Hi! Timon here!
And he’s called Timon!
Ahem…you’re called Pumbaa, not after my heritage family name.
Oh. So anyway, what are we here to talk to the readers about?
Okay, so, remember that time when a certain programming block on Cartoon Network named ‘Toonami’ aired two revivals of He Man and Transformers from 2002 to 2003? That was the year to watch it. Then in the grand Winter of ‘04, we got a movie about our story. Well, history’s gonna repeat!
Oh hooray!
Because THIS! Is a story I found on my bookshelf while doing some Spring cleaning. It’s called: Armada Matata. You know, a bit like Hakuna Matata, our catchphrase fans of ours remember, but as said by someone called Optimus Prime, who is one of the main characters in our story.
Oooh! You mean, the one from the ‘80s?
No, Pumbaa, I mean the one viewers were introduced to when Transformers Armada premiered on TV! Geez, why am I reading the story with such a pea-brained hog?
Okay, once upon a time, deep in the jungle, there lived a giant robot called Optimus Prime, and a little Trollan wizard called Orko. They lived in perfect peace and harmony with the jungle creatures surrounding them, and their jungle was so huge it could beat any giant celebrity mansion any day. Pumbaa! What are you doing?
You said I could watch a programme on celebrity homes.
This is no time for watching TV! It’s time for a story, ya hear?! Anyway, as I was saying, Orko and Optimus were both very lonely in their jungle home, and wished they had a friend to keep them company. They would sit in their tall, ginormous ‘Family Tree’ and think about what they would do if they had someone who could fit into their family.
My family tree consists of a giraffe, a hornbill, a cow, another giraffe, a rhino, a hippo, a flamingo aaaand another warthog like me.
One dark and stormy night - OOOHHH! This is the scary part - some random lioness in a red robe ran out of Africa, past the canyon and towards a rapidly rushing river. She was holding a Moses basket, which was carrying a cute little baby lioness cub. She knew her baby was in danger, so she, for some reason, placed onto the river, and it floated away.
Didn’t you forget to mention she waved goodbye to her baby?
Mothers don’t just simply wave goodbye to their babies in these kinds of stories! Instead, the mother said: “May you find hope and courage wherever life finds you.”
My turn, my turn! The baby floated up and down the river, avoiding the jaws of hippos and rapidly floating currents. Then, the baby fell over a huge waterfall, and landed with a SPLASH! Into the river far below. Luckily, she survived, and got washed up on the shore of somewhere which we knew we mentioned already.
The jungle! You’re a genius, Pumbaa! Okay, Optimus was walking along the jungle one peaceful, moonlit night, and was just about to go to the river to look at his reflection, when all of a sudden….
Pumbaa, can you provide the noises for me please?
“WAAAAAAAAA!! WAAAAAAAA!! WAAAAAAAAAAA!!!”
He heard the sound of a baby crying! That baby was eventually the lioness cub I was talking about, and when Optimus saw the baby all alone in her little basket, wrapped in her little red velvet blanket, a smile appeared under his faceplate as he gently, tenderly picked her up.
Optimus had never seen such a baby like this before. When the baby saw Optimus, she looked him in the optic sensor, and saw no fear. Because of this, she stopped crying and began to laugh with her. “Hello, little one,” Optimus said gently, “What are you doing out there all alone? You must look…different, than how we survey our kingdom. Let’s take you back to the Family Tree and show you to Orko.”
Orko was sitting all alone in the family tree, wondering when Optimus would come back, when all of a sudden, Optimus came climbing up into the tree holding Furaha in his arms. “Optimus! You’re back!” cried Orko, “But…where did you get this and what is it?” “She’s a baby lioness cub,” explained Optimus, “I found her all alone by the lake. Suppose her mother abandoned her.”
He gave the cute little bundle of joy to Orko for him to hold. Orko grunted and squealed as Furaha struggled in his arms, but then, she felt his long, tender ears. Knowing she saw no fear in the little wizard, she began laughing with him as she hugged him. “Where’s her mother?”
Optimus looked concerned. “Her mother? Ah, oh, well yes, well her mother…” Optimus had no words to describe where the young lioness cub’s mother was. So, he ignored the malfunctioning word factory in his body and said to Orko, “We’ll keep her.” Orko was like, EH?! And Optimus said, “We can protect her and show her our ways of life. But first, we must christen her with a jungle name.” And thus, they named her…
Oooh! Ooh ooh ooh! I know her name!
You do?
Yes! Furaha!
Talk about the obvious. Anyway, Orko was like, Okay, she’s our baby. But still, Optimus immediately began to like the cub, and so did Orko. Here comes the soppy stuff, so brace yourself: Optimus and Orko snuggled down in their leafy nest, and the two of them were surrounded by butterflies as Optimus held Furaha over his body. Orko floated around them, trying to count each butterfly as if it were a twinkly, shining star.
You’ve been watching Tarzan, haven’t you?
Optimus laid Furaha beside him, and Orko snuggled near his new baby sister. All of the jungle fell into a peaceful slumber as Optimus and his two friends, which now became his family, fell fast asleep in the peaceful glowing moonlight.
I do enjoy moments like this. My go! Years passed, and Furaha grew from a squiggly wiggly squirt into a healthy, energetic young lioness cub. Y’know, this reminds us of when we looked after Simba when he ran away from home because of….how shall I put it…a monkey’s uncle. Anyway, one morning she woke up to another new day in the jungle.
The story may be plotless, Pumbaa, but still, we’re adding flavour into it.
Is it time for lunch now? I’m starving!
We’ll have lunch later, Pumbaa, there are children out there craving a jungle story! Anyway, Furaha awoke bouncy as a towel that’s just been out of the dryer. “Morning, guys!” she giggled. Orko was already awake. “Hey, Furaha! Ready for a day of fun?” “I sure am,” she said, “And you won’t believe what I’m going to see today!” But Optimus was still asleep.
So, Furaha and Orko snuck up behind him while he was still snoozing, and….RARRR-RARR-RARRR-RARRR!! They pounced onto him, and tickled him awake. “Alright, alright, I’m up, I’m up.” said Optimus. Furaha and Orko were so excited they couldn’t contain themselves, even when they climbed onto Optimus’ shoulders.
Optimus gave them a lift down from the family tree into the jungle far below. From there, Furaha friskily ran off to play. First, she climbed across vines with weird crossed eyes, trying to be like a chameleon. Orko watched her from far below, cheering her on like a crowd at a football match. “What do you think, Orko?” she cried, “Isn’t that swell?” “Keep up the good work, Furaha, you’re doing great!” her friend called from far below. But then he felt concerned.
He looked over towards a troop of orangutans who were eating from a huge pile of bananas. “I don’t think you should be climbing above that orangutan family, Furaha,” he called. “Who cares, Orko, it’s just a matter of - WOOOOAAAAAHHH!”
Furaha fell down and landed with a SPLAT into the banana pile. The orangutans were covered in a big mushy banana mess! Some of them were wearing banana beards, and some had banana hair! They looked angrily at poor Orko, who backed away giggling nervously. “Er…sorry, I was just…teaching Furaha how to climb…” But one orangutan used a banana to shoot out its mushy insides at Orko, who got covered in the stuff. Furaha found it so funny! HAHAHAHAHAHA, aaah, now I’m laughing!
Orko couldn’t take enough of Furaha’s playful torment, and this turned into a delightful game of tag round the garden. “Wait ‘til I get my hands on you!” he cried. Furaha was laughing so much as she ran across the jungle, that Orko forgot his anger and started laughing with her too. Soon, he wiped the banana mush from his shadowed face and began riding on Furaha’s back.
Cries of “Yee-haa!” echoed through the jungle as Orko rode on Furaha’s back towards the lake. You know, Pumbaa, this reminds me of the time we tried to chase birds with Kovu and Kiara, and we got chased by rhinos. Those excited yells remind me of the happy days.
Ooh! The days when you had a skateboard?
Nah, not those kind of days.
As Furaha and Orko ran towards the lake, they didn’t realise Optimus Prime was meditating in the water, in harmony with the hippos. Suddenly, Furaha and Orko came crashing through the trees and jumped into the lake with a wild SPLASH!
Ooooohh….that one hurt ‘em.
No, it didn’t hurt them, it provided a soft landing for them.
Anyway, emerging to the surface, the two became worried, because Optimus might get angry with them. But instead, he said, “I know you’re full of energy from climbing, but why don’t you spend time with me in the lake?” The two friends nodded.
“To be in harmony with hippos is to swim with them. You’ll maintain safe peace and harmony from swimming with sentient creatures,” advised Optimus, and Furaha and Orko felt at one with themselves as they swam with their hippo friends. When Furaha emerged onto the surface and came face to face with one hippo, she wiggled her ears with him. She taught Orko how to wiggle his ears like a hippo, too. Furaha and Orko even played with the baby hippos while Optimus relaxed. It was so peaceful that for once, Furaha forgot about the troubles of the world, and swam with her brother and her hippo friends.
Later on, Furaha and Orko encountered a rhino scratching away at some tree bark. “It looks very sad,” said Furaha, “Maybe we should cheer it up.” No sooner had the rhino turned away from scratching its horn on the tree than…
Furaha and Orko fell on him and squashed him?
No no no no no, I meant he was surprised to see Furaha holding onto his horn looking like she was about to cuddle it. The rhino became surprised and shocked as Furaha began to pull faces and wiggle her ears at him. Orko was pulling his ears down and spinning his eyes round and round and round.
Well, the rhino had enough of that, so he ran like a bull in a matador tournament thingy across the jungle, with Furaha holding on for dear life. Orko quickly floated across the forest after his friend, but what they didn’t know was that they were heading towards Optimus Prime, who was relaxing by a tree.
OH NOOOOO!! Furaha’s about to head straight towards Optimu-uh oh, what’s the rhino doing now?
I think the rhino’s throwing her up into a tree.
Those rhinos. Pretty tough guys, huh? Orko, who wasn’t looking where he was going, bumped straight into the rhino’s rock solid bottom and fell on his back on the ground. The rhino snorted and stormed away to do more rhinoey stuff.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh, Timon, you and your habit of adding comedy into your stories.
So what? Nothing can ever beat a good laugh. Anyway, Optimus kindly helped Furaha down from the tree, and Orko managed to get up and dust himself up. “I might’ve told you before, haven’t I?” scolded Optimus gently, “Rhinos are very dangerous.” “We’re sorry, Optimus,” said Orko, “The rhino only needed a bit of cheering up.” Boy, are they a tough audience.
“Rhinos are really tough to share happiness with,” explained Optimus. “That’s why you can never trust them. They’re always in a bad mood no matter how you try to make them happy. In his image, rhinos were made to be grumpy.” explained Optimus. “But what about you?” asked Furaha, “Aren’t you grumpy all the time?” “No.” said Optimus. He raised his arms towards Furaha. “....except when I do THIS!”
With that said, Optimus began to tickle Furaha and playfully romp with her. Orko on the other hand was romping with someone else - a small monkey. But, as you said earlier, Pumbaa, he enjoyed it.
Every night, Furaha, Orko and Optimus would sit in the grassy meadow just near the jungle and gaze up at the stars. It was quite a peaceful job doing just that, because the three would be together. Each time they did that, they would talk about what they could see up there.
“The stars are trying to tell us something,” said Furaha that night. “I think they’re trying to tell us to follow our destiny.” Destiny, schmestiny. Didn’t you hear about a certain robot owl? “Well, I think the stars are what my magic created a long time ago when I was still in the womb.” Eurgh, come to think of it, coming out of the womb is really disgusting. That’s why I say you should never watch those childbirth videos - YUCK! “Well, you told me when Trollans were born, their magic developed in the womb, thus, their magic became the stars for expectant parents like your’s, Orko.”
No more, Timon, it’s making my stomach churn!
Let’s put lunch on a straight ban until the story is over, shall we?
Nah, I prefer to eat grub while I’m reading. Okay, so while I’m telling the story with my mouth full, it was Optimus Prime’s turn to speak. “Sometimes I feel like the stars are the spirits of our ancestors, guiding us until the day we ascend to Heaven,” said Optimus. “Yeah, but we mustn’t worry about death just yet.” said Furaha, “We’ve still got our whole lives to live.” “Yes, and that’s why I want you to remember this catchphrase for the rest of your life here with us: Armada Matata.”
“Armada Matata?” asked Furaha. “Armada Matata,” said Orko. “It means no worries.” And we both know what that translates to, don’t we, Pumbaa?
That’s right!
Hakuna Matata!
Now, on with the story. The next day, Furaha found Orko drinking pink fizzy stuff from a coconut. “What’s that you’ve got there, Orko?” asked Furaha. “Oh, it’s just Fizzy Coconut Delight. Want to try some?” “Would I ever,” said Furaha, and Orko handed a coconut to her.
After pulling a few things from his sleeve, which included a rubber duckie, a pair of woolly gloves, a tennis ball and a ginger cat which ran away yowling, Orko produced a tin opener so Furaha can go right into the fizzy coconut. “Ah-ah-ah,” said Orko right before Furaha was about to open the coconut, “You oughta shake the coconut to let it start fizzing.”
So Furaha shook the coconut like it was a pair of maracas, then used the tin opener. Fizzy coconut liquid came rushing out like an avalanche! “Here’s to best friends for life,” said Orko, raising his coconut and clinking it against Furaha’s. “Armada Matata!” they cheered together.
The more they drank, the more they felt their brains turn to jelly. By the way, I like my jelly with grubs. Anyway, when they threw their coconuts onto the floor, they felt so light headed that when they got up they saw stars. Then Orko couldn’t know which way he was floating. And Furaha was wobbling about trying to find her feet!
“Hey, Orko,” she said in a slurred speech, “Did you know why the rhino became a monkey’s bride?” “I know why,” said Orko, almost falling over, “Because you’re a loser!” The two laughed as Furaha ran off, her little lioness bladder almost fit the burst! Furaha ran off to a part of the jungle, and then fell over onto her bottom. “I gotta pee…” she said.
And she did! While sitting down of course. However, the pee evaporated into the soil, and Furaha eventually wiped her bottom with a palm leaf before collapsing onto the ground from being drunk. When she woke up, she was back in the family tree again, and at first she couldn’t see Orko and Optimus because at first they were just blurry shapes. When her vision became clear, Furaha sat up and shook her head to take away the lightness.
“Optimus…do you think us lions need to use the toilet?” asked Furaha. Orko giggled, now not drunk, but Optimus said, “I saw what happened. You peed because you were out of your head when on that coconut fizz. It’s only for grown up animals, Furaha, this is why drinking should not be intended for underage people like you and Orko.”
“But Orko’s a grownup,” said Furaha, “He’s allowed to drink the stuff.” “Yes, but not you. Next time you don’t want to get drunk, try drinking water for a change.”
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Our story takes place in Brisbane, Australia. Australia is a really cool place somewhere in the world, filled with all the cool things people living in the hot sun really like, such as meat pies, swimming pools and kangaroos.
That orange house with a brown roof over there is the home of Aunt Marnie. You can tell by her yellow fur and green hair tufts and circle round her front that she’s of true Australian descent. Of course, she’s never complete without her children - Furaha, Nakona, Orko and Baby Marvin.
She placed them in different parts of the backyard and said, “Now you be good kids and play for a while. I’m just going to the verandah to have a little nap. If you dare disturb me…I’ll do THIS!” Aunt Marnie grabbed Orko and tickled him. “Hey! Stop!” cried Orko, and his siblings laughed with him too. Now, as Aunt Marnie rests on the verandah with her glass of juice and listens to ‘60s Radio, let me introduce you to her children.
First, there’s Orko. A Trollan wizard. Shy, eager to help and sometimes a little too excitable, he’s an expert at magic inside and out. He cares for his siblings, but his favourite is dear little Furaha. He likes to play with her and share a cuddle with her in case times get too tough. Here he is now, sorting through his bag of tricks. Right now he’s thrown out a rubber duck, a flower, a rubber teddy bear, a stick of rainbow sherbet and an inflatable kangaroo.
“Ha-ha!” Nakona took Aunt Marnie’s sunhat off her head and placed it on top of his, standing proudly as if he were king of the whole garden. “Now who’s boss? I’m king of the whole garden and no one’s going to stop me!” No one responded. “Oh well, suit yourself!” Nakona is never one for adventure. He always likes to pretend he’s a famous explorer, or an astronaut, or a king. He would urge Aunt Marnie to play with him and his siblings, just by tapping her with his paw and repeating her name over and over. It gets annoying after a while, but eventually, Aunt Marnie gives in. “Alright, alright, I’m up,” she groaned as she went to the part of the garden where Furaha was playing. Furaha is sweet, innocent, lively and loves a good game or two. Today, she’s wearing her tiger onesie and bouncing around, going “Hoo-hoo-hoo-hooo!” “Now who’s this little lion in tiger skin?” Aunt Marnie said cheekily. “Me!” shouted Furaha, and she leapt onto her, knocking her to the ground and nuzzling her. Aunt Marnie kissed her and said, “You little bouncy bunny. Isn’t it too hot to be wearing a onesie?” And finally, here in the sandpit, there’s Baby Marvin, a small martian who cannot talk yet, but needs a little help with things. He’s really shy, but he’s a good friend to animals, especially his lion siblings.
Every day was special, fun and exciting for this true Australian family, but breakfast was their favourite time of the day, because one lucky sibling gets to share Aunt Marnie’s famous homemade riced popcorn. “Alright,” she said that morning as they sat down to have breakfast outside, “Who wants riced popcorn?” “Me! Me! Me!” everyone shouted. “I do! I do I do I do pick me!” cried Nakona. “Seeing as you’ve been so good this week,” explained Aunt Marnie, “I’ll let you have a nice bowl of riced popcorn.” “Alright!” cried Nakona as his bowl was laiden in front of him, and he poured some milk into the popcorn. “Better be careful, though, it’s my own special recipe so it may pop a little.” Suddenly, POP! POP! POP! Popcorn began flying everywhere. Nakona was an expert at karate, for he had been to karate class every Thursday, so he did his best karate moves and tried to defend himself, then he got all the popcorn into his mouth and swallowed it all down in one giant gulp.
Furaha was given Crunchy Pops for breakfast, along with a banana. “All the best for a healthy body,” reminded Aunt Marnie. Furaha squeezed the banana out of its peel, and then chopped it into tiny pieces in midair, allowing the pieces to fall safely into her cereal. Once she began eating, it felt like she was eating bananas on crackers instead of cheese on crackers.
Orko was given a boiled egg and a plate of toast soldiers. His favourite breakfast! However, every time he had a boiled egg for breakfast, he was worried there might be a baby bird inside. “Do you think a baby bird might be inside this egg?” he asked, “Because I don’t want to eat its remains.” “No, an emu didn’t lay this egg. Its eggs are twice as big. These eggs are sourced from farms, from the dairy, and are filtered for people to enjoy at breakfast.” Orko cracked open the egg and looked inside. Its yolk was still there. “It’s okay, baby bird, I’m not going to stab you with knife toast.” He took out a straw and began to slurp it as if it were juice. Aunt Marnie chuckled and went over to Baby Marvin. “And Baby Marvin, you’re having porridge today. It’s your favourite, yum yum!” Marnie helped feed Baby Marvin while everyone enjoyed their breakfast. After breakfast, they all drank mugs of cocoa, especially Orko, who needed to get the taste of egg yolk, what he called ‘baby bird’ out of his mouth.
Everyone went into the backyard to play and burn off their breakfast. Orko was doing cartwheels across the grass, Baby Marvin and Furaha were playing in the sandpit and Nakona was playing at being a fierce dragon. Aunt Marnie was relaxing on the verandah drinking her juice and listening to her music on the radio, when suddenly…
“This is the voice of doom speaking. Special bulletin! Flash! Gales are coming. High winds will be blowing through Brisbane. Now be calm, don’t get panicky…GO BACK INSIDE!”
Just as the voice on the radio said that, strong winds began to blow and the sky began to darken. A storm was coming. Aunt Marnie jumped to her feet and called. “Kids! Come back inside! It’s about to get stormy.” “Come on, Baby Marvin, let’s go!” But the winds were too strong and they blew Furaha into the air, with Baby Marvin holding on. “AUNT MARNIE!!!” screamed Furaha. “FURAHA!” screamed Aunt Marnie back, and Orko was too busy doing cartwheels to notice the wind blowing him away too. “HELP!” he cried as the wind blew him away. Nakona was pretending to breathe fire on the helpless peasants of the village he came to destroy, when all of a sudden the wind blew him away too. Luckily, Aunt Marnie caught him by the paw and said, “I got you, darling!” But unfortunately, both were blown away by the wind.
The wind took the family all over Australia. They flew over Sunshine Bay, they flew over Adelaide, they flew over Sydney, they flew over Alice Springs! Baby Marvin was too scared and started screaming his head off. “I told you this isn’t a good idea to play outside during high winds,” called Aunt Marnie over the wind and Baby Marvin’s screams. “Now look what we’ve put ourselves into - we’re stuck in the high wind!” “We’re so foolish,” whimpered Orko, “And that voice of doom on the radio is trying to tell you all along - Australian storms are very very dangerous!” “It didn’t say that!” said Furaha. “Did too!” argued Nakona. “STOP ARGUING!” shouted Aunt Marnie, almost losing her patience, “I’m so sorry,” cried Nakona, almost in tears, “Please forgive us, please!” Aunt Marnie sighed. She took hold of Baby Marvin’s hand, and he stopped screaming. “Alright, I forgive you, but do not play outside in a storm again, understand?” she scolded. “We understand,” said Furaha, Orko and Nakona in unison, so they all held onto Aunt Marnie and waited to pass over their house.
A few minutes later, the winds blew them back to Brisbane. “Look! There’s our house!” cried Furaha. And so it was - there was their cosy little house, untouched by the wind and rain. Suddenly, the wind stopped. The family started falling down, down, down, until they fell straight through the chimney and tumbled into the living room.
They were very dirty from their tumble, but still, they were safely indoors, out of the wind and the rain. Suddenly, lightning flashed outside, and Orko ran to hide under the carpet. He whimpered and shivered. “Aunt Marnie, I’m scared,” he shivered. “It’s alright, Orko. Look! We’re indoors!” she reassured. “And we’re still in one piece,” said Nakona. “But we’re here for you, Orko. With us, you’ll never have to hear of another thunderstorm ever again.” smiled Furaha.
“Come on,” said Aunt Marnie, “Who would like a nice, warm bath?” “Us,” said Furaha, “We’ve had such a hectic day.” As Aunt Marnie ran the bath, Orko helped out by pouring a bottle of Sunrise Surprise bubble bath into the water. “Ooh, my favourite!” said Furaha. “Can I taste it?” “No problem,” said Orko, “It’s my own special recipe.” Furaha tasted the bubble bath. “YUCK!” she cried, “It tastes of chemical lab liquid!” She ran to the tap in the sink and drank some water, while Nakona helped Aunt Marnie into the bath. Soon, everyone else got in and enjoyed splashing each other - and getting soap suds on the floor - while Aunt Marnie got herself and her children clean.
After they were all dry they sat in the middle of the living room. The kids enjoyed honey milk, while Aunt Marnie enjoyed her favourite kangaroo cordial, which was specifically flavoured like ginger and oranges but was a bit sour on the tongue. Furaha poured herself a glass of honey milk and proposed a toast. “To us - a true Australian family!” “A true Australian family. Hooray!” everyone cried.
When the kids went to bed that night, Furaha had a bad dream about floating in a hot air balloon in a stormy sky. Orko, Nakona and Baby Marvin were riding on hot air balloons too, and suddenly, their balloons were colliding with each other…
POP!
Furaha shot up, startled, and almost knocked her head into Nakona’s. He was there with Orko and Baby Marvin. “Hey Furaha, I dare you to go into Aunt Marnie’s room.” he said. “Why?” asked Furaha. “Because storms give us nightmares,” said Orko.
Nakona, Orko and Baby Marvin pushed Furaha into Aunt Marnie’s bedroom. “You mean we all have to sleep in there?” asked Furaha. “Yeah, let’s,” said Nakona. So Furaha got into bed beside Aunt Marnie, who was delighted to have her there. Nakona, Orko and Baby Marvin crawled into bed beside her and snuggled down into a deep sleep. “Goodnight,” they softly whispered to each other, and with everything perfect once again, they snuggled into a deep sleep.
Contrast their peace and happiness to the real lives Australians live. In the spirit of reconciliation the creator of this story acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today, especially lions, Trollan wizards and aliens who live in this peaceful community.
Now, anyone for some riced popcorn?
THE END.
Hello, everyone, my name is Optimus Prime. I can’t seem to think what happened before I entered this place, but what I can remember is that I held Furaha and Orko under my arms as bombs fell everywhere on this place…was it Cybertron? I can’t remember. Then we were falling down a huge green and purple hole, and in a flash, we were gone. I, because I’m telling you this in a rather dizzy way, have lost my memory of my past life, but what I can tell you is that Furaha, Orko and I ended up here…in the very beginning.
When we woke, we were surrounded by a peaceful forest, much like the ones you’d see on Earth, except there’s no people taking walks with their dogs. When I awoke, I had no idea whether I was on Earth or not. I called out loudly for my friends, trying to wake up.
“Furaha!”
“Orko!”
Suddenly, I heard the branches rustle, and high above there came voices. “We’re up here!” cried a squeaky little voice. I couldn’t tell whether it was Furaha, Orko or not. “Who are you? What do you want from me?” I nervously whimpered, but suddenly, out from the trees fell Furaha the lioness cub, followed by her best friend Orko, a Trollan wizard. Luckily, I managed to catch them. “Optimus!” they both cried as I hugged them tight. “Thank goodness,” I sighed, “At least we’re in a better place now.” “What better place?” asked Orko, confused. “There doesn’t seem to be any people around here. No men, no women, no children, no dogs. Except us. And everything seems so peaceful and lovely.” “I know it is,” I reminded, “But look around you. It seems like an endless sea of trees.” “Look look look,” said Furaha, “If you try to compare the sea with the forest, they don’t even look alike. What matters most is that we ended up in this strange, unforgivable place when we fell through that strange hole, and someone in our heads told us we’re never going back to Cybertron again.” “We’re…not going back?” asked Optimus sadly. “Then…that means I…I…I’ll never see my men again.” “Well, there was a sign.” said Orko. “What sign?” I asked. “It was near the hole we jumped into to avoid Mega-Tyke’s tyranny. It said, when I took a glimpse at it from your shoulder angle: “You are now entering Paradise.” Is THIS where we are now?” “Maybe.” I wondered. “Let’s look around and see if there’s someone who can help us.”
We wandered around the forest together, looking for someone to help. Furaha and Orko stopped for a minute to play a game of hide and seek amongst the trees, as if their youthful spirit had come back immediately. I couldn’t laugh, because my head was still clearing, so I just sat by a tree and watched, wondering what it would be like to be a young Autobot again. A flashback entered my head as at once, everything around me turned into a white background, and Furaha and Orko turned into a younger version of myself in harmony with a younger Megatron, playing happily together, before this horrible war began. Seeing this figments of my Cybertronian imagination come to me was all too much for me, so I started to cry great tears of loss. Furaha and Orko saw me crying and ran up to see what’s the matter. “Optimus? Are you okay?” asked Furaha. I knew I had to hide my sadness from Furaha and Orko, but if I didn’t, they might think I’m a weakling and not a good role model. So I gulped, wiped my Energon tears from my optic sensors and puffed up my metallic chest. Suddenly, I felt a pain in my chest. “Ow!” I shouted. From that nasty fall we had when entering that hole, every single part of my body hurt. “I can’t go on any further,” I grunted, trying not to cry, “My chest is very sore.” “Maybe this can help!” Orko produced a tub of Cybertronian Healing Cream from his sleeve and gently rubbed it all over my chest. “I’m afraid healing cream won’t heal it quickly enough,” I said, “I’m afraid we’ll just have to spend the night here.”
So Furaha and Orko set out a picnic lunch for them to enjoy, but since there was no Energon, I had to stand by and watch. Orko used his magic to set out a feast of cheese sandwiches, cakes and juice, and as they tucked in, I was only too happy to watch, as I thought about what it would be like if Transformers ate normal human food, and what would happen if the pain in my chest happened if I was one of the children in a certain book about those kids being locked up in an army base. I read this story to Orko and Furaha once - they were fearless as I read it to them, but for kids their age, they felt sorry for the children in the story, especially some girl who named herself Melanie. They were only human, and the strange flesh-craving creatures in the story were called Hungries, a sort of nuclear equivalent of zombies but born from parental blood. This night, I decided not to tell the story to Furaha and Orko, because it may bring them memories of being on Cybertron, before this terrible war happened. So, Furaha and Orko snuggled up next to me as I fell asleep in the shade of the tree, the gentle beam of the yellow moon shining onto me like a theatrical spotlight on a show of sleep. Furaha huddled next to Orko, who felt so tired and so full from the picnic he set out that he couldn’t say another word about it.
The moment we woke up the next morning, we had no memory of what happened the day before. The first thing I heard was Furaha giving a shout. “Look! Look at those giant blades of grass.” Orko was laughing hard at that fact. “There’s no such thing as a giant field of grass! What made you think that?” “Calm down you two,” I said, “There’s no such thing as a giant field of grass.” “Well there is,” said Furaha. “We’ll explore it after I’ve woken up a little. By the way, my chest has fully healed, as is everything in my body.”
After I’ve woken up a little, Furaha, Orko and I took a walk through the field of long grass, hoping to find someone who can help. “The grass sure is long,” said Orko. “It’s perfect for playing hide and seek around!” said Furaha. “Stay by me!” I warned, “It may not be safe. You might get eaten or something like that.” Suddenly, we heard the sound of marching feet, and I peered behind two grass blades to see a troop of Lionants marching in line. They looked like ants but had the heads and bodies of lions, which meant they were half ant, half lion. “Wait to cross,” I said carefully to my friends as they watched the Lionants march by. As the last Lionant passed, a loud screech echoed through the air and grabbed it in its beak! The screech belongs to a mighty Ladyhog, which is half a ladybug and half a fierce warthog. “RUN!” I shouted, and I grabbed my two friends under my arms as we ran from the Ladyhog’s beak. We had to jump for cover as the Ladyhog swooped down and almost got us. The Ladyhog was gone, and we all sighed in relief. When we looked up, we saw a group of Praying Meerkantises, which were coloured a bright mossy green and were half praying mantises, half meerkats. “Yoohoo! Can you give us directions to get back home?” called Furaha, but the Meerkantises didn’t listen. They just kept digging for worms to eat, which is quite disgusting if you were to see them in real life. “Let me ask them, Furaha,” I said, and I went up to the Meerkantises and asked, “Do you know the way out of this forest?” The Meerkantises pointed in unison to a large opening in the forest. “Why thank you very much,” I giggled nervously, and I even got to shake hands with a Meerkantis, which made Furaha and Orko giggle. “Oh, so you find it funny, eh?” I said, finally finding my sense of humor and scooping them up onto my shoulders, “Come on, let’s go!” Furaha and Orko shouted and laughed in delight as I ran towards the opening of the forest, following the little trickle of water that ran across the forest. When we emerged, we found ourselves on a huge cliff looking out over a huge natural environment, which consisted of Arctic tundras, rivers, lakes, forests and mountains. Right beside us was a large river. “Wow!” shouted Furaha, her fur blowing in the wind, “This is amazing!” “I know, right,” laughed Orko, “Imagine how happy we are to be in a wonderful environment such as this!” “We’re free!” I cried, finally feeling happy again. “And look where this river leads to,” said Furaha, looking way down below, “It leads to the most enormous lake I’ve ever seen.” “Enormous…lake?” I couldn’t contain my excitement. “You’ve got to be kidding me! Hold on!” So Furaha and Orko held on as I ran to the edge of the cliff and leapt over it.
I shot past the waterfall as Furaha and Orko held on for dear life, with Furaha reaching out to touch the water as it shot by her. At last, SPLASH! We had dived into the lake, and Furaha, Orko and I were screaming with laughter as we began to splash each other, feeling excited and content. After a while, when we calmed down, we finally relaxed in the water, lying on top of it and feeling cool and confident that we’re in the right place. “You know,” sighed Furaha, “Being with you guys is the best experience I’ve ever had, and aside from that, let me just say that it’s always hot in this place.” “You’re right,” puffed Orko, “I should wear cooler clothes.” “This place is the best thing that ever happened to me,” I laughed, “I feel like I’m not the leader of the Autobots anymore. I feel like I’m in a totally new world.” Furaha ducked her head under the water and saw a huge shadow swimming underneath. “I think you’re right,” she said, just as a huge Whalebird dived out of the water and back in again, surprising us to the core. SPLASH!
Later, we went into a meadow. It was a lot calmer there, and the grass was soft and green, much like a blanket. It was such a beautiful place, with nature at its work - flowers blooming and swaying in the breeze, birds flying high above singing beautiful songs and just me, Orko and Furaha there, no one else. “Look!” Furaha said suddenly. The meadow had a huge grassy hill which reached up to the sky. At once I began to run up the hill, with Furaha and Orko holding on for dear life. Once I approached the top of this large hill, Furaha and Orko jumped off and started rolling down it. “WHEEEEEEEEEE!!” they cried, laughing happily. Furaha stopped mid-roll and called. “Come on, Optimus! What are you waiting for?” I thought for a moment. Memories of Megatron attacking Cybertron were about to enter my head, but I ran towards the edge of the hill, fell over and rolled downhill. Furaha and Orko cheered as they rolled with me and stopped midway down the hill, laughing in joy. Seeing the sun set, I began to yawn, and Furaha and Orko’s laughter slowly turned to yawning too. They huddled up next to me, and I cuddled them softly to sleep. “Goodnight,” I whispered. “Goodnight, Optimus,” whispered Furaha and Orko as they fell asleep.
By the time 12 O’Clock rolled around in human hours, I wasn’t having a good night after all. A nightmare entered my head of everything that went on back on Cybertron.
“Furaha! Orko! Quick! Run!”
“You can’t escape from me, Prime, Cybertron is now mine!”
“Quick! Into that hole!”
“Is that the only option we have?”
“Hold on!”
I awoke with a jump, and looked around, breathing heavily. Furaha and Orko were still asleep soundly, so I took them in my arms and climbed back up the hill, where I saw the unthinkable - a mountain with some colourful Northern Lights hanging over them.
I climbed the tall, rocky mountain and, after a few falls and tumbles, I finally made it to the top, where the Northern Lights were ready to grant my wish. According to the sign on the mountain, “He who wishes will have it come true.” So I took a deep breath, and said, in rhyme:
“Oh Northern Lights, please hear my song,
I need to get away from Megatron.
Those memories are in the past,
Northern Lights, don’t make them last.”
The Northern Lights enveloped me and my two friends softly in a gentle glow. At once, I started to feel myself glowing golden, as well as Furaha and Orko. Once the glow stopped, I felt like nothing happened in the past. “What happened? Who’s this Megatron?” My memories were wiped clean. Suddenly, the mountain crumbled and my friends and I fell towards the snow.
When I emerged the next morning, nothing came into my mind at all. Furaha and Orko emerged from the snow and shook them all off. Orko had to spin to get all the snow off, because he’s a wizard. “Optimus, do you remember a place called Cybertron?” asked Furaha. “No.” I said. I turned to Orko. “Do you remember someone called Megatron?” “Uh-uh, nope, I do not remember a thing.” said Orko. The Northern Lights’ magic worked. Our memories of the past were completely gone.
Furaha, Orko and I made our way through the snow, wondering along the way what that Megatron and Cybertron thing is, and what species and places they might be, and what a chance it would be to show what type of world it would be without a Megatron or a Cybertron.
Suddenly, Furaha saw something in the distance.