Editing A Dust of Crystals

{{Comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[Transformers (2019 comic)|Transformers]]'' #40
|prev=Darkness, Once Gazed Upon: Part Three
|next=The Landscape of Fear
|caption=
|image=TF2019 40 cvrRI.jpg
|title="A Dust of Crystals"
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[February 16]], 2022
|coverdate=February 2022
|written by=[[Brian Ruckley]]
|art by=[[Anna Malkova]]
|colors=[[David García Cruz]]
|letters by=[[Jake M. Wood]]
|editor=[[David Mariotte]], [[Tom Waltz]] and [[Riley Farmer]]
|continuity=[[2019 IDW continuity]]
|chronology=
}}

'''The fate of Cybertron hangs in the balance as the Decepticons besiege Crystal City.'''

==Synopsis==
On one of [[Crystal City]]'s many balconies, a pensive [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] quietly awaits the impending [[Decepticon]] strike that will make or break his dwindling [[Autobot]] resistance. As [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] checks in with his old friend, Prime muses that although he once told [[Termagax]] that their choices define who they are, that's not entirely true. Anyone can choose a path, a course of action, a side... but the ''real'' test of character comes from how they live with the consequences of that choice. Beyond the city limits, [[Strika (BM)|Strika]] and the Decepticons who have followed her from [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] are already committed to ''their'' choice: not content with merely killing the Autobot leader, Strika orders her troops to raze Crystal City to the ground. The Autobots die today; obliteration of this final refuge will herald the birth of a new Cybertron—and, as one, the Decepticons raise their weapons and charge.

Within the city walls, [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] does what he can for a wounded [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], who grimly explains what she and her team saw on the way back from Iacon: Strika has brought half of the garrison stationed in Iacon, and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] has already supplied reinforcements from neighboring [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]]. Still a warrior at heart, Arcee remains determined to do her part in the coming fight, but [[Greenlight]] reminds her that she has ''other'' responsibilities this time—a responsibility to Greenlight, and their mentee [[Gauge]]. Arcee's never run from a fight, doesn't know what to do this time... and neither do [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]], [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]], [[Strongarm (G1)|Strongarm]], [[Vibes]], and [[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] who tersely watch from behind their improvised barricade as the cloud of dust on the horizon grows ever larger. With only a few minutes until contact, Vibes suggests a last-minute prayer to whoever's listening...

''Crystal City began with [[Solomus]]'s vision of a bright future for the Cybertronian species; at the dawn of the [[Age of the Firstforged]], with the [[Thirteen]] already in decline, he sought the counsel of [[Solus Prime|Solus]] and [[Alchemist Prime]]. Together, they raised a city of towering crystal spires, a celebration of the virtue and potential of the Cybertronian race—and although the city continued to grow after the [[Thirteen]] and their acolytes disappeared from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], the builders and architects who followed in their stead never deviated those ideals.'' Now, however, it seems as though Crystal City will follow its creators into oblivion: as the opening Decepticon salvo reduces those same spires to shards, [[Pyra Magna]] and the [[Senate Guard|Prime Guard]] keep Optimus abreast of the fighting outside. [[Backstreet (G1)|Backstreet]] informs his leader that [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] wants to speak with him, while Pyra notes that most of the remaining civilians and neutrals have evacuated. All they have to do now is hold out long enough for their backup to arrive... but, as [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] reminded them before he left, there's no telling how long that might take. All the Autobots can do is dig in and return fire: although [[Kup (G1)|Kup]]'s artillery brigade send [[Weirdwolf (G1)|Weirdwolf]] and [[Roadtrap (POTP)|Roadtrap]] scrambling for cover, their shots allow [[Storm Cloud (G1)|Storm Cloud]] to pinpoint their position and transmit their coordinates to Strika, who calmly orders her [[Strika's Heavies|heavies]] into action: backed by a solid line of tanks, cannons, and artillery, the second barrage topples buildings and forces [[Big Shot|Topshot]] and his team into a retreat as defenders across the city take cover and outrun collapsing buildings as they fall back to the city center. 

Amidst this bleak tableau, with the Autobots losing ground minute by minute, Optimus and Bumblebee finally sit down for a chat. Even here, secure in an underground bunker, the pair can hear the Decepticons hammering their crumbling defenses... a fact that's not lost on Bumblebee, who points out that while plenty of Cybertronians hate [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] and the [[Decepticon]]s, precious few have the strength of conviction required to take up arms and fight them. Optimus grimly wonders if, perhaps, he's truly in the wrong: after so many cycles of war, he and the Autobots are no closer to victory. While there's still time, Optimus quietly apologizes to Bumblebee for everything he's put him through in the name of the greater good, but is taken aback when Bumblebee tells Prime that he's already forgiven him and that he's going topside to join the fight. Optimus warns him that they're only stalling for time so that the Crystal City refugees can reach [[Darkmount (Cybertron)|Darkmount]] in time... and hopefully, so that their reinforcements can arrive. No matter how Bumblebee feels, Prime warns, blind self-sacrifice won't heal his guilt: only by staying alive can he fix his mistakes.

As the Decepticons push closer and closer to the city center, [[Wingstun]] and [[Obsidian (BM)|Obsidian]] search for Autobot stragglers amidst the ruins—only for [[Sidetrack (G1)|Sidetrack]] to catch the pair off-guard and blow Wingstun's head apart. Unfortunately for him, Obsidian's too agile to hit: Kup shouts to disengage, but the nimble Decepticon leaps ''through'' Sidetrack and instantly eviscerates him with his whirring rotor-blades. Meanwhile, Sideswipe's unit open fire on the Decepticons, while, amidst the chaos, [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] catches up with a doubtful Bumblebee, who's surprised just how much his old friend has changed since they last crossed paths. At that moment, however, the Decepticons finally breach the last barricade, and the explosion sends the group flying; while [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]] and [[Heavywait]] move in to finish their prey, a defiant Sideswipe makes a final stand as his comrades transform and fall back—he doesn't last long, however, and Windblade and Bumblebee quickly haul his wounded body away to the final Autobot fallback points moments before [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]] seals the gate. Inside, the assembled Autobots can do nothing but await the end: Crystal City has fallen to the Decepticons, and with it, Cybertron.

Although Ironhide insists they can still win the fight, Optimus is more pessimistic: with the Decepticons in control of the planet, all they can try to do is save what they can. At that moment, however, a distant light in the sky prompts [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] to speak up: against all the odds, help has finally arrived. Even the triumphant Decepticons take note of the phenomenon as they surge onwards; although Blitzwing initially mistakes the streak of fire for an oncoming meteorite, Strika corrects him. That's not a meteor... it's a ''[[Titan (group)|Titan]]''; badly damaged from her adventures in space, but still ready to fight, buildings shake and collapse from the impact as she touches down.

[[Lodestar (Titan)|Lodestar]] has arrived.

==Featured characters==
(Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks.)<br> 
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
* [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (1)
* [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] (2)
* [[Greenlight]] (20)
* [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (21)
* [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] (22)
* [[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] (23)
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]] (24)
* [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] (25)
* [[Strongarm (G1)|Strongarm]] (26)
* [[Vibes]] (27)
* [[Pyra Magna]] (32)
* [[Flareup (G1)|Flareup]] (33)
* [[Backstreet (G1)|Backstreet]] (34)
* [[Sunrunner (G1)|Sunrunner]] (35)
* [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] (36)
* [[Flak (G1)|Flak]] (37)
* [[Big Shot|Topshot]] (38)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
* [[Sidetrack (G1)|Sidetrack]] (39)
* [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (43)
* [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]] (44)
* [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]] (45)
* [[Firestar (G1)|Novastar]] (46)
* [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] (49)
* [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]] (50) 
* [[Groove (G1)|Groove]] (51)
* [[Elita One (G1)|Elita-1]] (52)
* [[Subsea]] (53)
* [[Gauge]] (54)
* [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] (55)
* [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] (56)
* [[Rust Dust]] (57)
* [[Groundbreaker]] (58)
* [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] (59)
* [[Jumpstream]] (60)
{{!}}}

|h2=[[Decepticon]]s|c2=
* [[Strika (BM)|Strika]] (3)
* [[Obsidian (BM)|Obsidian]] (4)
* [[Hotlink (G1)|Hotlink]] (5)
* [[Red Wing]] (6)
* [[Wingstun]] (7)
* [[Barricade (IDW)|Barricade]] (8)
* [[Runamuck (G1)|Runamuck]] (9)
* [[Runabout (G1)|Runabout]] (10)
* [[Crasher (G1)|Crasher]] (11)
* [[Battleslash]] (12)
* [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (13)
* [[Lugnut (TF 2010)|Lugnut]] (14)
* [[Apeface]] (15)
* [[Heavywait]] (16)
* [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]] (17)
* [[Roughstuff]] (18)
* [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (19)
* [[Weirdwolf (G1)|Weirdwolf]] (40)
* [[Roadtrap (POTP)|Roadtrap]] (41)
* [[Storm Cloud (G1)|Storm Cloud]] (42)


|c4=
* ''[[Solomus]]'' (28)
* ''[[Solus Prime]]'' (29)
* ''[[Alchemist Prime]]'' (30)
* ''[[Halonix Maximus]]'' (31)
* [[Lodestar (Titan)|Lodestar]] (47)
* [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] (48)

}}

==Quotes==
"We like to think we are measured by our choices. We like to think that is how we pass or fail some test. But the choice is the '''easy''' part. Our righteous, noble choices. Weightless. Our merit, or otherwise, does not really live in the choice... but in its '''consequences'''."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''


"'''Crystal City'''. Last stronghold of those who would send you back into mediocrity, insignificance. The last place obstructing the rise of a new Cybertron. So you are going to tear it down. '''Shatter it'''. Crush it into '''dust'''. '''NOW'''."
:—'''Strika'''


"...miracle if '''any''' of us get out of this alive." <br>
"Universe don't trade in miracles, Topshot. Staying alive's about stayin' smart, stayin' stubborn and—yes—'''luck'''. You can't make miracles, but sometimes y'can make '''luck'''. Sometimes you even make it out of '''firepower'''."
:—'''Topshot''' and '''Kup'''


"Anything that has been made once can be made again. But if we're afraid to '''unmake''' anything, the future can never be different from the past. Fire."
:—'''Strika'''


"There is no penance to be found in falling. Only time gives us the chance to address our mistakes. Remember that, Bumblebee."
:—'''Optimus Prime'''


"Someone's having a bad time of it." <br>
"We're '''all''' having a bad time of it." <br>
"Well, it's important to '''share''', my mentor used to tell me. So let's share the bad times around. Here they come!" 
:—'''Sideswipe''' and '''Strongarm'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
* In his conversation with Ironhide, Optimus remembers his angry exchange with [[Termagax]] back in [[Lord of Misrule: Sea of Rust II|#35]], in which he told her that the impending battle for the [[Enigma of Combination]] would force her to choose a side, whether she wanted to or not.
* [[Sideswipe (G1)|Sideswipe]], [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]], and [[Strongarm (G1)|Strongarm]] last appeared together in [[Lord of Misrule: Test Flight I|issue #31]]; in particular, Bumper and Sideswipe were still recuperating from the injuries they sustained in [[War World: Prime|issue #25]]. While Sideswipe’s been patched up, it seems as though Bumper has followed through on his vow to keep his mismatched replacement arm as a badge of honor from that same issue.
* [[Halonix Maximus]], a close associate of Solomus’s as per an exchange in issue #25, makes a one-panel appearance as one of the ‘bots helping to construct Crystal City. 
* Civilians and neutrals fleeing the siege of Crystal City—including Perceptor and [[Termagax]]—have struck out for for [[Darkmount (Cybertron)|Darkmount]], which [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] turned into a refugee sanctuary after the end of ''[[Transformers: Escape|Escape]]'' [[Escape Part Five|#5]]. 
* Lodestar and Lightbright last appeared in the [[Light/Star|2021 ''Transformers'' annual]], in which their search for the rogue [[Vigilem]] brought them into conflict with [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] and his minions on the [[Hexagon]] asteroid colony. Their adventure ended with a severely damaged Lodestar limping back to Cybertron; neither she nor her [[Cityspeaker]] have had the chance to repair the damage she sustained, most notably the loss of her entire right arm. They're not the only reinforcements on the way, either: they've brought [[Scattershot (G1)|Scattershot]] and his [[Technobot (G1)|Technical Solutions]] team along, who gained the ability to [[combiner|combine]] into [[Computron (G1)|Computron]] after a freak accident involving [[Airachnid (G1)|Airachnid]]’s [[Combination Core]].

===Transformers references===
* The narration notes that the creation of Crystal City began around the end of the reign of the [[Thirteen]]. While it doesn't go into specific detail about what happened to them, it notes that by this time most of the Primes had either "gone" or "fallen", in an apparent reference to [[The Fallen]]. Notably, the flashback depicts [[Solus Prime]] as alive and well, so it seems that this universe has eschewed the standardized backstory which usually depicts Solus as the first, if accidental, casualty of the Fallen's temper.
* The same flashback features our first glimpse of [[Solomus]], who'd previously been namedropped in [[War World: Prime|issue #25]]; unsurprisingly, he's based on his two designs that appeared in ''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'', while his body is based on his mythologised design, his colors and distinctive head are that of his true form. When he appears alongside Solus and [[Alchemist Prime]], the two are shown to be ''enormous'', easily twice as large as Solomus himself—perhaps tying back to a bit of ''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Prime]]'' marketing-speak that described the original Thirteen as "rightfully huge". 
* Alchemist Prime's shown laying the foundations for the city by morphing base materials into pure crystal, the first in-fiction display of his transmutation powers from ''[[Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus]]'' in action.
* IDW's [[2005 IDW continuity|first ''Transformers'' continuity]] also tied the origins of [[Crystal City]] to the Thirteen in ''[[Optimus Prime (comic)|Optimus Prime]]'' [[Origin Myths|#10]].

===Errors===
* When Strongarm's group arrives at the Autobots' bunker, her vehicle mode is mis-colored yellow, presumably mistaken for Bumper.
* Lodestar is drawn with the two over-the-shoulder turrets she picked up as part of her Titan-hunting refit—however, she should only have ''one'', since Vigilem shattered the other during their climactic fight in the annual.

===Covers (3)===
* '''Cover A:''' Bumblebee pinned down by [[rust worm]]s, by [[Angel Hernandez]] and [[Fram Gamboa]]
* '''Cover B:''' Optimus in Crystal City, by [[Nick Brokenshire]]
* '''Retailer incentive cover:''' Bumblebee and Optimus, by [[Andrew Griffith]] and [[Thomas Deer]]

<gallery>
File:TF2019 40 cvrA.jpg
File:TF2019 40 cvrB.jpg
File:TF2019 40 cvrRI.jpg
</gallery>

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==External links==
* [https://majorspoilers.com/2022/02/15/preview-transformers-40/ Preview]

[[Category:Transformers (2019) issues]]