The autobot commander, Optimus Prime was formally Orion Pax, an archivist who dreamed of changing the caste system on Cybertron, so he teamed with a fellow activist, the miner and gladiator D-16. Things took an ugly turn however, as D-16 wanted the reform the decepticons to change Cybertron, while Pax believed the Autobots could be changed. D-16 became Megatron, named after the fallen prime, and Orion joint the Autobot resistance before being awarded with the position of Prime, and was given an upgrade as a reward. He was then tasked with transporting the 'Cargo' off-world in the Ark, something that lead him and the surviving autobots to earth, years later, where the battle would continue.