Warning! Spoilers for Transformers: Galaxies #10 by Brandon Easton, Andrew Griffith, Josh Burcham, and Jake M. Wood
Before the illustrious war between the Autobots and Deceptions began tearing Cybertron apart, any Transformer who had the great misfortune of stumbling upon the so-called splice-thieves would later find themselves stripped of their brain modules and transformation cogs, and have their parts later sold on the galactic black market. Based on the events of the latest issue of Transformers: Galaxies, these unscrupulous Cybertronian thieves ripped the components from these robots while their Allspark still burned within them (they were still alive).
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It is assumed that this illegal and unethical harvesting procedure no longer exists in the current day. Or, at least, it is not performed by the splice-thieves. The events in Galaxies transpire before the formation of the Autobots and Decepticons, and this is the first time such a sinister group has ever been mentioned in any continuity, let alone IDW’s canon wherein this tale takes place.
In the newest arc, one of the Four Great Generals of the Threefold Spark War, Ultra Magnus, gets himself entangled in the morally questionable affairs of these splice-thieves while searching for a Transformer named Alpha Trion, whose last known whereabouts, of course, take Magnus to a region of fringe colonies known for its lawlessness. Magnus, eager to find Trion, soon arrives on a planet that is steeped in mystery. One, despite being in a remote area where communications with other worlds is severely limited, an unidentified vessel immediately attacks his ship upon arrival, meaning they were somehow expected, which, as the crew explains, is surprising. Two, Cybertron has no data on the planet, for the Cybertronians have never engaged its inhabitants in economic trade or any other similar type of transaction. It turns out that the planet’s inhabitants’ didn’t want to be found, for Magnus, while scouting the area alone, comes across what looks to be the splice-thieves’ secret base of operations.
Not deterred by this unexpected turn of events, Magnus’ solo mission soon leads him into what can only be described as a room of carnage, for where the floor should have been he finds piles of robots torn asunder. All of these remains are presumed to be lifeless until haunting words emanate from a Transformer that, by all appearances, should not still be alive: “Please…end my…suffering.” The scarcity of the Transformer’s remaining parts makes it appear as though the splice-thieves scavenged his mutilated body for far more than just his brain modules and transformation cogs.
It is also at this moment when Magnus must have realized that the splice-thieves’ harvesting is chillingly performed pre-mortem. While an unsettling discovery, more awaits Magnus within this hell hole of untold tortures, and it’s not Alpha Trion. Transformers: Galaxies #10 is in stores now.