The Arisen

The Arisen is a member of the Thirteen from the 2005 IDW portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

After years of ignoring Grigori, the Arisen's scar grew to cover most of his torso.

The thirteenth member of the original Thirteen Primes, the myths and legends surrounding the Arisen are greater than any of his fellows. His true name struck from the historical record on Cybertron and on the colonies, he is remembered only as a great and noble hero, possibly the greatest one that the Cybertronian race was ever graced with.

Fiction

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: The Transformers vol. 2 #47 (mentioned); Till All Are One #9 (obscured image)

Like the other Primes, the robot that would become known as the Arisen once ruled over one of the Thirteen Tribes in the ancient days of Cybertron. Along with four others, he was attracted to the Crystal City alliance and became one of the planet's Thirteen Primes. As Crystal City grew and expanded, he joined his fellow Primes in its citadel. The First Who Was Named

That's me in the corner. That's him in the spotlight, building a religion.

He and his brethren would later vanish from the planet when war tore the tribes apart, and disappeared into legend. For reasons unknown, his name was stricken from history, along with that of his brother Megatronus; whereas Megatronus became known only as "the Fallen", he was dubbed "the Arisen". Lagrange Eons afterwards, Shockwave would unknowingly send one of his Regenesis ores to a planet associated with the Arisen. Shockwaves The Crucible The First Who Was Named

Like his fellows, the Arisen would be deified by subsequent generations of Cybertronians. He in particular would go onto to be revered as the "true Prime", Unforgivable and was foretold to lead Cybertron's defence during Unicron's second coming, bringing peace to the universe when he slew the Chaos Bringer. Last Stand

In the present day, upon meeting Optimus Prime, the Mistress of Flame of Caminus came to believe that he was the Arisen. The Medium and the Message Pyra Magna and her Torchbearers considered this sacrilege, and departed from the Mistress's service for it. Lagrange Optimus did not believe it himself either, but he unwittingly lent credence to the Mistress's beliefs when he annexed Earth into the Council of Worlds, and raised Metrotitan from beneath the planet's surface. This seemed to prove both that Earth was one of the Thirteen Primes' colonies, and that, thanks to his ability to command its Titan, Optimus's divine identity was also true. The Medium and the Message Optimus would not even countenance the notion, but began to exploit the religious faith that Caminus and the other colonies placed in him in order to accomplish good deeds on Earth. Dance Among the Shadows

When Onyx Prime returned to Cybertron, Optimus Prime invited him down to the surface for a rational discussion. Onyx agreed, declaring the state of Cybertron as Optimus's responsibility, for the younger Prime was none other than the Arisen. Surfeit of the Primes

During the conversation with Onyx, he referred to Optimus as the Arisen, before Optimus requested to simply be referred to by his name, a request Onyx acquiesced to. When Windblade tried to take over the discussion, the Mistress came to Optimus's defence, reiterating her belief that he was the Arisen. Another Mine Once Optimus had seemingly perished, Liege Maximo would also refer to him as having been the Arisen. The Hallowing

As Optimus and Arcee fought their way to the heart of Unicron, the latter tried convince Optimus to retreat, citing the Antillan war as her responsibility. Optimus refused, claiming to be the Arisen and that he alone shouldered the responsibilities for the sins of the Primes' tainted lineage. Before he could elaborate on the statement to the confused Arcee, the two reached the black hole at the centre of Unicron. Ceremony Ultimately however, Optimus would pass before he could explain his claim to Arcee. Reflecting on one of her final conversations with Optimus, however, Arcee realized it hadn't mattered who the Arisen had been. What mattered was the inspirational legacy he had left behind. Post

Notes

• The 2005 IDW continuity's depiction of the Thirteen is based virtually entirely on the Aligned continuity family versions of the characters. There, the thirteenth Prime is Optimus Prime, who sacrifices himself and is reincarnated into the present-day incarnation of the character. Although Shockwave, Liege Maximo, and the Mistress of Flame all seem convinced of Optimus's identity as the Arisen, with Metroplex even claiming to have known Optimus (or someone very much like him) in ancient times, Optimus Prime #25 deliberately leaves the matter ambiguous.

See also

• Thirteenth Prime