Of Man and Metal (Transformers Prime)

Chapter 3

'Food' ended up being military ration packets - Hillary said something about constant nutritional information or something along those lines.  All told, it wasn't bad, but I missed my Dad's cooking.  Maybe I should have had some more of that cake before I left.  I wondered if my parents had figured out about this illegal operation yet. I knew they would have tried to contact me, and not being able to would certainly put them on edge.  They could have the entire state looking for me by now... I hoped not.  Illegal or not, I still wanted to walk out of this myself.

I stayed in that little curtained room for the rest of the day.  I couldn't exactly leave.  Kasey and a boy named Joseph came in to play cards at one point, which we spent a couple of hours doing.  Joseph was a shorter boy with stubbier features, with brown hair similar to my own.  Parts of his neck and chest were bandaged, with metal fixtures implanted in his shoulders.  He winced as he moved his arms to reach for the cards, but when asked about it, he brushed it off.  

That evening, after the others had left, someone else opened the curtain and entered the room, flanked by a soldier.  It was the presenter from my birthday party, though it took me a second to realize this because he was dressed in military camo instead of a tailored suit.  "How are you doing, Shilo?"

I sat up, not needing the blanket now that I was dressed again.  "I wish someone would tell me things.  Such as, why there is a bandage on my back and metal in my legs??"

The man smirked.  "Straight to the point, eh kid?"  The soldier handed him a clipboard, which he flipped through quickly.  "In your legs, there are nodes that connect to your muscular-skeletal system.  The robotics will connect to these in order to support you and read your electrical impulses... that means it helps you to control the components with your mind."

"Yeah, I got that part."  I'm not that stupid; I can read between the lines.  "That makes sense I guess, but I wish someone would have told me before knocking me out."  I winced as I leaned forward a bit, my hand immediately going to the edge of the bandage on my back.  The numbing was starting to wear off.  Maybe I should take some of those pills.  "What about back here?  What did your surgeon do there?  There's nothing wrong with my back."

"Oh, don't worry about that," the man dismissed.  "The components need to hook a bit higher up for stability, and to maximize the odds we'll get a good read on your nerve signals.  Especially with your disease interfering with these."  

I supposed this sort of made sense. But I didn't like someone messing with something that didn't need fixing.  "Why is it more bandaged than my legs?"

"We used strong clotting agents and surgical glues on your legs.  But your spinal cord needs more time to heal, so it will be sore for a while."  He took notes on something in pen, and the scribbling was soon the only sound in the room for over a minute or two.

I had to ask.  "So when do I get to start walking?"

He looked up.  "You know, I knew we picked the right person with you.  Most people would complain about everything rather than show interest in the project.  You are very mature for your age.  Tomorrow morning, we'll try the components.  Our robotics teams are still working on the last few pieces.  But it might take a bit for you to get the hang of it.  Understand?"

I nodded.  I never trusted it when adults called teenagers mature; I've heard it from teachers before, only when a student does a good job of following instructions or seeing things the way the adult does.  It felt more like butter on bread than a genuine compliment.  "You mean it'll hurt, right?"  He hesitated before nodding. "I get that.  I've been to plenty of doctors and there's nothing that doesn't hurt.  I'm ready for it."

He smiled.  "Good to hear it.  We'll have you on your feet in no time."  The soldier pulled the curtain closed again after they left.  Listening to make sure their footsteps retreated.  I eyed the floor cautiously.  I grabbed ahold of the edges of the cot, biting down on my lip as my grip tightened and I lifted myself up from the cot.  I turned my butt towards the edge, then carefully swung my legs over the side.  After taking a slow, steeling breath, I lowered myself to the ground.  Pain shot up from the nodules in my legs, and I went ahead and reached into the crate for the pills.  I downed two of them with a bottle of water.