IDW - Punishment

Written by: John Barber

Art by: Livio Ramondelli

Letters by: Tom B. Long

Editor: Carlos Guzman

Plot

Treadshot, Brisko and Wilder are plotting a heist on Starscream's quarters to take some of his "hoarded treasures" to sell on to help them survive on this new Cybertron, unfortunately during their plotting, there are attacked by a mysterious Cybertronian, who slaughters all three of them. They are later found by Barricade and the others, who investigate their murder, but only briefly as Starscream needs to greet Optimus at the spaceport.

Optimus returns to Cybertron for a personal errand and is quickly brought into the murder investigation, and learns that some Decepticons are living outside of Metroplex in a ghetto made from the ruins of the old city. Optimus goes to visit the ghetto, but is soon ambushed by a bunch of Decepticons, led by the Firecons. Luckily however Starscream rescues him by pulling him from the crowd and into the air.

During their escape, Optimus notices one of the Decepticons acting suspicious, so he lets go of Starscream and gives him chase. The Decepticon, Heavy Barrel, runs inside his hideout to find his two bootlegging cohorts dead. He starts to panic, and flies off when Optimus arrives too, but the Autobot manages to disable him and causes him to crash. Starscream arrives a few minutes later, having broken up the mob outside, and both are shocked to find Heavy Barrel murdered as well.

Later, Windblade finds out that one of the dead Decepticons was Stratotronic, and was friends with Gutcruncher who was now running a bar in the Ghetto. She determines that there is a link between the bar, and the bootlegging, so she heads there with Optimus.

At the bar, they find Sandstorm, who has started frequenting there, as he's fell out of the Autobot way. Gutcruncher takes the news of Stratotronic's death badly, and tells Optimus and the others to leave the revenge to him.

Sandstorm decides to help Optimus with the investigation, and goes to investigate the first murder site with him, there he finds something unusual in a shell casing, but before he can explain what, Windblade calls in and reports that Gutccruncher's bar is on fire!

By the time Optimus and Sandstorm return to the bar, the whole place has burned down, with no survivors left. Sandstorm at first blames Optimus as he was helping him, but quickly calms down, and reveals that the bullet casing he found was from an Infernus Bullet. These weapons were locked down by the Autobots due to them being a very painful and horrible way to die, and Sandstorm reminds them that the Decepticons made them from reverse-engineering them from the Firecon's abilities, which could also explain who started the fire here.

The security team inside Metroplex locate the Firecons and attack their home brutally disabling them all in the process. Sandstorm is about to execute Sparkstalker, when Optimus turns up and forces him to stop.

Windblade and Starscream break into the building as well, and tell everyone to drop their weapons, and get medics for the Firecons.

By the next morning, the Firecons are in a holding cell, and Sandstorm still can't believe he almost executed someone. Windblade is feeling a bit disenchanted as well, as all she's seen so far is war on this planet that she was hoping to find help on.

Optimus determines that the Firecons are being framed, as they'd have no use for Infernus Bullets, and the fire at the bar was far too controlled for their abilities. He believes he knows who the killer is now though, and heads to the Dinobot's park, where he confronts Slug as the killer due to his hated of Decepticons and flame abilities. After a short fight between the two, Starscream calls in to report another set of murders, this time of Autobots.

At the crime scene, Optimus continues to accuse the Dinobots for the murders, and gets them angry leading to Optimus declaring that he should have had Slug and the others killed after the war, just to stop them from causing trouble during their peace, he then leaves with Windblade.

Slug returns to the park, to find the other Dinobots, and angrily says that he'll kill Optimus for what he said to him, when suddenly the park starts to blow up. Thankfully due to a series of fail safes set in place by Optimus the Dinobots are saved, and Optimus confronts the REAL killer, Sandstorm.

Sandstorm admits to everything, and reveals that he's punishing all the Cybertronians who have committed horrible crimes during the war, but were never dealt with before now. He tries to escape again, but Optimus catches him, and knocks him out, putting him under arrest.

In the aftermath, Optimus and Windblade return to the scene of the first crime, where Optimus was planning to go all along, and Optimus explains that this is the place where he because Prime (during Autocracy), but admits to her that he is truly worried about their people with loose cannons like the Dinobots still around, eager for battle, but he still needs to hold out hope for a better tomorrow...

Characters

Autobot

Optimus Prime - Truck Cab

Windblade - VTOL Jet

Slug - Triceratops

Swoop - Pteranodon

Snarl - Stegosaurus

Sludge - Apatosaurus

Chromia - Speedbike

Warpath - Tank

"Hot Spot" - Fire Truck

"Streetwise" - Police Car

Metroplex - City/Space Ship

Skram - Car Killed by Sandstorm

Fireball - Dragster Killed by Sandstorm

Diver - Submarine Killed by Sandstorm

Lander - ATV Killed by Sandstorm

Megatron - Tank (Mentioned)

Blurr - Race Car (Mentioned)

Wreckers (Mentioned)

Decepticon

Barricade - Car

Sparkstalker - Mandibled Dragon

Cindersaur - Horned Dragon

Flamefeather - Beaked Dragon

Sinnertwin - Two Headed Dragon

Acid Storm - Jet

Treadshot - Car Killed by Sandstorm

Brisko Killed by Sandstorm

Wilder - Wolf Monster Killed by Sandstorm

Heavy Barrel - Jet Killed by Sandstorm

Ransack - Jet Killed by Sandstorm

Stratotronic - Jet Killed by Sandstorm

Gutcruncher - Tank Killed by Sandstorm

Morsa Killed by Sandstorm

Blood - VTOL Jet Killed by Sandstorm

Skidmark - Motorcycle Killed by Sandstorm

Ghetto Dwellers

United Cybertron

Starscream - Jet

Sandstorm - Helicopter/Buggy Jailed by Optimus Prime

Metroplex Civilians

Other

Primus (Mentioned)

Traujorans (Flashback) Killed by Treadshot's Group

Notes

• This story explains where Optimus went to following him recent exit from Robots in Disguise (or rather the series formerly named that)
• Several of the victims in this story are made from lesser known repaint characters, or characters repurposed from other toy lines.
• Slug has been shown to have taken Grimlock's place as Dinobot leader in his absence.
• Barricade's role as a cop in this series may be a reference to his later incarnations rather than his G1 persona (such as Prime or the Movies)
• Windblade notes the irony on Warpath's (one of the "good guys") name
• There's been a statue of Optimus and a park built within Metroplex. This is clearly a recent addition since if it was there the last time Metroplex acted as the Autobot's city, then it would be in his pre-Earth body.
• Barricade explains why he still wears his Decepticon sigil. despite officially being of the United Cybertron. This could also explain why other characters, like Blurr still do the same.
• Optimus doesn't confirm or deny Sandstorm's theory that High Command knew about some of the Autobot faction's war crimes. Honestly I can believe that Prowl would know and sanction some of the exterminations taken place, and shown here.
• It's quite handy that all of Sadstorm's victims were all still hanging out in their same groups huh?
• Hot Spot and Streetwise are both seen on Cybertron here, despite being on the Lost Light, either these are just similar looking guys, or a mistake.