#The Mechs Archives AU

[candlecoo-sideb-art]

I need to know, do Jonny and Jon ever meet in the mechs au? How does that go?

they both get kidnapped separately and then thrown into same room cause their kidnappers can't tell who is who.

#somewhere else (in space) au #tma au #the mechanisms au #the mechs #the mechanisms #tma jon #tma jmart #tma martin #jonny d'ville #jon sims #jonathan sims #jonmartin #martin blackwood #tma fanart #tma comic #tma #the magnus archive fanart #the magnus archive #the magnus archives #my art #digital art #fan art #art

[saym0-0]

tma x mechs college band aus are SO funny because all i can imagine are basira and jon awkwardly not making eye contact and pretending not to know each other the whole entire time they're working together, but sometimes one of them will offhandedly reference a song and the other one will laugh at this seemingly entirely random sentence leaving everyone around them like ?????

#the mechanisms #the mechs #tma #the magnus archives #tma x mechs #mechs x tma #idk if either of those tags exist but whatever #saymbles #mechs x tma au #editing this post ages later bc i remembered the tag i used for my first crossover au post

[voidvendetta]

TMA soulmate au where your soulmate’s name is written on your wrist but it’s just Martin desperately trying to find out which Johnathan/Jon/John/Jonny sims it is

#tma #the Magnus archives #tma soulmate au #martin blackwood #jonathan sims #john sims #jon sims #jonny d’ville #the mechs #Jonny waistcoat #Tma memes #tma shitpost #shitpost #voids voice #The mechanisms

[thatmoththoth]

Tma x mechs crossover au where suddenly, the Toy Soldier and Nikola gain the ability to travel between the two universes and become instant friends. Also Nikola would probably mess with the Mechs crew by pretending to be the toy soldier since she has the same voice as TS and also happens to be an inanimate object. Maybe the Toysoldier would end up being an honorary member of the circus? Jonny’s reaction to seeing nikola would probably end up being 3 words. “Great. There’s two.”

I really need to stop getting au ideas.

#the magnus archives #tma #nikola orsinov #the toy soldier #mechs #the mechanisms #crack au #au

[pencildragons]

moving on from this post, i am now assigning Everyone in the archives an instrument

tim: lies and tells everyone he can play harmonica. he cannot play harmonica. was actually a concert percussionist in the london symphony orchestra for four years. he is taking this secret to his grave (he thinks) (everyone else knows. he’s only fooling himself). he once accidentally wound up winning a stras violin in a bet, then donated it to a charity shop because he didn’t know how to play it.

sasha: CAN play the harmonica, chooses not to. played cello from second grade until her first year of university, has not touched it since the Bow Incident Of 2004. tim knows. is once convinced when very drunk to try the cello belonging to a pub band member. promptly rocked everyone’s socks off. was going to start playing cello again in july 2016, but--well. the NotThem has no interest in music.

martin: does not play an instrument, but desperately wanted to learn french horn. is a very good singer, however, and was a treble in his church choir until his mother got too sick. Nobody Has Heard Him Sing Ever

basira: nothing /affectionate. she can, however, dance very groovily, a skill Nobody Else in the archives possesses

daisy: she’s actually a very accomplished pianist, but did also once destroy an entire piano so now the entire archives thinks she hates musicians and all that they stand for. she owns a 17 year old keyboard that has electrocuted her twice

melanie: was classically trained as a singer, however i know in my heart of hearts one of her parents was australian, so she can also play lagerphone, bush bass, and the spoons Very Well. once she (accidentally) played the spoons on ghuk and the audience lost their fucking minds. she and georgie secretly have a two-woman bush band

jon: i mentioned this in the post that sparked this one, but he’s a violist. he also plays at least 5 other instruments and sings very well, but fundamentally thinks that viola is the coolest. he does everything by ear. one of these 5 instruments is squeezebox and another is electric guitar. i leave you, the reader, to decide the other three. people think he only plays viola because he never fucking shuts up about it

honourable mentions:

georgie: drum-kit. she cannot read sheet music. this was, in fact, one of the original attracting forces between her and jon, who can but doesn’t want to

gerry: the obvious answer is bass guitar, However. i think he also won prizes for banjo playing

dishonourable mentions:

peter lukas: treble tin whistle

gertrude: french horn. also piano. also the trumpet. also. uhh. hmm. there is a chance she may be able to play every single instrument ever

elias: nothing. he does, however, have perfect pitch (insult)

stupid idiot motherfucking jurgen leitner: the recorder. badly.

#i am suddenly compelled to write an orchestra au #(jon's in the mechs on the side) #holy shit time to tag ig #timothy stoker #sasha james #martin blackwood #jonathan sims #basira hussain #daisy tonner #georgie barker #gerry keay #peter lukas #gertrude robinson #elias bouchard #jurgen leitner #tma #the magnus archives #words of wyrm

[lostonehero]

Marius has a bad time or more new mechs and tma au stuff

Marius was rubbing his eyes. The pain was getting worse as they continued deeper into these tunnels. "Mr. Bouchard, I don't mean to sound rude, but how much farther?" He was incredibly uncomfortable, and his hair was threatening to move without his permission from the slick back position.

Elias looks back and smiles. "Not much further now, Marius. Now, the history of these tunnels goes back over 200 years. Created by Robert Smirke himself, now he was quite detail orientated if you knew him."

Marius nods. He doesn't really know how long humans live, but he knows how long Martin should live and that he wanted to expand that. He knew about the other species that his crew was made up of and what that meant. He probably should look more into humans for Martin's sake. "That's very interesting, sir." He barely could register the now open room they were in, let alone the mummified corpse.

"Now I normally don't have the choice in choosing my new body, the Beholder picks for me, and I wake up and move on. However, the situation has changed, and unfortunately, this body is on its last legs." Elias sighs.

Marius felt like his eyes were about to explode from pressure, and he barely registered that he was being spoken too.

"I'm having Peter take over in the meantime since you're so new to the institute. Elias was here for at least 3 years, but I can't be picky. Not when I'm getting so close and you just walked in. I really have to thank you, Marius." Elias hums softly. "Now, don't worry, you won't be left when I take over. I've heard death is quite peaceful."

Marius's vision went black as he collasped on the floor. He could feel a warm sticky liquid drip down his cheeks before sweet unconsciousness took over.

.......

Jonah opened his eyes with a sigh. "Not an enjoyable process being awake, but necessary for the situation." He walked over to the corpse on the floor and fished out his phone. He shudders, finally realizing his new body felt wrong on many different levels. He went to run a hand through his new hair and bit back a surprised yelp.

"Not human." Marius blearily blinked as he floated next to the man possessing his body. "Also, be gentle. My hair is very sensitive."

"You're still alive?" Jonah watches Marius float in front of him.

"Kind of comes with the territory. I wonder if you'll stick around if I get killed well, my body, at least." Marius scratches his chin. "I can't say I've been possessed before, and it's quite an odd feeling."

Jonah stumbles back and hits a wall with a new jolt of nerves he has no experience with. He goes up his spine. "What are you?"

Marius snickers. "Is this how Jonny felt watching me stumble around for the first hundred of years felt? Because if it is, then I get his humor." He smiles as he floats down to sit next to the man possessing his body. "I would take over, but seeing you flail around is way funnier. I'm not human, I'm not even from earth to be fair."

......

Jonny can feel his tail threaten to break his belt loops on his pants. He was annoyed the sun went down, and he was stuck waiting outside Elias's office waiting for Marius. This was incredibly frustrating. Why did he have to wait for him he's a grown ass man. He can take care of himself, and it's not like he could die.

Jonnys phone buzzed and he took it out to see a message from Martin

Martin: Is Marius out yet? I'm sorry I asked for you to wait. I'm making your favorite when you both get back. I even found some bad alien movies for this weekend for just us to enjoy. I mean, you don't have to. I know you might have other plans, and that's ok.

Jonny can feel his face heat up. Ok, he knows why he's doing it, and homemade dinner sounded amazing. He was never much of a cook unless you counted butchering an animal you kill and cooking it over an open flame proper dinner. Martin spoiled him, and he expected nothing in return it's the least he could do to wait for Marius. He knew Ashes had to drag Ivy out of the library because it's Friday night, and the building was closed for the weekend.

Jonny began to play with his phone before his ears twitched with a new noise in the air that he knew to be Marius laughing. He scowls, shoving his phone in his pocket. "Are you quite done wasting time?" His annoyed scowl dropped to a confused frown as he confronted Marius.

Marius looked disheveled, which he rarely was unless it was early morning or he just left Raphella lab. His tail was swaying lazily behind him, and his hair seemed to be stretching. His pointed ears, Martin like to call elf ears, were blue at the top to match his mood, which was happiness. "Jonny!"

"Please tell me you're drunk." Jonny pinched his brow and sighed. He would much rather prefer a drunk Marius to a sober one. It's much easier to get him to do things.

"I'm possessed!" Marius breaks down in giggles. "I know you can't see him, but his face when I slit my throat was priceless. Also, he stays after I die, which is a little annoying, but he had no idea I wasn't human." He starts to laugh harder. "So so Elias wasn't actually Elias it was this guy Jonah possessing his body, and he picked..." He composes himself the best he could without breaking down laughing again. "He picked me! To possess! I've got his eyes now."

Jonny raised his brow, but the gray eyes were definitely not Marius's, but they were in his head. "So you got a dead guy in you?"

"I have a guy scared to die in me." Marius breaks down laughing again.

Jonny snickers that turns to laughter and is very insane laughter. "Fucking scared to die? That's fucking hilarious. I I.... fuck me I'm texting the group chat."

.....

The less cool mech chat because Martin isn't here

Jonny: guys Marius has a dead guys eyes now

Ashes: like in his hands or...?

Raphella: did he get affected by one of the cursed books? I will run tests.

Tim: You've gotta be specific. TS is asking if it's the same guy who stole their vocal cords.

Jonny: Like in his skull.....

Jonny sends a picture of Marius purple face mid laughter and his eyes are clearly gray and not green anymore. His hair is pointed up straight, and his sharp teeth are on display. There's blood on his white shirt from an earlier slit throat.

Raphella: I would like to remove the eyes

Tim: dude what the fuck

Brian: Is there another doctor?

Jonny: so.....

Jonny puts in a audio message explaining the entire situation as Marius is giggling in the background adding details like the guys name is Jonah and he's nearly 300 years old and how he did this to serve his god.

Ivy: so can he get the keys and I can go to the library?

Ashes: no

Ivy: fuck you

Ashes: Martin wants you to join game night Sunday.

Ivy: that means Raphella cant drag Marius to her lab

Raphella: darling I have wendsday open for that

TS: Honorary Mechanism!

Jonny: mechanism plus one.

Ashes: sorry TS I'm with Jonny

TS: That Is OK We Have A New Friend

Marius: Jonah didn't belive in aliens.

Several people are typing

#new tma mech au #tma podcast #the magnus archives #tma #the mechanisms #the mechs

[boxes-of-soup]

what if

i finally decided

to sit down and write the mechs x tma fic thats been in my head for literal months now

#its all i think about at work tbh #what else to do but brainrot over au #i need writing skills #and motivation #The Mechanisms #the magnus archives #tma #mechs #the magnus archives x the mechanisms #mechs!jon

[chaoticmannamedoliver]

Vastya AU name will be whatever the most voted is.

Reblogs would be greatly appreciated, so i get one, more opinions, and two, more people to know about my AU! :D

#the mechanisms #the mechs #@chaotic man named oliver #gay immortal space pirate band my beloved<3 #them🧡 #the mechanisms AU #reblogs for as many opinions as possible would be very appreciated #reblogs appreciated♡ #tma fears #the magnus archives #nastya rasputina #jonny d'ville #drumbot brian #gunpowdertim #ashes o’reilly #the toy soldier #ivy alexandria #baron marius von raum #raphaella la cognizi #the mechanisms poll #fandom poll

[therainbowtea]

AU where everything is the same but Tim finds out about a little band called The Mechanisms and thinks that Jonny D'ville is Jon. Everyone else agrees that they sound the same but Jon states other wise. Just because all of the band members went to the same uni as him and had a couple of the same classes doesn't mean they're the same person and he will die on that hill. Literally no believes him and still says the D'ville IS Jon.

#tma #the magnus archives #magnus pod #tma headcanons #jon sims #my thoughts #I just think that it's so stupid to think about #also because I love the the AU about the Mechs being his band in uni #(even though I don't think Jon could do that socially)

[curiositykilledtheradiostar]

POV you're Martin Blackwood and you've finally found the phantom harmonica you kept hearing when you were trying to sleep at the archives and it turns out it's your boss attempting to avoid having his own panic attack and playing said harmonica

#so many college mechs Jon AUS ignore the fact that this means he can play harmonica. like that's funny as fuck #brought to you by playing instruments my favorite coping mechanism [badum tiss] #the magnus archives #curio chatter

[candlecoo-sideb-art]

Does Jonny D'Ville ever properly flirt with Martin or is he just into fun, violence, adventure, violence... violence

If he does how does Marto take it

Being that the two have been in this universe awhile, Martin's gotten pretty used to being hit on and basically ignores it. Jon has not... and is testy about it.

Part one

#somewhere else (in space) au #tma podcast #tma au #tma comic #tma fanart #tma martin #tma jon #tma jmart #tma art #martin blackwood #jonathan sims #jon sims #jonmartin #tma #the magnus archive #the magnus archives #the magnus archive fanart #the mechs #the mechanisms au #the mechanisms #the mechs fanart #the mechs jonny #jonny d'ville #digital art #my art #art #fan art

[saym0-0]

grah Thinking About my tma x mechs au again,,, Lyf is there bc im obsessed with the aus where they reunite with the mechs,, this wasnt meant to be the purpose of the post but heres a lyf doodle im still trying to figure out their design:

i dont like much of it but the bifrosty bits are awesome,,, ANYWAYS where was i,,

rest is under the cut bc my ramblings got long

ashes toy soldier and jonny were blasted down to earth for some reason against their will by the other mechs (probably just for fun) and toy soldier immediately wandered off and found (was found by?) the stranger; ashes and jonny are having a competition to see how many fucked up things they can do without anybody catching on and discovering who they are. they did not anticipate the sheer amount of supernatural stuff on this planet that Nobody Talks About

jonny refers to the way he dresses as the archivist as his lyf cosplay

also in this au jonny uses he/him but as jon uses they/them,, i said this in a previous post but in case anyone's confused about how i refer to him in this post

back to toy soldier with the stranger, nikola finds them and is like 🫵 ur just like me fr and like. idk if she yoinks its voicebox (third hand smh) or if she just has a different one but its uh,, i lost my train of thought hang on

actually i think it would be funnier if it somehow took nikola's place on accident. maybe it yoinks her mannequin head and cool outfit (it likes fun uniforms!) and everyone just believes it.

idk man i thought it would be funny if the two animate models played by jessica law were somehow stuck in the same body, but reading up on toy soldiers backstory my idea wouldnt work,,

maybe toy soldier comes to earth way earlier, back when nikola is made and whatshisname mr orsinov models nikola after them and they're kinda just there from the beginning,,, i need to relisten to nikola's statement

sorry this has devolved into me thinking out loud in text post format but like. im having fun

#the mechs #the mechanisms #tma #the magnus archives #lyfrassir edda #the mechs fanart #mechs x tma au #people who can make aus and keep them all secretive so fans have to figure ot out themselves are Far Stronger Men Than I #my art

[lets-try-some-writing]

Action! Chapter 1

Having just graduated from Iacon's acting academy, Orion Pax is beyond excited to begin hunting for his first big role. And after vorns of doing nothing but play extras, a position has finally opened to play a part in not just any media, but his favorite novel of all things. No, he's going to play the role of Optimus Prime! A tyrannical ruler in a fantasy novel that he lived and breathed during his studies.

Unbeknownst to Orion Pax, he isn't going to be part of a high quality production. Instead, everything he is going to experience will be one hundred percent real.

(Yet another Au for yall. This one I have been sitting on thinking about endlessly for MONTHS.)

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙

Orion didn't like to come off as ungrateful, but he had expected acting to be a more… open field of work.

He had at one point considered taking on an archival role, but that went flying out the window the moment he saw the stars work on screen for the first time. Part of him regretted walking away from the Archives that cycle, but Ratchet, a notorious old school actor, was his original inspiration. He had been lucky enough to go to one of the elder mech’s interviews and heard all about how Ratchet walked to Iacon and dragged himself to stardome. It was inspiring to hear of the tales of struggle and strife, the corruption behind the sets, and ultimately the satisfaction of a job well done and a character perfectly played. 

One thing led to another, and before long, what really got him interested in the career path was when he began meeting other stars in person. That interview had him tumbling down a rabbit hole, and from there he used his meager paycheck working at the docks to get close enough to the big names to ask them a few questions, or at least observe from a distance. Starscream broke any and all stereotypes with his unusual tendency to play both femmes and mechs in film. The advice Orion received when he asked how to become a great actor was simple.

“Kid, if you want to get big, be DRAMATIC! No one wants to spend hard earned shanix to watch a mech look bored.”

It was sound advice, and that day, Orion made the decision to understand the craft of acting. He got a chance to attend several meet and greets for other big stars such as Megatronus, a world renown actor applauded for both his heroic and villainous roles. The elder mech had smiled kindly when Orion held up his datapad for a signature and asked how to become an actor. His advice was promptly engraved into Orion’s mind alongside Starscream’s.

“Don’t just pretend when you are playing a character. You need to become the character in mind, body, and spark as much as possible. The audience knows when a performance is forced.”

Shortly afterwards, he was lucky enough to run into Arcee and Cliffjumper, a stunt double duo whose advice amounted to a simple statement. Arcee, had touched him on the arm with a knowing smile and chuckled.

“Be authentic! Do your own moves as much as you can. You want to sell the scene no matter what, even if it gets you a few cuts and dents.”

Clffjumper on the other servo had patted Orion on the shoulder with a lopsided grin and given far more… eccentric advice.

“If you can jump off a cliff, JUMP OFF THAT CLIFF!” 

Orion wasn’t totally sure if it was meant to be a joke or not. 

Whatever the case, he added their wisdom to his long term memory files and continued his hunt for further inspiration, a goal forming in his spark. He spoke with Soundwave, a famous actor known for his monster roles. The mech was known to be of the type to never speak on set, and his advice was grim, but undoubtedly rational.

“To act, you must know every facet of the being you are to depict. You must feel their pain, know their burdens. Only then can the weariness of their sparks show clearly in your optics through the screen.”

Ultra Magnus, a fantastic director, offered him a nugget of wisdom as well when he managed to harass the office the mech worked at enough to get his email responded to.

“Look, acting isn’t just using your vocalizer and manipulating body language. You need skills, actual abilities to compensate for anything you end up missing. The audience is far more forgiving toward an actor who gives it their all.” 

Bulkhead and Wheeljack, special effects masters at the top of their field, had not so subtly given him a datapad on the production of explosives and other such materials before flicking his audial and offering their advice. Bulkhead was the most rational. 

“The acting is only half the battle kiddo. You need to make a statement, preferably with explosives and a dramatic stride out of a burning building.”

Wheeljack suggested arson, and honestly upon seeing a video of some of the special effects master’s work, Orion couldn’t help but find himself pretty much sold on the concept. Wheeljack’s words were cause for concern, but they were undeniably correct when the results were in front of his optics.

“If you need to blow it up to make it look good, then by all means BLOW IT UP!”

Knockout, a makeup artist hired on every big set for his miraculous transformations, had been the most difficult to get a meeting with. But through pestering Starscream, one of Knockout’ usual clients, and through a few underhanded online transactions, Orion got the chance to ask the artist his usual question. Knockout’s advice was… interesting to say the least. Interesting, but much like all the other nuggets of wisdom, it happened to be fully applicable in light of the results.

“Darling, you have already proven to be as determined as the press. You don’t need to worry about becoming a fabulous actor. What you should worry about is getting a camera! Gigs don’t come easy, and looking as stunning as possible is the best way to get attention!” 

Breakdown thankfully was not nearly as hard to track down as his partner. After having harassed Knockout, Breakdown seemed to almost sense his arrival at his next meet and greet. It wasn’t often a behind the scenes mechanic got recognized enough to have fans, but Knockout never shut up about how well Breakdown handled the lights during filming. Fans were inevitable, and Orion abused that fact to get into the rather niche interest group and meet the mech. His wisdom was much like his partner’s in rationality. 

“A lot of people overlook the lighting on screen, but lighting is essential to a good production. Lighting sets the mood and adds subtle emotion to the scene. Too much, too dark, or the wrong color destroys the atmosphere. If you are ever in doubt, keep it simple and do a classic overhead light.” 

With his shanix running low, Orion was unable to get in with any more big names. However, by pure chance, he won a raffle and managed to get a question in with two famous sparkling actors turned drama T.V specialists. Bumblebee and Smokescreen were beloved by audiences across Cybertron, and the former’s advice was quickly burned into Orion’s mind.

“It doesn’t matter who you are playing. Give that character justice through their connections. You must feel the bonds your character has as if they were your own. I know I cried more than once when co-stars who played a parental role in different films had to leave for another set.”

Smokescreen’s wisdom received similar treatment as he smiled widely and promptly forced himself to cry with such gusto that Orion was genuinely scared until the actor laughed it off as a joke.

“Don’t just feel it buddy! SHOW it! Every connection your character has should be plain to see on your face through their emotions! If they have any that is. Just, keep in character. Oh, and a little tip, learn to cry on the spot. It will save you so much trouble with the special effects team.”

Orion hoarded everything he learned like a drake, and despite being dirt poor by the time he sold half his spark to get in to meet a mech going by the working title of “Predaking”, he was excited to hear what the master puppeteer and monster designer had to say. He never expected to get close, but Predaking saw him amidst the crowd and called him over gleefully.

“Here’s a little secret of the trade. I am not joking when I say that accent and presence matter, even in monsters. If you are working with a character, you should know how to pronounce and announce yourself like them. If you are a beast, growl. If you are a King, dominate.”

Finally, bankrupt and with only a feeble dream, Orion held his poor financial decisions wearily in his spark and sat out on the streets, unable to pay his rent after so long chasing idols. His obsession had gone too far and he was paying the price for it. But it seemed Primus had taken pity, perhaps due to his stupidity. And on that grim cycle an umbrella had been held over his helm as he huddled, trying to escape the acid rain.

Ratchet, the mech who originally sent him spiraling down his path of poor life decisions, stood over him with a raised optical ridge. Orion had been too tired to be fully awed at the time, but when Ratchet had offered him some shanix and a hotel room for a week, Orion had listened closely to the advice the elder mech had to offer.

“Kid, your dedication is impressive, but you need to always have a backup plan. Throwing everything into your goals is admirable, but by the Allspark, make sure there is always a little something left over for you, for your survival. On set, on the streets. It doesn’t matter. You are a living being and your life comes first.”

It had been a harsh wakeup call, but it had been what Orion needed. He stopped chasing stars for a while and instead moved on to saving up, one shanix at a time to get into the most reputable acting academy he could feasibly afford. He’d learned all he could from watching with starstruck optics, and he wasn’t going to test Primus’s patience more than he already had.

And so began his journey. It was rough. He did what he could to prepare for a rainy cycle, and Ratchet’s advice did indeed save him from going without fuel more than a few times, but there were still instances where he had to cut corners. Many long cycles were spent living off cheap rations worse than the stuff given to military personnel. He had to turn off the electricity in his small apartment several times in order to avoid the bill, and he still almost cried every time he remembered the prices for the textbooks he needed once he finally got into the academy. 

But vorns of hard work later, he got in and graduated in one piece. Now a certified and newly graduated actor, he was over the moon and more than ready to hunt for his first big gig. Things had been tight for a very long time, but in his mind, he was finally free of those constraints.

He found out that assumption was wrong very quickly. 

Knockout hadn’t been kidding when he said getting a camera would be the hardest part of his career. Why did no sets accept graduates? Even when he applied as an extra, he usually found himself rejected because he was ‘too bright’ or ‘too distracting’. By the Primes all he’d done for one audition was lift some datapads but that had apparently been too much. They said he was too energetic for his place, too… 

Enthusiastic. 

He got odd jobs, worked a few small sets as a minute background character, an extra passing in the hall more often than not. But he kept up a smile, just waiting for the big gig that would shoot him into stardom just like all the actors and specialists he looked up to. He never forgot the cycle when he finally got his wish.

It had been an inconspicuous thing at first. A small advertisement online for a film production based on a fantasy series that was neither particularly popular nor necessarily unknown. Orion had read his fair share of novels over the course of his life, and while he wasn’t exactly proud to admit it, he’d gone down the rabbit hole of poorly written or otherwise unknown works of fiction to make his life more bearable when things got tough. As such, while it took him a moment, he quickly recognized the series being turned into film.

It was a simple fantasy series set in an alternate version of Cybertron, one where the Primes of old still reigned. It was a historical piece in a sense, in large part due to the inclusion of actual practices and traditions from the past ages of Cybertron, before the Quintessons arrived and were promptly driven back. The main character of the series wasn’t exactly static, often jumping between the sons of the Prime, Smokescreen and Bumblebee, and the Lord High Protector, Megatron of Kaon. Looking back it was rather odd that they were named after the actors, or the actors after them. But Orion didn’t linger on that fact.

The series was a dramatic revolution. Optimus Prime, the last reigning Prime, was a tyrant who ruled with cruel disregard for the lives of others. His inner circle planned to assassinate and ultimately did kill him later on in the novel after a series of puzzles, political schemes, and secrets being brought to light. It was a fascinating book, one that Orion was rather fond of and would even consider his favorite. So while it was certainly odd for a film company to turn such a series into anything meant for the holoscreen considering its lack of popularity, Orion said a quiet prayer and sent in an application to the studio.

He almost spit out his energon when exactly a cycle later, he got a confirmation message from the studio letting him know he had not only gotten a role in the film, but that he had been given one of the most influential roles in the entire production. He wasn’t going to be the Lord High Protector, nor was he to be either of the Prime’s sons. No, he was to be Optimus Prime himself.

He may or may not have run around his apartment giggling gleefully and giving thanks to Primus while clutching his cracked datapad like his life depended on it. He checked his device again and again, not believing what he was reading until he received a second message from the studio asking him to come in for pre-shoot training and preparation for his role. Orion did not hesitate to gather up his small stash of belongings that he thought he would require and hop onto the nearest train heading west toward the ruins of Crystal City.

Sure, it was really strange that filming preparation was being done in the abandoned Crystal City, but he didn’t feel like judging when he finally had his big gig. Nope, he wasn’t going to question it. Not when he was going to be playing Optimus Prime. The biggest villain of the series. What could be a better debut than that?

“Welcome Orion. I am the director of this set. We already have everything set up so we can begin your preliminary training immediately.”

“Oh! Of course. But may I have your designation Sir?”

“I am Alpha Trion. It is a pleasure to be working with you. Please head over to the tent over there so that you can receive your schedule for the next few stellar cycles.”

It felt rather rushed, being brought onto set and then immediately kicked into an intensive training program. But once again, Orion didn’t want to doubt. Alpha Trion was a nice enough director and took great care to ensure Orion knew all the rules of the set and how filming was going to happen. 

His Co-stars were apparently already on set filming the prologue and backstory sequences. Orion was a late hire since the last mech who signed on as Optimus Prime had apparently been in a bad accident and was no longer able to perform. He was not going to be able to have any behind the scenes meetings with his Co-stars since filming was already in progress. He would need to get to know them on set and while in character. Orion was also explicitly told that filming was going to be done differently than what was typically normal.

Filming would run almost like a reality T.V show. There would be cameras everywhere hidden throughout the set in all public areas. Essentially, Orion would be in character all the time except for when he was in his assigned quarters and perhaps the washracks if there weren’t any extra scenes planned. He didn’t remember there being anything incriminating or… suggestive in the series, but directors were known to adapt novels to their liking. He would have to be careful either way. 

The only other serious thing he was told was somewhat unnerving. He would have no direct contact with the crew, access to stunt doubles, or the ability to speak to the director once he was on set. The reasoning behind it was that they wanted everything to be as realistic and immersive as possible. It seemed a lot like hogwash to Orion, but once they began his preliminary training, he decided to lodge those concerns away and focus on his studies. He wanted to play his role well. If he flopped here, no studio would ever hire him.

Sword training, dueling etiquette, anything relating to politics, royal manners, proper resource management, strategy, warfare, language, literature, history, arts, economy, geography, survival training, public speaking, and so much more were on his todo list. He lost track of the classes and cycles bled into one another. It felt rather silly learning the twenty seven made up languages used in the novels and the similarly intensive made up history of the fantasy world. But he endured it all diligently. It was kind of fun having to memorize the fantasy maps and learn how to sing elegantly so that ancient rites seen in the novel could be replicated.

It was tiring work, and he was fairly certain that a few million shanix had to have gone into the replication of models and teachers that were hired to educate him. The studio must have had high hopes for their film to put so much into him. The director himself didn't seem concerned in the slightest about profits the whole time.  He never even talked to Orion outside of that first instance until he had spent roughly eight stellar cycles studying.

“I believe you are ready to head to the set and meet the makeup team. Do not be alarmed at any frame augmentations. They are all perfectly natural. A chip will be inserted into your processors to feed you information on set, largely so that you need never break character.” 

Alpha Trion looked like he would rather be chewing on rocks as he spat out the information. Orion was rightfully suspicious in his opinion. But after almost a full vorn of dedicating his very spark to learning everything under Luna 1 and 2 needed to play the role of Optimus Prime, he would be slagged before he backed out now. Besides, he enjoyed feeling tested and trained cables strain beneath his armor, a side effect of never ending sword training. 

“Thank you Sir! I will be sure to play my part perfectly!” 

Orion assured as he was led to a space bridge and ushered through. He smiled as he passed to the other side, meeting the gazes of over a dozen rather malicious looking mecha who grabbed him and laid him down on a medical berth before he could wheeze out a greeting. Next thing he knew, he was injected with a sedative of some sort and promptly awoke aching absolutely everywhere in a berth that was not his own.

He sat up, rubbing his helm and feeling the definitive change in structure. He frowned and stood up on wobbly pedes, gawking at his newfound height as he shakily made his way toward the only mirror in the room. He gasped when he saw his reflection. The mech in front of him was, by all definitions, gorgeous. Strong and quite clearly made for war, a stunning set of armor adorned him. Gold highlights graced his plating and strong shoulders now guarded him. Blue hips swayed with every step and long strong legs shone in the light, covered in small glyphs he couldn’t even properly read from how well they blended in. His arm guards were equally ornamented, and he hardly had time to process his wide yet sharp optics before the door to his room burst open and a terrified looking servant crashed to the ground.

“Forgive me my Lord!” The servant wept, curling up on the ground as they hurriedly tried to gather up what looked to be a cube of energon. Instinct told Orion to help, but before he could act, a message flashed across his vision.

[[You are on set now. Play your part Orion Pax. From this cycle forward, you are Optimus Prime.]]

Was it highly unorthodox and probably breaking at least a few labor laws? Absolutely. Was Orion backing out now? Not to save his life. 

He took a deep vent, feeling a new weight pulse in his spark chamber. When he refocused, he cleared his mind of distractions and settled himself on one designation. Over and over he repeated it. 

‘I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Cybertronian Empire, and I am a tyrant worthy of death.’ 

He repeated to himself internally as he scowled at the servant, a pleasant frown adorning his seemingly untarnishable face. 

“What is your designation?” He questioned sharply. The servant shook in renewed terror at his words which flowed so smoothly from his glossa that Orion, or rather Optimus, almost choked. The language of the novel came easily to him now, more so than he was otherwise sure it was meant to. But he did not question as he grabbed the servant by the back of their neck guard and threw them out of the door, doing his best to use his training to ensure that his fellow actor wasn’t actually damaged. 

The servant skidded across the ground, slamming into the wall of the hallway with a groan. Orion- Optimus cringed internally. He had limited practical experience. He would need to do better in the future to ensure his fellow actors weren’t damaged. As much as he loved a dramatic role, he didn’t want to make any actual enemies. He would need to find out the actor’s name and give them a gift basket or something when he had a free moment.

But for now, he had a part to play and a landscape to very hastily memorize. 

“How dare you. Insolent whelp. Have you no experience using the frame Primus granted you?” Optimus stalked forward, his voice deep and resonating, yet also surprisingly smooth. Even when portraying anger, his voice still flowed like a perfectly calm stream. Whatever mods the makeup team gave him, he desperately wanted to keep once he finished with this role. 

“Forgive me my Lord! It was an accident! Y-Your presence startled me! You’ve been in stasis for almost a vorn!” Oh? So that was how the director was playing off his absence. Optimus couldn’t help but find it odd that he had been told his co-stars were filming other scenes while apparently the main story was still progressing, but perhaps there were details he was missing. He would have to talk to his co-stars.

“A vorn.” He practically growled, his perfectly modeled frame not even instinctually turning to flared plating to get his point across. By the pits the makeup team had done him up nicely. 

“I’m sorry!” The servant wailed, clutching at their chassis to protect themselves from a potential attack. Optimus internally wanted to praise their acting. It was honestly phenomenal how well they could force their tears and the sheer terror in their optics. He would need to ask for lessons off set sometime. 

“Enough. Cease your pathetic whimpering. I require an immediate update of all that has come to pass during my absence.” The servant scurried to their pedes, weeping even as they shakily bowed and gestured for Optimus to follow. He obliged without question, taking care to stride forward with elegance that had practically been beaten into him during training. He felt stupid walking with a gentle sway of his hips while his shoulders were held back in his old frame. But with these augments, it felt right.

He was going to have so much fun making scenes as the notorious tyrant the people of the novel feared.

“Your office my Lord. W-Would you like me to summon your Council?” He had a Council? Optimus wracked his mind for who the mecha in question could be as he stared at the gaudy doors before him. 

“Who would that entail?” He questioned with authority lacing his tone. The servant shook even harder and again Optimus applauded their acting abilities. True skill from a mere background character. The director had not spared a single detail it seemed. 

“Currently they are scattered, according to your will prior to your fall into stasis. T-The Lord High Protector, the Young Lords, and of course your personal physician can be summoned if you desire. We can also begin summoning your spymaster and anyone else-” Optimus raised a servo, silencing the servant as he opened the office doors and stepped into a room all but drowning in paperwork. He wanted to cry as soon as he witnessed the pile of work to be done. Did the director really have to make things this detailed? It felt overkill really. 

“Summon all of my Council, everyone of importance. I refuse to be left in the dark.” He ordered as he strode forward, calmly and regally taking a seat at his desk. His expression remained perfectly composed as he sifted through the datapads before him, seeing incredibly detailed documents that looked real enough to pass into law if Optimus didn’t know they had to be forged for realism’s sake. 

“By your will Lord Prime.” The servant hurried away, closing the door behind them and leaving Optimus to his monstrous pile of datapads. The director had said there would be cameras in all public areas. Considering this area was not exactly private, Optimus elected to keep in character. This was a good chance to put his training to good use anyway. 

“Primus protect me.” He muttered in the old tongue used in the novel. It felt right strangely enough, but he chalked it up to the thrill of being on set as he picked up the nearest datapad and promptly dug through every conceivable loophole in the document in order to get the best deal. Sure, he was playing the role of tyrant, but these documents were all for show. If he simply took the time to actually make it seem as though he were dutifully working on them, then his task would be complete.

He would rather not sit around being bored for groons on end. So he might as well actually try and make something of the documents for the benefit of the Empire. Would they actually come into law? No. This was all a set after all. But was it rather fun putting together the perfect little documents to improve efficiency as if he were playing a real time strategy game?

Absolutely. 

“My reign shall endure, regardless of the price.” He smiled, taking care to gaze off into the distance in what probably seemed like a really stupid way to an outsider but was sure to appear amazing to any camera. Then, maintaining his new persona, Optimus allowed himself to drift into his work. No use wasting energy until his co-stars arrived. The director had mentioned that the set was rather large and that it was taking place on a whole new colony world to add to the realism. 

He couldn’t wait to see who was playing the roles of the other characters in the novel.

#transformers #maccadam #transformers prime #ratchet #megatron #alternate universe #optimus prime #team prime #bulkhead #soundwave #starscream #predaking #maccadams #knockout #breakdown #actor au #orion pax #alpha trion #fanfiction #fanfic #yeah this is pure vibes and just you wait folks #*rubs hands like racoon* #I got more planned #this dude will be the most cartoonishly evil mech ever and its going to be #*chefs kiss*

[vieramars]

Making this its own post bc it wasn't getting seen as a reblog

Re: a very niche oddly specific fluffy TMA au

So I'm in a swing dance club and I started thinking about what if the characters of the magnus archives were all in a swing dance club. Absolutely no regard for canon, just all the characters hanging out having a time.

Half the characters do not know how to dance. Some are really good at it. Elias is the club leader who thought having a position of authority would be fun but now he's stuck managing a room full of chaos gremlins with fear powers.

Half the playlist is mechs songs. Nikola insists on doing live music every few meets.

Jon watches tons of videos on swing moves in order to learn them and is constantly watching his feet to make sure he's doing the steps right. He's a follow and almost exclusively dances with Martin. Even though he helped form the club he perpetually has new awkward member energy. Still, once he's had plenty of time to practice a move, he can do it perfectly nine times out of ten.

Martin is a much more confident dancer than someone who'd just met him would think. He's a lead and his musicality is on point. He's really good at songs with tempo changes, and his favorite move is probably swing kicks.

Tim and Sasha are terrifying on the dance floor. Sasha's the lead and every dance she's trying to beat her own record for how many times she can spin Tim consecutively. They prefer open position and every other move is a basket turn. 

Michael showed up one day and just became part of the club by being there, then later invited Helen along. Both of them like to dance with pretty much everyone, and both of them love sliding doors. Sometimes involving actual distortion doors. Their dance moves are reality bending and they always have the flashiest outfits. Michael is ambidancetrous (comfortable leading or following) and Helen is a lead.

Agnes wears very thick gloves so that she can dance with people without burning their hands. To avoid accidents she's also very good at no-contact moves. Sometimes she brings Jack over for club meetings. She's a lead and her favorite move is sugar pushes though she also likes line dances and does the best charleston out of the whole group.

Daisy and Basira are inseparable. But they are both leads. Rather than dancing with other people they just solo jazz and line dance together.

No matter who she's dancing with or what moves they're doing Nikola is killing it. Her favorite dances are steal dances where everyone's rapidly switching partners. She's always the fastest to find a new partner and get back into step. She does everything with a flourish and is an expert at dips of any kind.

Melanie and Georgie are just vibing. Probably the calmest dancers in the room despite being far from the calmest people. Georgie can dance the entire length of the meeting without taking a break.

Gerry mostly only dances with Michael, Mike, or Tim because they can match his energy the best. He loves fast-paced songs and complicated moves, and can absolutely fuck it UP at the shim sham.

Mike Crew also really likes fast-paced dances and loves spinning his partner until they might as well be in the vast for how dizzy they are. Dancing with him comes with a spin at your own risk disclaimer.

Oliver is more of a slow song enjoyer, and he joins Jon and Nikola in the live music performances. While Agnes is the best at many variations of the charleston, Oliver is the best at the cowboy charleston specifically, and he can do it while playing a fiddle.

Peter Lukas REFUSES to dance except for rarely when Elias convinces him to, in which case they have a vibe that's somewhere between overly formal ballroom dancing and Morticia and Gomez doing the most. 

Jane Prentiss is mostly here for the snacks and the vibes but she joins in for warm-ups and line dances. The only person she'll dance together with is Agnes cause they both prefer the least amount of physical contact possible.

Annabelle Cane is the main dance instructor and she's a phenomenal teacher. She knows all the moves by heart and she's rocking the roaring 20s aesthetic. If she's leading a line dance, everyone's in perfect sync.

If I missed anyone lmk, this is all coming directly out of my brain so some characters might've gotten lost in the stream of consciousness. I'm open to asks about dance pairs, who leads/follows in that pair, and what songs they would pick if they had the floor 👀

By the way, dance pairs do not equal ships! I do ship a few of these pairs (and it makes sense to me for couples to gravitate towards dancing together), but anyone can dance with anyone!

#the magnus archives #tma #tma au #tma swing club au #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #sasha james #tim stoker #michael the distortion #helen the distortion #agnes montague #daisy tonner #basira hussain #nikola orsinov #melanie king #georgie barker #gerard keay #mike crew #oliver banks #peter lukas #elias bouchard #jane prentiss #annabelle cane #i have many thoughts about this #it lives rent free in my head

[snekberry]

So some tma fics recs! (If I specify a fic is jonmartin that means it's primarily focused on it, since most fics in the tma fandom are jonmartin in ways)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23744485

Jonmartin dating app fic (37k words rounding up, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23530732

Tim focused timeloop fic that takes place in the season 3 finale (7k words rounding up again, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22740688

Jonmartin mechanisms fic (17k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30946139

Jonmartin fic where Martin makes Jon shit tea on purpose and jon pretends to drink it because he doesn't wanna tell Martin the tea is bad (13k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22371064

A lonely eyes crack-fic in which Simon bets elias and Peter can't live together for a month. (9k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33528331

A fic in which jon is cursed to tell the truth (20k words, completed)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28418346

A fluffy museum au in which the archive team try to hide kittens from jon. (7k words complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24584110

A au where Jon literally becomes head empty. (16k words, incomplete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36590863

A au where Jon and Martin were already married pre-podcast and sasha and Tim didn't know this. (2k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37169170

A fic where season 1 jonmartin is arguing only to get future memories in the middle of it. (2k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21406300

Lonely eyes soulmate fic. (6k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/series/2025538

A series where Jon becomes even more inhuman than in the actual podcast. (31k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21898564

A lonely eyes fic in which elias tells peter he's not dead. In typical elias fashion (3k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23805061

Mechs!Jon fic with jonmartin. (9k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24084577

Future jon goes back in time wingfic (36k words, incomplete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24476437

Another jonmartin mechs fic! (21k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/25332742

So, you know that one tumblr post with the witch who goes around as a cat and whoever catches it can get with her?

That but jonmartin (12k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24406627

Teacher jon! (26k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23282902

A au where season 1 jon finds a leitner that makes everyone think he's a cat. Very good jon x Martin x Tim (144k words, complete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24206995

A jonmartin fae jon au (38k words, complete)

Those are all the fics that in my bookmarks! Hope you enjoy!

(Also since you're planning on getting into mechanisms I recommend Ulysses dies at dawn! Not my favorite album (the bifrost incident beloved) but a close second and the one I tend to recommend to new listeners! (And if you're struggling to find songs at all the channel "the void sings" has uploaded all the albums with subtitles too!))

HELLO thank you for the food anon 🙏🙏🙏 im going to save all of these

#ask #fic recs

[lostonehero]

Even more

New mech au

Better Mech chat (aka earth crew damn you Nastya)

Martin: Are you alright Marius you looked really uncomfortable today

Marius: Humans don't have living hair, and it shows.

Raphella: I can fix that.

Marius: no

Tim: what did it even feel like?

Marius: Remember when you burned your hands? The time we got Brian off the sun. It's kind of like that, but the pain doesn't go away. Elias is fine, he's really friendly, I think, but he's strict with the dress code. I really want a hat.

Jonny: I can't believe I feel bad for you.

Ivy: I rather be experimented on than have my nerves tugged on like that for hours. No that wasn't an offer

TS: The Other Jonny Is Werid. I Want To Be His Friend. He Does Not Like Me.

Brian: you offered to show him how your voice was stolen and he nearly fainted.

TS: We Had Fun.

Brian: honestly I think the job isn't bad suspicious as fuck, but none if the stuff really effects me or TS since we aren't human. I think whatever is going on is speciesest so Martin and Tim be careful.

Tim: Duly noted

Martin: that's worrying.

Jonny: I'll keep you safe.

Martin: you say that with such confidence purring in my lap.

Jonny: Martin please.

Raphella: I have more experiments to run, but I will come up with something for you, Martin.

Martin: Please be careful. Things down there are dangerous, and I don't want Elias to catch you.

Raphella: I will stay safe.

Ashes: I don't think I've ever seen her flustered before.

Jonny: bullshit

Marius: No, Ashes is right. I think Raphella just found the blanket you made her.

Martin: oh does she like it I wanted it to match her wings and scales. I'm trying to make one for all of you to match your non human stuff because it's really cool. Ah Tim I just about done with your sleep mask, are you sure you don't want a blanket I know your eyes bother you but everyone else is getting one.

Tim: the sleep mask is fine.

TS: I Get A Blanket?

Martin: yes! I'm making yours a flag that matches your uniform

TS: I Don't Understand This Feeling. I Won't Let Anyone Harm You Friend.

Jonny: huh

Tim: I'm going to bake you something.

Ashes: Can mine have flames?

Martin: I was gonna match your hair but I can fix it to be flames. Oh I can do raining ashes too like your name.

Ashes: I'm going to help Tim in the kitchen.

Jonny: Martin you're breaking them

Brian: you made me a crochet heart.

Martin: I know it doesn't match yours it's a human heart but uh I hope you liked it.

Brian: Martin I would kill for you.

Several people are typing.

.......

Marius knocks softly before hearing Elias to let him in. He stops seeing a taller, pale man made of muscle in a large coat. "Is this a bad time? I can come back."

Elias smiles from his desk. "No, not at all. Marius, this is my husband Peter Lukas his family are major donors to the institute. Peter, this is my new assistant I've been telling you about."

Peter nods and looks the man up and down. "Tall." His voice was soft, and it surprised Marius. "He has a fake arm."

Elias rolls his eyes. "Peter." He sighs and pinches his brow. "I apologize for him. He's a sea captain he just got back from a long voyage."

"Early." Peter huffs.

Marius smiles. "It's quite alright. I know it's a bit off-putting." He rubs his eyes, feeling an odd burning but dismisses it. He must have earth allergies. "It's lovely to meet you. Do you need me to do anything?"

"Yes, there are tunnels under the institute, I will show you. It's quite the hassle, but there is a library under there, and I will need extra hands grabbing a few books." Elias smiles as Marius nods.

#new mech tma au #tma podcast #the magnus archives #the mechanisms #the mechs