The first night the experiment began, Erin’s soft voice reached for her father, though he remained hidden behind the observation glass.
“Daddy?” she called, her voice hesitant as she looked around the bright, clinical room, the sterile scent of antiseptic unfamiliar and unsettling. Her little legs dangled off the examination table as she waited, her fingers fiddling with the edges of her small, cotton gown.
Behind the glass, John clenched his fists. He wanted to go to her, to reassure her—but he stopped himself, knowing he couldn’t allow any emotions to interfere with the experiment.
The head scientist placed a hand on her shoulder, gently coaxing her to lie back down. “Just relax, Erin. This will make you feel so much stronger.”
Erin looked up at him, trusting but nervous. “Will Daddy be proud?”
“Yes,” the scientist replied with a faint smile. “Very proud.”
She settled down, still looking around as if hoping her father would walk in. But he didn’t.
---
On the third night, after the neural implant procedure was complete, Erin awoke in a sterile hospital bed, her head aching and the room spinning. She groaned, reaching up to touch the bandage on her head, but a nurse gently caught her hand.
“It’s okay, Erin,” the nurse murmured soothingly. “Just rest.”
Just then, John entered the room, his face stern. Erin’s eyes lit up, and she sat up a little too quickly, gasping in pain. “Daddy!” she exclaimed.
He stopped at the foot of the bed, his hands behind his back. “How are you feeling, Erin?” he asked, his tone neutral, detached.
“It hurts,” she whimpered, tears welling in her eyes. “But… but am I strong now? Did I do good, Daddy?”
John’s gaze softened just a bit, but he quickly masked it. “Yes, Erin. You did well. Just remember—sometimes we have to endure a little pain to become better.”
She nodded, biting her lip to hold back the tears. She wanted nothing more than a comforting embrace, but John turned and left before she could ask.
---
A few nights later, as the training intensified, Erin began experiencing “glitches” with her implant. In the middle of her exercises, she suddenly froze, her body stiffening before collapsing to the ground in spasms.
“Daddy?” she whispered weakly, reaching out for him as the scientists crowded around her. John stood nearby, his expression unreadable. She stretched her tiny hand toward him, her face pleading.
“Daddy… please…” she managed, her voice quivering with fear. Her small body was trembling, her muscles uncontrollable. “I don’t want this anymore. Please take it out.”
For a moment, something stirred in John’s chest. But he quickly pushed it down, stepping back. “This will make you stronger, Erin. You’re special. You’ll understand one day.”
Her hand dropped as she whispered, defeated, “If you say so, Daddy.”
---
The nights turned darker and lonelier as Erin’s behavior grew erratic. Her emotions fluctuated wildly, and she would occasionally burst into laughter or tears without warning, her mind struggling against the implant’s influence. John had been keeping his distance, but one night, as Erin sat alone in her room, he stepped inside.
Erin was staring at her hands, her eyes red and swollen. When she saw him, she broke into a desperate smile. “Daddy! I knew you’d come.”
He hesitated, unsure of what to say. Her words were fragile, filled with a childlike hope, but she looked exhausted—like a young soldier worn out from battles she barely understood.
“Why don’t you listen to the scientists, Erin?” he asked, his voice harsher than intended. “They’re trying to help you. Don’t you want to make me proud?”
Her face crumbled, and she nodded fervently. “I do, Daddy. I promise I’m trying. But… but I feel like something’s wrong with me. I’m scared, and I just… I just want you to hold me.”
John looked away, swallowing hard. He couldn’t bring himself to comfort her, to tell her it would all be okay. He couldn’t risk her weakness undermining his plans.
“Goodnight, Erin,” he said abruptly, turning to leave. Her quiet sobs echoed as he closed the door behind him, his heart aching despite his ambition.
---
On one of the final nights, as the project teetered on failure, Erin’s body was failing. John visited her one last time, standing in the doorway as she lay weakly in her bed, pale and trembling. She looked up at him, her voice barely a whisper.
“Daddy… am I still special?” she asked, her small fingers clutching at the sheets.
John stared at her, guilt clawing at his chest. “You… you were always special, Erin. But sometimes things don’t work out the way we planned.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “Are you leaving me, Daddy? I don’t want to be alone.”
The vulnerability in her voice was like a knife to his heart, but he forced himself to harden his expression. “You’ll be fine, Erin. Sometimes we just have to move on.”
A broken sob escaped her lips, but she managed to whisper, “I’ll still try to make you proud, Daddy. I promise.”
For a brief moment, he wanted to reach out and hold her, to tell her she was enough as she was. But ambition overruled his heart, and with one last glance, he walked away, leaving her alone in the darkness.
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Transformers Prime: Moments
FanfictionErin's past is something we don't like to talk about. But what really happened those months? What happened during the experiment process? what did the kids and the bots do in their free time? what did they do when they didn't worry about anything? w...
