Later, during one of those times when Rodimus was in command, a small group of Autobots and human allies Spike and Daniel Witwicky fled to the Autobot Mausoleum from Decepticon attack. There, they discover that Optimus Prime was somehow resurrected. Rodimus then returns the Matrix to Optimus, reverting to his old self. However, Optimus does not act the same as before. He also appears to be mind-controlled, causing him to go insane and commit violent acts, such as attempting to kill the group of Autobots and to trick the other Autobots on Cybertron to fly into a trap set by the Quintessons. Hot Rod realizes that Optimus is mentally deranged and confronts him. As Prime and Hot Rod fight each other, the former easily overpowers the latter before having a flashback of his resurrection at the hands of the Quintessons, who reprogrammed him in order to lead the Autobots into the trap. Fortunately, the influence of the Matrix allows Prime to overcome the programming. He stops attacking Hot Rod, and returns the Matrix. Afterward, Optimus orders the Autobot fleet to move away from the trap. He pilots the Autobot flagship to the asteroid where the trap is set, triggering an explosion that kills him once again.