Benzene Cluster

The Benzene Cluster is a region of space within the jurisdiction of the Black Block Consortia. The planet Frayus exists within the cluster.

Fiction

2005 IDW continuity

After the Omega Guardians had ascended to the Higher Realms, they attempted to return via a small crack between realities in the Benzene Cluster. When one of their number attempted to return via the crack, they died in the effort, their four dimensional corpse becoming the Warren. The crack still remained however and the Guardians began plotting for their return. The Unremembering

In modern times, the Benzene Cluster had fallen under the jurisdiction of the Galactic Council, Filling in the Blanks and was a major galactic trading hub, as well as being the endpoint for the ley line that ran through Troja Major's Howling Town and Mederi. Farsickness The Cluster had been on Deathsaurus's radar for many years owing to it being rich in resources necessary for cyberforming worlds. Journey's End

Needing space for his God Gun, the Grand Architect turned the Black Block Consortia into a puppet state and had them wage war on the Council for ownership of Benzene, the war wiping out whole planets and forcing whole species, such as the Fraynians, to evacuate their planets. Filling in the Blanks Farsickness Quite curiously, someone operating out of Benzene had taken out several of Deathsaurus's suppliers, prompting him to investigate the planet Frayus for answers, forcing his troops to contend with the organic armies. Journey's End

By the time the Protectobots and Mirage had caught up to the Lost Light, the Consortia had secured the cluster and began massing their forces on the far side of it. Simultaneously, the Lost Light's map to Cyberutopia pointed the ship towards the Benzene Cluster. When questioned by Rook about the lack of communications, Getaway explained away the ship's radio silence by claiming they were trying to avoid detection by the Consortia, much to the confusion of Mirage, who still thought the region was Council property. Full Circle

When the Luna 1 Autobots arrived on Necroworld to investigate Team Rodimus' distress signal, Red Alert discovered the Necrobot's cloak, which served as a live feed to sectors of space. He noted that something about the Benzene Cluster's appearance didn't seem quite right. Sardines

A short time later, Tyrest informed Getaway that as part of the Grand Architect's plan, Benzene had been "cleared". A Dance Before Dying An even shorter time after that, Benzene's status had been updated to "threadbare". Lūstrāre

As part of the Grand Architect's plans, Mederi was then transported into Benzene via the Warren, with the Lost Light unwillingly following. When they arrived, they found the Architect had completed the God Gun, with Benzene now inhabited solely by five multi-coloured duplicates of Cybertron. After reuniting with Froid, the insane psychologist explained what little he knew of Benzene's role in the Architect's plans before the God Gun opened a rift between universes, allowing for the Functionist Universe to launch an invasion of their timeline. Farsickness

When the Omega Guardians revealed themselves to be the true masterminds, they informed the Lost Lighters of the crack in Benzene and that the destruction of the false Primus would allow them to return... until Nickel crushed the Magnificence shutting them up. The Unremembering

After the Functionist Council had been defeated, their version of Cybertron remained in Benzene, becoming "New Cybertron." How To Say Goodbye And Mean It: Part 2

Notes

• Benzene is a common natural constituent of crude oil.