret of Overlord's presence on the ''Lost Light''. Despite his previous refusal to Prowl, the fresh memory of Rewind's near-death was enough for Chromedome to agree to use his talents on the Decepticon, in the hope that "Autobot Phase Sixers" could prevent any such tragedies from happening again. Over the next several days, Chromedome visited Overlord in the [[slow cell]] multiple times, acclimating himself to the Decepticon's mental architecture. As a safeguard in the event of Overlord's escape, he subtly altered the Decepticon's memories so as to make him associate the phrase "'til all are one!" with defeat in combat, knowing that Rodimus would undoubtedly say this in a battle. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} In-between visits to Overlord, Chromedome took time to be interviewed for Rewind's documentary about life on the ''Lost Light''. {{storylink|Little Victories}} 

[[File:RemembranceDay-Chromedome.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|This is something Rung would also call "a super bad idea".]]
Feeling bold, Chromedome began visiting Overlord's cell without informing his co-conspirators in advance, and confronted Overlord directly in his memories. He compelled Overlord to lead him through his memories to the [[Foundry]], when [[Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Megatron]], [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]], and [[Rossum]] used [[ununtrium]] to reinforce his endoskeleton and transform him into one of the [[Warriors Elite]]. Although Chromedome found his answers, he was taken unawares by Overlord also having mnemosurgical training, allowing the Decepticon to loop them through a shared memory and take control of the mental environment. With Chromedome helpless, Overlord browsed through the Autobot's memories at will until he found the security codes to unlock the slow cell. With this, Overlord escaped, taunting a weakened Chromedome with the knowledge that the five seconds it would take him to cross the cell in pursuit would equal thirty minutes of killin' time for Overlord aboard the ship. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Sure enough, Chromedome exited the slow cell into chaos, as the crew of the ''Lost Light'' battled vainly against the superwarrior. Luckily, a true-to-form Rodimus uttered his catch phrase, causing a sudden nervous attack in Overlord which gave Fortress Maximus an opening to overpower the Decepticon. Per Drift's back-up plan, Overlord was forced back into the slow cell, which was readied to eject into space. Tragically, one of Drift's [[sword]]s, stolen during the battle, blocked the cell door open, and heroically Rewind climbed inside the cell to remove the blade. Once he did, the door closed automatically, severing Chromedome's left arm and trapping Rewind inside with Overlord. Desperately speaking some final words to his partner (which Rewind could not hear through the door), Chromedome watched helplessly as the cell was jettisoned. Unwilling to leave Rewind to Overlord's tender mercies, Chromedome personally manned the weapons array of the ''Lost Light'' and blew the slow cell to pieces, apparently killing Rewind in the process. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}}

[[File:TheGloaming-iloveyou.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|I love you too, guys!]]
As Rewind and the other victims were laid to rest, Chromedome seemed to hold together remarkably. Only Brainstorm knew what was really going on in his friend's head, and confronted Chromedome in his suite after the funeral. Brainstorm tried to remind Domey of his other Conjunx Endura over the years -- [[Mach (Victory)|Mach]], [[Pivot]], [[Scattergun]]—each of whom Chromedome forcibly removed from his own memories using mnemosurgery once they died, as he couldn't cope with the loss. Brainstorm pleaded with Chromedome not to do it again, and honor Rewind by remembering him. He passed on a final message from Rewind, a memory stick the little bot threw through the cell door as it was closing. These final words and expression of love from Rewind were enough to stop Chromedome from injecting and convince him to hold onto the memory of his lost love. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[File:RemainInLight2-ChromedomeAltMode.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|left]]
Shortly afterwards, Chromedome visited Ratchet in the medibay for reconstruction of his left arm. As he entered, a [[cybercrosis|panicked]] Tailgate barged past him. Before work on the arm was complete, the ''Lost Light'', pursuing the missing Ultra Magnus, arrived at a vast portal in space, and Chromedome watched from the observation deck. Beyond the portal was the long lost [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]], and the mnemosurgeon was recruited by Rodimus for the landing party. The group descended, though not before Chromedome promised Skids to search for answers regarding his amnesia, and on the moon's surface they found an active hot spot of gestating [[spark]]s. Before long, however, the party was set upon by [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] and his cadre of [[Titan Hunter]]s, {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} forcing them to flee into a nearby [[Titan (body-type)|Titan]] "graveyard". Their flight was futile, and the entire group was soon captured, whereupon their gracious host was revealed as [[Solomus|Tyrest]], who accused them of crimes against creation. On the way to their cell, Chromedome noticed an apparently immobile Ultra Magnus. The landing party quickly got to chatting with their new cellmate, who revealed himself to be [[Minimus Ambus]], spark brother of Rewind's lost friend [[Dominus Ambus]]. Even though they were all locked up at the behest of Tyrest, Chromedome didn't share Tailgate's impatience to escape their shared prison cell. He quickly chastised the [[Mini Vehicle|Minibot]] for calling him "Domey", the personal nickname that Rewind once used. The group stewed in their prison for some time until an observant Rung deduced something from Minimus's mannerisms—that their cellmate was none other than Ultra Magnus! {{storylink|Remain in Light 2 of 5: House of Ambus|House of Ambus}}

Chromedome listened intently to Minimus's explanation with the others, learning the secret of the [[Magnus Armor]]. When Skids and Swerve were teleported into their holding cell and Skids was revealed by Minimus to be considered a criminal, Chromedome assumed it had something to do with the "binary gun" the theoretician had been carrying. When Tyrest's enforcer [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] introduced them to another new cellmate, Chromedome revealed to Skids that he had read his memories wrong. What he had thought was a buried imperative in Skids's mind to "escape", was actually a name- the name of their new cellmate, [[Getaway]]! {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}}

[[File:ArmTheLonely-Chromedome.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|Sometimes we like to throw a bone to the artists out there looking for a rear-view reference shot.]]
Getaway explained things to Chromedome and the others, formally identifying the binary gun as a [[nudge gun]]. With Getaway's help, Chromedome was able to connect the dots and understand the gaps in Skids's memory. Once everyone found out that Tyrest had gone mad and needed to be stopped, Getaway asked for donated parts from his cellmates to escape their prison. For his part, Chromedome gave Getaway the syringes from his fingers, allowing the escapist to take down the Legislator guarding them. The group armed-up and headed to Tyrest's control room for a confrontation. Unfortunately, the Chief Justice was prepared for them, activating a weapon that paralyzed the Autobots. Tyrest then turned on his [[universal killswitch]], a device intended to kill any Transformers that were [[Reproduction|constructed cold]]. Having been so, Chromedome began dying slowly and painfully. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Ultimately, the killswitch was deactivated and Tyrest's plans foiled. In the aftermath, Chromedome visited a dying Tailgate, whose [[cybercrosis]] was in its final stages. Noting Cyclonus's bedside vigil, Chromedome respectfully departed to let the two say their goodbyes. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}}

After Orion Pax arrived aboard the ''Lost Light'', Chromedome attended the welcome party at Swerve's. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} He took part in the underwater battle on [[Hydrophena]], defending [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] against the [[Ammonite]] forces, {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} {{storylink|The Dead Are Not Enough: Dark Cybertron Chapter 7|The Dead Are Not Enough}} and was teleported along with the rest ''Lost Light'' to Cybertron after they managed to get the Titan's space bridge in working order. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} Crash-landing on the planet's surface, Chromedome disembarked with the rest of the crew and fought in the massive battle against their Ammonite attackers and the undead [[Quintessa (IDW)|Necrotitan]]. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:TheBecoming-throw.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.6|Prowl just can't BELIEVE someone would throw him off a cliff just for laughing at a widower.]]
In the aftermath of the Necrotitan's defeat, Ultra Magnus tried to convince Chromedome to read Metroplex's mind, a request the mnemosurgeon rebuffed. Feeling depressed, he went to ruminate atop a cliff on the outskirts of New Iacon, where Prowl found him. A bitter argument erupted between the two, with Prowl blaming Chromedome's earlier mnemosurgery on him for leaving his mind vulnerable to [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]'s control, and Chromedome faulting Prowl for smuggling Overlord aboard the ''Lost Light''. Rage overcame Chromedome when Prowl expressed pleasure that this had indirectly led to Rewind's death, and he attacked the police-bot, hurling him off a cliff and pummeling him until Ultra Magnus intervened. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} However, the altercation was cut short by 70 billion more of Shockwave's Ammonites, who Chromedome engaged on the ground alongside Whirl and Arcee. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

{{-}}

===Second Launch===
When the crisis had passed and Megatron had seemingly surrendered and defected to the Autobots, Optimus Prime attempted to have Chromedome extract Megatron's memories for use in court. The former Decepticon leader vehemently refused to allow this, citing his fear that the extraction might be used as a cover for [[Shadowplay]]. Megatron was able to finagle his way out of a verdict and subsequently joined the ''Lost Light'' as its new captain. Chromedome opted to rejoin the expedition but soon fell into a deep depression, shutting himself away in his habitation suite and listening to Rewind's final message over and over in the dark, much to the concern of his friends. Chromedome was startled into action, however, when the last words of his lover's message suddenly changed into an agonized scream. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}}

Deeply perturbed, he sought out [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] for some answers, and while initially angered by the detective's skeptcism, the appearance of Rewind's apparent ghost galvanized Nightbeat into action. The two returned to Nightbeat's quarters to gather more detective equipment, where Chromedome voiced his belief that he was probably being punished for not continuing to search for Dominus Ambus. Their converstion was interrupted when the pair discovered that the outside wall of Nightbeat's hab suite had disappeared. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} A few minutes later, Rodimus summoned Chromedome and Nightbeat to examine what appeared to be his own corpse, ignoring Chromedome's concerns about injecting into a cadaver. All Chromedome was able to find were Rodimus's "red letter" days, which, combined with the matching energon, caused something of an existential crisis in Rodimus. Then the wall behind everyone vanished.

When it became clear that the ship was slowly and inexplicably vanishing, Chromedome evacuated on the [[Rodpod]].{{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}} When the crewmembers began disappearing as well, Chromedome was one of the afflicted. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}} Those Autobots who were unaffected by the disappearances discovered that the quantum engine failure of the ''Lost Light'' had created a second, on-course, ''Lost Light'', which had been attacked and destroyed by the [[Decepticon Justice Division|DJD]] some eighteen months prior. 

The "other" Chromedome had been tormented by the Decepticons during their attack, offered to be spared if he wiped his memories of Rewind. Chromedome refused, so DJD member [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]] had snapped off his mnemosurgical needles and stabbed him to death. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} After coming across the wreckage of the ship, the [[Mortilus|Necrobot]], unaware of the quantum accident, added "Chromedome's" name to his list of deceased Transformers. {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}} 

[[File:TheRoadNotTaken-ChromedomeRewind.jpg|upright=1.6|thumb|*fart*]]

Once Rewind — the sole surviving member of the duplicate ''Lost Light'' and the cause of Chromedome's strange visions — had reset the ailing quantum engines, the paradox was resolved and the main ''Lost Light'' and its crew members rematerialized, Chromedome among them. Skids gave him a pair of [[magna-clamp]]s and told him to go to the outside of the ship. The two lovers sat side by side for a while before embracing. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} Upon their return to the ''Lost Light'', Rewind opted to live in his own, separate hab suite, which upset Chromedome. Rewind explained that the two weren't technically each other's actual spouse and that he felt more comfortable starting out again with Chromedome with some degree of separation. {{storylink|The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|The Custom-Made Now}}

This peace was to be short-lived: during a celebration at Swerve's to commemorate their recent adventure, Brainstorm was seemingly revealed to be a Deceticon double-agent, poisoning the crew of the ship and escaping across time and space by using the time machine in his [[Time case|briefcase]]. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} The first hint that something had gone wrong came when Rewind awoke from a bad dream about the "[[Dark Dawn]]", a genocidal event that had never happened in their timeline. {{storylink|The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|The Custom-Made Now}}

Believing that he had travelled back in time to kill Orion Pax and preemptively end the war, a group of Autobots who shared the same spark-type with Brainstorm were assembled to pursue him, using a quantum duplicate of Brainstorm's briefcase. In the event that the team would inadvertently reveal the future to inhabitants of the past, Chromedome was temporarily augmented with the ability to erase anyone's memory with a simple handshake. The time traveling team first landed in [[1st Cycle 502]], four million years ago, where they helped Orion Pax and his team of renegade [[Outlier (group)|outliers]] protect a [[hot spot]] from [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]]'s [[Elite Guard]]. After needing to follow Brainstorm again through another time jump, Chromedome shook hands with everyone, accidentally causing Optimus Prime and the others to forget [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]]'s fate and—to Rodimus's horror—fail to permanently warn Trailbreaker about his death in four million years. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}}

The team's next stop was in 51st Cycle 500, where Chromedome confronted the new problem of potentially bumping into himself. Brainstorm timejumped again (to [[4th Cycle 499]]) and the team followed, and this time Chromedome and Rewind staked out the [[Rodion]] police headquarters with Whirl. As they waited, Rewind troubled Chromedome with the suggestion of possibly using time travel to save Rewind's previous spouse, Dominus Ambus. Their discussion of timetravel ethics was interrupted when three Senate thugs arrived at Police HQ, setting off Whirl on a rampage due to his shared history with them. Chromedome and Rewind managed to stop Whirl, but not before they accidentally caused the chain of events that would later lead to Senator Shockwave's capture. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet|Stet}}

It became increasingly clear that, rather than killing Megatron, Brainstorm had instead been trying to manipulate events in such a way as to prevent the rise of Megatron, and with his plans going increasingly awry, a desperate Brainstorm time-jumped to the moment of Megatron's creation, pointing a gun at the half-built 'bot who would one day become Megatron. Though the Autobots were able to talk him down, Rewind, who had had his databanks overwritten with information about [[Functionist Universe|the series of events that would come to pass if Megatron was never born]], decided to shoot Megatron himself, seemingly dooming Cybertron to a genocidal [[Functionism|functionist]] regime in exchange for sparing the rest of the galaxy from the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. 

However, the group did not end up changing history, as the nature of time travel meant that Rewind was always fated to kill Megatron; after replacing Megatron's original spark with a [[Point One Percenter]] spark from the future, the team tied up loose ends and returned to their own time. Chromedome reaching out to Rewind in his vulnerable moment had caused the two to bridge the rift that had been between them, and the pair began to share a hab suite once again. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|Predestination: An Expert's Guide}} Sometime after returning, Chromedome spoke to the ship's higher ups, arguing that Rewind's actions were down to trauma; as a result of which no action was charged against him. During Brainstorm's trial, Chromedome served as Brainstorm's defense, when he was the first 'bot to be brought before the [[Lost Light Internal Affairs Committee]]. {{storylink|Our Steps Will Always Rhyme}} 

[[File:TheOneWhereTheyGoToEarth-table.jpg|left|thumb|Ultra Magnus was shunned after admitting his favourite season was the fourth.]]

In the aftermath of the ''Lost Light'' attending Thunderclash's pre-wake, the ship held a dance-off, where Chromedome and Rewind attended, dancing together. {{storylink|The Frail Gaze}} Shortly after, it turned out Swerve had been slowly dying for some time, and to aid their shipmate the ''Lost Light'' crew used their [[holomatter]] avatars to navigate "[[Swearth]]" in the hopes of finding him. A subsequent medical examination revealed that Swerve had nearly succumbed to an old bullet wound inflicted by the mysterious [[Dominus Ambus|Agent 113]] as part of his unorthodox method of relaying information. {{storylink|The One Where They Go to Earth}} Among the information encoded within the bullet was data regarding the legendary "[[Mortilus|Necrobot]]" and his supposed base of operations. Chromedome was present as Rewind informed Rodimus about the mysterious being, and spoke up in favor of investigating the [[Necroworld|planet]] where the Necrobot lived, hoping to help his conjunx find out more about the fate of Dominus Ambus. After arriving on the Necroworld, the group learned how the Necrobot kept track of Cybertronians through holographic statues; Chromedome deduced that there was a central database all the statues were connected to, meaning that it was possible to learn who was alive or dead through who had a statue switched on. Rewind was understandably terrified and asked Chromedome for guidance; Chromedome felt that it wasn't for him to choose, so when Rewind chose to search, it turned out that Dominus had been listed as "deactivated". 

Later, Chromedome tried to comfort a devastated Rewind by offering to "smudge" his memories of what happened, only for Nightbeat to show up wanting to show them something. It was a list of the "[[Disappeared]]:" 'bots who had been unaccounted for, and Dominus's name was at the bottom of the list. {{storylink|The Not Knowing}} 

A few days later, Chromedome and Rewind were at Swerve's together, their hand-holding witnessed by a passing Cyclonus. {{storylink|The Lopsided Triangle}} Shortly thereafter, Cyclonus and Tailgate were involved in an altercation. Wondering what had just happened, Rodimus had Chromedome inject into Cyclonus. The injection took a heavy strain on Chromedome. {{storylink|Speak, Memory: Part 1}} A few hours later, the serial killer Sunder went on a rampage through the ''Lost Light'', his first victim being Skids. Chromedome soon turned up, and realized Skids was remembering the events at Grindcore that had caused the amnesia Chromedome had examined the year before. He injected to try and make sure Skids didn't remember what had happened while Rung and Tailgate went after Sunder. {{storylink|Speak, Memory! (Part 2)}}

Chromedome attended the ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s movie night where Rewind was showing a documentary about the beginning of the war. As the documentary reached the section on Megatron's killing of Sentinel Prime, Brainstorm commented that the former Autobot leader had a lot in common with his killer, prompting Chromedome to point out the irony of someone so obsessed with the purity of the Autobot "brand" being similar to the leader of the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Last Autobot}}

Around December of that year, Chromedome was one of many crewmembers who took advantage of "time fissures" present in Swerve's to look back on the past, including "his" Rewind, something Rung warned him against. Afterward he took part in a toast to "surprises". {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}}

Some months later, Chromedome was one of several members of the crew who took part in a fight on [[Miliarium]] against marauding [[Rust Giant]]s. On returning to the ''Lost Light'', Rewind was subjected to a powerful psychic attack of unknown origin. When Rodimus assembled a team to investigate, Rewind and Chromedome were part of the away team — made up of others who had experienced the attack — dispatched to track the signal to its source. The search led them to a strange hollow planet, which turned out to be the Necroworld; they didn't get far before they were attacked by a massive Decepticon armada, forcing them to retreat to the Necrobot's fortress before they were shot down. Discovering that the Necrobot himself perished, the group learned that disgraced escapologist [[Getaway]] had led the rest of the ''Lost Light'' in a mutiny designed to lure Rodimus, Megatron, and his sympathisers off the ship... and leave them to the tender mercies of the [[Decepticon Justice Division]]. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}} 

The D.J.D. stuck to their script, and, after a brief attack on the fortress, retreated to give their victims eight hours to weigh up their limited options and stew in their fear. Nightbeat found a potential way offworld by using one of the late Necrobot's teleport chambers, but Velocity discovered a basement filled with pods that seemingly contained organic lifeforms. Unwilling to let the organics be massacred by the DJD, nobody opted to leave. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight|The Sun in Flight}} As the team dug in for a fight, Chromedome and Rewind had an argument, each belieing that the other should have used the teleport chamber to escape. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}} When Ratchet and Drift arrived on the planet, they managed to capture the mysterious "[[Dominus Ambus|Pet]]" that accompanied the DJD. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} Despite still being weak from injecting Tailgate some months before, {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}} Chromedome volunteered to operate on the creature in the hopes of learning where the DJD had hidden their starship. An hour later, after recording his last will and testament, he prepared to inject. Despite Rodimus's orders to just do a quick probe of recent memories, Chromedome began feeling off, and, ignoring Ratchet's demand to stop, he went deeper.

[[File:it's not your choice to make.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.4]]

Much to his horror, Chromedome found that The Pet was not a simple animal, but a [[beast mode]] Cybertronian who had been "[[Domestication|domesticated]]" by the DJD; even as Ratchet shouted that the procedure was killing him, he felt confident that he could reverse the process. Ignoring the protests, Chromedome delved deeper and made a terrifying discovery: The Pet was Dominus Ambus, who had once been the infamous "Agent 113" Even as Ratchet and Rewind yelled at him to stop, he kept going, feeling (and saying) that Rewind couldn't have room for both the people he loved in his life. Unable to watch Chromedome kill himself, Rewind made the choice to abort the procedure by slicing off his arm, leaving Dominus to die. 

Some hours later, with D.J.D.-related death imminent, a repaired Chromedome morosely agreed with Velocity's encasement of the day's proceedings as "torture". {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} Then Velocity hit on an idea to give them an edge in the upcoming execution: since extreme trauma to Tailgate had made his quantum-engine radiated spark surge and briefly power up others, doing that now could give them an edge against the enemy. Skids stepped forward and Chromedome, to his dismay, had to help his friend relieve the horrors of Grindcore and all the blotted-out guilt, his last injection being to drive him over the edge. 

[[File:mtmte54 KRACK.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Fun? FUN?! How DARE you! How many have to die for you to get your sick jollies?! HOW MANY?]]

In the ensuing battle, a supercharged Chromedome was sought out by Overlord, who mocked the mnemosurgeon for letting the first Rewind die... prompting an enraged Chromedome to punch him across the battlefield. All too soon, however, the charge burned out and Chromedome and the others were surrounded on all sides. Only the arrival of Megatron, armed with a new fusion cannon, allowed them to fall back to the fortress. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} During all of the carnage and high drama of Megatron's obliteraton of the D.J.D., Chromedome stayed at the back, silently looking at Skids' dead body. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}
{{-}}

===After Dominus===

Once the dust had settled from the battle against the D.J.D., Chromedome was part of the team Rodimus assembled to return to Cybertron for help using the reassembled teleporter. While the teleporter did bring them to ''a'' Cybertron, it had somehow deposited them on the Cybertron of the [[Functionist Universe]]. Almost immediately after arriving, he and the rest of the team were placed under arrest by [[Twelve-of-Twelve]] and his [[Functionary|Functionaries]]. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|Some Other Cybertron}} As they were paraded through a crowd to shame them on their way to imprisonment, Rewind pointed out to Chromedome that Cybertron had no moon, proving that this was the Functionist Universe. After a grenade thrown by a member of the [[Anti-Vocationist League]] took out two of the group's Functionary escorts, Chromedome was freed from his restraints and joined in the battle. As Twelve-of-Twelve attacked Rodimus, Chromedome lassoed a chain around his neck and pulled him in, though the councilor managed to teleport away before he could do anything else. Soon after the fight was over, [[Six-of-Twelve]] began broadcasting across Cybertron, Chromedome seeming somewhat in disbelief that the councilor's head resembled [[Matrix of Leadership|The Matrix]]. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 2: Anomie|Anomie}} When the League teleported Team Rodimus to [[Kalis|Adaptica]], Chromedome attended the meeting with estranged councilor member [[Nine-of-Twelve]]. When the alternate [[Anode]] arrived, Chromedome denied any involvement with the mysterious U.F.O. just outside Cybertronian orbit. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 3: A World Misplaced|A World Misplaced}}

When the U.F.O. was revealed to be [[Moonbase Two|Luna 2]], Chromedome joined the others on the balcony in staring at it before it unleashed its tractor beams. While Megatron handled the defense of the city, Chromedome joined Rodimus in heading to rescue the alternate [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] and [[Vector Sigma]] from the Functionists. When the group arrived outside Vector Sigma's chamber however they found the Council had already gained access to the supercomputer but that they had ''not'' used Rung to access the chamber. When Rodimus bravely tackled [[Six-of-Twelve]], Chromedome <s>pointed out the colossal error in judgment </s> warned that his brave leader would now have to fight eleven councilors as they entered the chamber. Like all, Chromedome was horrified to see, {{storylink|Dissolution Part 4: Bad Moon Rising|Bad Moon Rising}} Six-of-Twelve using the false Matrix to suspend Rodimus in an agony beam. Ratchet came to their rescue by pretending to hold the alternate Rung hostage. After they teleported back to the surface and took over the [[Cog (facility)|Cog]], Rung displayed his ability to create [[photonic crystal]]s and explained why the Council hadn't slain him prompting Chromedome to ask why the Council hadn't gone public with the photonic crystals for a year and pointed out that Vector Sigma was sealed off by [[ununtrium]] but Rung explained how the Council had turned everything to their own advantage. After Rung revealed that the Functionists were building an army to exterminate all non-Cybertronian life in the galaxy, Rewind leaned on Chromedome as he despaired over the hatred the Cybertronians had for aliens. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 5: Modes of Production|Modes of Production}} After the Cog had crashed in Adaptica and Brainstorm and Roller had worked out how to save everyone, Chromedome held hands with Rewind at the first (non-functional) matter transporter before they ran to a second (functional) one where the group teleported to Luna 2 and teleported the moon to Necroworld. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 6: This Machine Kills Fascists|This Machine Kills Fascists}} When Rodimus announced his [[Skip|incredibly morbid plan]] to escape Necroworld, Chromedome and Rewind held hands. {{storylink|After Megatron (A Dissolution Epilogue)|After Megatron}}

Aboard the cramped spacecraft, Chromedome and Rewind climbed aboard the sleeping Roller's alternate mode to "canoodle" much to the ex-cop's shock when he awoke. The three went to Rodimus about this issue who simply could not bring himself to even pretend to care before he ushered everyone out when a call came in from [[Fortress Maximus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Fortress Maximus]]. Concurrently, the increasingly petty and ridiculous prank war between [[Anode]] and [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] reached its climax with Rewind accidentally being raked by [[Cyclonus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Cyclonus]]'s [[Great Sword]]. Chromedome immediately turned on Cyclonus before [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] broke up the fighting. To top it all off, an increasingly intangible Ratchet was sinking through the floor, Skip was shrinking and [[Ten]] declared that the fate of the universe hinged upon everyone following his commands. {{storylink|Sardines}}

Chromedome and the rest of Team Rodimus would then find themselves all in what appeared to be the Afterspark, having presumably died when Skip shrank. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (1): Metastasis|Metastasis}} He and the second Rewind would go on to find the first Rewind and Dominus Ambus and prepare to ascend together. Unfortunately, it was soon revealed that the world they were on wasn't the Afterspark, but [[Mederi]], an ancient euthanasia clinic that used telepathic constructs to put its inhabitants at ease before killing them. The first Rewind and Dominus were merely projections of what Chromedome and Rewind hoped to find in the Afterspark. After Rodimus and his advisors shut down the telepathic field all the projections faded away, leaving Chromedome and the second Rewind with only each other once again. The two wouldn't have long to dwell on their loss, however, as they were soon set upon by sparkeaters made from the former Lost Light crew! {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}
{{Charstubfiction|{{storylink|Crucible (Part 1): A Dance Before Dying|A Dance Before Dying}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre|Lūstrāre}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 3): Farsickness|Farsickness}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 4): The Return of the King|The Return of the King}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 5): The Unremembering|The Unremembering}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 6): A Spark Among Embers|A Spark Among Embers}} {{storylink|How To Say Goodbye And Mean It: Part 2}}}}
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==INSIRT continuity==
[[File:Timeless-EjectChromedomeStylor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2]]
Long ago on Cybertron, Chromedome served in the [[Autobot Police]] and harbored an interest in the field of mnemosurgery. Over time, he was able to use his highly decorated partner Prowl's status to pursue this interest, developing the ability to extract information directly from a suspect's mind. However, as time passed, Chromedome found himself called upon not only to read minds, but rewrite them, altering a subject's memories and personality. Seeking to escape the burden of these duties, he buried his past and his talents. Eventually, though, he would come to meet Rewind, another Autobot with an interest in memories. Though it took some time, Chromedome eventually let the smaller Autobot into his life. {{storylink|Chromedome (G1)#Timelines|''Timelines'' Chromedome bio card}}

Some time later, Chromedome and Rewind would become crewmembers of the ''Lost Light'', and, along with [[Stylor]] and ex-Decepticon mercenary [[Treadshot (G1)|Treadshot]], formed the [[INSIRT|Intelligence and Notable Surreptitious Information Recovery Team]], a group tasked with uncovering any mysteries that might threaten the ship's quest to find the Knights of Cybertron. {{storylink|INSIRT|INSIRT Tech Spec}} INSIRT's duties took them to the [[Vestigial Cortical Complex]], a Decepticon memory storage facility that Rewind became very excited about. After they located the facility, an impatient Treadshot made a door by way of explosion, allowing Chromedome, Rewind and Stylor to file inside. {{storylink|Timeless}}

At some point Rewind died, and [[Brainstorm (G1)/2005 IDW continuity#Recordicons|Brainstorm]] set Chromedome up on a date with [[Eject (G1)#Recordicons|Eject]]. {{storylink|Recordicons issue 27|Recordicons #27}}
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==Notes==
*The fact that Chromedome originally used to go by a different name was first brought up in [[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|issue #9]] of ''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'': In that issue, his name was written in quotation marks in Rewind's diagram, and when Chromedome himself was about to mention his original name, Rewind cut him off, arguing that it would make the story they were telling too "confusing". The out-of-universe reason for this was that writer [[James Roberts]] wanted to trick readers into believing that his unmentioned original name held some significance, causing rampant speculation. In [[Remembrance Day|issue #14]] of the same series, it was finally revealed that his original name was the completely insignificant "Tumbler"; the real revelation was that his ''current'' name, "Chromedome", was the one that had a deeper meaning, as it was originally a nickname given to him at the "[[Institute|New Instutute]]" where he used to work under [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]], a rather surprising twist in the light of the events of the "Shadowplay" three-parter.
* "Timeless" co-writer [[Jesse Wittenrich]] would [http://www.allspark.com/forums/topic/99399-post-pictures-of-your-special-arm/page-1044#entry3318823 later reveal] his intention that the Rewind depicted in "Timeless" was being projected into Chromedome's mind by Stylor, and that the actual Rewind was deceased. Vestigial remnants of this plot point remain in the published comic, in the form of Stylor's constant physical contact with Chromedome, and Treadshot never acknowledging Rewind. Whether this holds true in the completed comic or is merely [[authorial intent]] is an exercise left to the reader.
*[[James Roberts]] has said that IDW Prowl and Chromedome had a "stronger bond" than just being partners.<ref>[http://theunderbase.libsyn.com/the-underbase-deconstructs-shadowplay "The Underbase Podcast Deconstructs Shadowplay"], 17:17 - 14:58</ref>
*An erroneously-coordinated appearance by Chromedome in [[The Gloaming|''More than Meets the Eye'' #16]] was recolored by [[Josh Burcham]] into "[[Toxin]]", a character created for [[Unofficial conventions|TFCon 2011]].
* Chromedome's present day alt mode looks suspiciously like a light runner from the ''{{w|Borderlands (series)|Borderlands}}'' franchise.
* Chromedome's [[:File:MTMTE9 early Chromedome.jpg|"Shadowplay"-era body]] (distinct from his present day one) inspired his [[Chromedome (G1)#Generations|''Titans Return'' figure]]. Amusingly, this toy briefly appeared as his present day body in [[Crucible (Part 1): A Dance Before Dying|''Lost Light'' #19]] because no one supplied [[E. J. Su]] with reference models.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:IDW (2005) Autobots]]
[[Category:Lost Light crew]]
[[Category:Mnemosurgeons]]