City of Steel (issue)
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| "City of Steel" | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | IDW Publishing | ||||||||||||
| First published | June 2014 | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | 2014 | ||||||||||||
| Story by | John Barber | ||||||||||||
| Art by | Livio Ramondelli | ||||||||||||
| Letters by | Tom B. Long | ||||||||||||
| Continuity | IDW continuity | ||||||||||||
| Chronology | Current era (2014) | ||||||||||||
| Price | Free (Windows 8 Madefire app, initial) ??? (Other digital platforms) | ||||||||||||
Optimus Prime's arrival on Cybertron coincides with the aftermath of a Decepticon triple homicide.
Synopsis
At a secluded location on Cybertron, Brisko, Treadshot, and Wilder meet and plot to steal Starscream's hoarded "junk" using a map of his quarters in Metroplex to stake out a better life on another planet. They are interrupted when a mysterious robot arrives and kills all three Decepticons.
Five hours later, the massacre site is visited by Starscream, Barricade, Sludge, and Slug. Slug is dismissive of the murders, believing the Decepticons were up to no good and deserved it, while Barricade argues to Starscream that all Cybertronians deserve equal consideration. When Sludge sniffs out the map, Starscream dismisses the entire thing as hijinks gone wrong, but allows Barricade to investigate if he really wants to.
Optimus Prime arrives from Earth on a personal errand and is welcomed by Starscream, Windblade and Sludge. While walking through Metroplex, Sludge mentions the murders, garnering Optimus's interest. The welcoming committee also talk to Optimus about the living conditions of Cybertron, including the fact that the Decepticons are consigned to a ghetto outside Metroplex in the ruins of Iacon, being unable to find jobs or be accepted into the greater society. Slug considers it just treatment for their acts throughout the war, but Optimus is unconvinced and takes a walk through the ghetto to see for himself.
Optimus's walk attracts some aggressive Decepticons, including Sparkstalker, who angrily asks why the Autobot is in Decepticon territory. Optimus can only plead as all of the Decepticons gang up on him. His savior comes in the form of Starscream, who notes one just can't reason with the "rabble" as he lifts Optimus from their grasp.
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Others |
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