HOME | DD

Description
Megatron doesn't know it, but when the shard of dark energon is in his servo, the universe has entered a pivot point. Multiple universes split off from this point, multiple realities, depending on the outcome.

One. "Saved" universe.
Soundwave blocks his lord's servo before the energon makes contact. He steps in front of Megatron, gently pushing his servo away and shaking his helm. No. That's not the way.
In this universe, Megatron stays sane. He is not okay, the war means he'll never quite be okay, but he stays sane. And one day, Megatron and Optimus are accidentally blocked up together in a cave after a rockslide is set off. Their teams dig them out, and much to everyone's surprise, there is no carnage. Rather, the two have been talking, and an accord has been reached. Optimus and Megatron will lead together. And they have remembered a legend: the Omega Lock.
The keys are found, the Lock is triggered. Cybertron is restored. Autobots and Decepticons, side-by-side, return home.
In this universe, all survive. This universe is the best outcome all around, as the warlord keeps his sanity.
Thanks to that sanity, Megatron never harms his spymaster. And, shortly after, he carefully begins to court his most faithful ally.
In this universe, a little sparkling is born. Soundwave's bio-lights, Megatron's build, Soundwave's unusual leg joints, Megatron's size, Soundwave's gifts with sound. When he's a youngling, two symbiotes are born, twin weasel-like creatures who play rough and remind their host's sire of two little ones long gone.

Two. "Lost" universe.
This is the one we all know. Not so kind to the Decepticons, or to Megatron.
Multiple outcomes exist for Soundwave, but most are bad.
In most universes splitting off from this one, that little sparkling will never be born. Soundwave will slowly go mad.
Cybertron is restored, at a cost. This is not the worst outcome, but it is a poor one.

Three. "Death" universe.
Megatron's aim is off. The dark energon pierces wrong. Megatron is slain, and he does not revive.
Starscream takes charge of the Decepticons. And he is not as bad a ruler as many would think... he is angry and prideful, but fairly sensible, as Megatron's madness has not worn him down.
Eventually, though, Soundwave has had enough. Starscream is a fool, leading the Decepticons to fight battle after useless battle, and Soundwave is not loyal to him. Soundwave's loyalties lie with Megatron and the Decepticon cause.
In the middle of a battle, Soundwave marches out of nowhere onto the field, up to where Starscream is trying (and failing) to kill Optimus. Powerful tentacles wrap around Starscream, pulling him away, and Soundwave boldly steps in front of Optimus. Soundwave does not attack, he simply raises one servo, standing still and hoping his predictions are correct.
They are. Optimus stops, confused, and just looks down at the small mech. He has no reason to attack someone who seemingly just wishes to break up a fight, and he wants to see what Soundwave is up to.
Soundwave tilts his helm, watching the Prime, then muffles Starscream's indignant shouts with one tentacle and begins to type his ideas out on his visor. He wants to negotiate.
Here, again, a decision is reached. This time, though, it is Starscream and Optimus who share the power.
The Omega Lock, again, is activated. This universe ends well for all but Megatron, though at least his death was quick and his mind stayed intact. (it also ends poorly for Airachnid, she accidentally finds a scraplet trap, but nobody knows or cares.)
Here, Soundwave's scientific pursuits lead him to interact with a certain medic, who manages to catch his attention. Here, the sparkling born is still large and strong, but his armor is more rounded. His symbiote is a large wolf-like creature, big and strong and friendly. And eventually (though his carrier refuses to carry again, on the grounds that slender builds are not made to carry large sparklings) this one has a brother- a brother with rounded armor everywhere, red and white patterns, and the personality of Ratchet before the war. (Surprisingly prone to partying and exploits in general.)

Four. "Return" universe.
The dark energon hits differently somehow. Megatron's tactical skills don't decay.
The Decepticons win. The Autobots become slaves.
There are multiple different versions of this, all with similar outcomes.
There will be an uprising at some point, usually led or at least encouraged by Soundwave once the spymaster finally admits that his Lord is insane.
Whatever happens, there will be pain and fear and loss. The Decepticons will not survive, with the exception of Soundwave.
Cybertron will eventually be restored, but the Decepticons will not live to see it. Here, some of the lessons learned have been lost, and it is up to Soundwave to remember the reasons the war started in the first place.
Here, again, the brothers will be born. They will learn to fight quickly, as they need to help clean up the various infestations of creatures, and there are fewer warriors to help with such.
This universe works out reasonably well, though with more deaths than are needed.

Five. "Madness" universe.
This one is bad.
Starscream moves to stop his master, just as Soundwave tries the same. Megatron's servo slips. Laserbeak is absent, and the dark energon sinks into the glowing spot on Soundwave's chassis.
Soundwave hasn't been stable in a very long time. He retreats from everything, and it takes only a few days for the demon to grab hold.
Starscream is first to know, but he will never warn anyone. Somewhere in the depths of the Nemesis, the Seeker is hung by both wings, voicebox torn out and spark chamber pierced in several spots.
One by one, the Decepticons fall. Torn apart, hung from the ceiling, pulled into pieces as if some child was experimenting with how they could be broken.
Megatron runs. He knows what's happening, but he can't stop it. And when the Autobots manage to capture him, he doesn't try to escape... he might be safer there.
He's not. Soundwave remembers what he's seen done to captured Decepticon soldiers, and the demon twists that around into a call for a mercy-kill. Megatron will be found dead, his spark chamber obliterated, the back of his helm pierced so he wouldn't be awake to feel it.
Wheeljack is next, pinned to the wall by his own swords. His death was slow.
Bulkhead tried to save him, and ended up decapitated.
Bumblebee is caught by a trap- Soundwave has run trigger wires all over the bloodied area around Wheeljack's body, hooked up to all the grenades. That takes out a quarter of the base.
Optimus dies when he goes to investigate. Soundwave somehow pins him to the ceiling with his own sword, then tugs the Matrix out and hides it.
Airachnid, attempting to hide from what she's heard is happening, runs into Arcee. Arcee wins the fight, but at a cost. When she limps back through the groundbridge, she finds no one to help her. Soundwave watches her bleed out.
Ratchet... Ratchet is last. Soundwave toys with him, pursuing him from death site to death site, making him see what happened. When he finally reveals himself, the medic lunges for him. It's a mistake. Soundwave hops easily around the medic, dodging every swipe and lash, until he tires and decides to just slice Ratchet's arm off and bury the built-in scalpel in the medic's helm.
Fortunately, the humans aren't there. It will be easily a week before they learn why their friends haven't contacted them.

There are survivors, yes. Soundwave couldn't find everyone. There are a few squads of Eradicons, a dozen or so Vehicons, and a few mechs still out in space. But that is the end of the Autobots and the Decepticons, for most purposes. They don't even bother trying to fight. A few of the bold Eradicons raid the Autobot base, taking everything they can use, then they all pack up and leave. One remembers Soundwave's remote controls, so they disable the groundbridge and set up signal blockers to be sure the spymaster can't capture them.
They get away. They'll fly through space for a long time, collecting everyone they can find.
Years later, they come back. They find the Matrix, find the rest of the keys... and they find Soundwave.
The spymaster killed Laserbeak. That was it. His instincts and the tiny fraction of him left fought, tried to make the dark energon leave... it didn't work, but he did manage something else. They find Soundwave with one arm-blade buried in Laserbeak, and one arm-blade buried in his own spark chamber. He might have been trying to remove the dark energon, but it didn't work... he's dead. He's up and walking, but it's slow and stiff... he's not in there any more.
Someone with a cloaking device creeps up and decapitates him. Just to be sure, the Eradicons melt his frame down and seal the remnants into a tomb. They leave a marker, though... Soundwave was a good mech, it wasn't his fault he went insane.
They will restore Cybertron, and they will establish a new rule. One of the Vehicons knows where Soundwave's room is, and they find his files of history books. They'll learn what not to do.
This universe turns out okay, but things could have been much better. There were a lot of deaths.

Six. "Desolation" universe.
This one is the worst. Again, Soundwave is the one who ends up with dark energon in him.
This time, though, it changes Laserbeak. Without the symbiote's death, Soundwave stays fairly logical, and he doesn't die.
Every Cybertronian on Earth dies. Then Soundwave leaves, and he finds others.
Unless the Insecticons mutate, there will only be two sentient Cybertronians. Soundwave, out in space somewhere with the Nemesis, and Laserbeak. Eventually, they'll succumb to the dark energon, or perhaps to one of the dangers of space.
In this universe, Cybertronians go extinct.
Perhaps if they'd known, they would have fared well. They didn't know, though, and Soundwave caught most of them off guard. The few who knew were Eradicons and Vehicons, already terrified of him and unable to present much resistance when frightened and trapped on a ship with a mad spymaster. And, of course, the few scattered ships have no reason to think that they will be sneak-attacked and slain.
This is the worst outcome. Cybertronian stays wild. It may develop, eventually, into something else. The Insecticons occasionally have sentient members... perhaps they will mutate and that trait will become more common. Maybe.

Demon's blood should not be trifled with.