~Knocked-Out~

Day 2

Day 2

Optimus couldn't get Sparkinice out of his mind. As Orion, he had had a friend, Flashbolt, who had gotten the disease, after a fight and a tragic breakup. He had the worse side of the illness, and had to go to the medical facility for 3 days. 

He never came back out. 

Optimus wished no one to have the disease, and the fact that one of his teammates had it broke his spark. 

He didn't recharge, not for a second that night, and as soon as he was sure Ratchet was awake, he jumped down from his berth and started towards the medical  bay. Even though it was early, the base was already awake and alive, Bulkhead and Smokescreen on a morning drive, and Arcee and Bumblebee still in their berths.  Starscream? Primus knows where he was. As he approached the entrence to the medical bay, he could hear Ratchet's footsteps pattering around. He stood at the entrance, and watched him work, as he examined the sample of energon drawn from Knockout. Ratchet was determined to find a cure for this disease, and having a sample of infected energon was the best specimen to ask for. While observing the energon under the microscope, he could feel he was being watched. 

"Well, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to enter?"

"How is he, old friend?"

"No change. It's as if he is immobilized. No reaction to anything, not any movement. The only difference, is that he looks a little bit more calm." Optimus nodded. 

"We must not forget, however, that it is only the second day."

~~~

Soundwave had planned to check in on Darkshade the first day, but as the communication specialist, there are no breaks, and he had been so caught up in his work, it had slipped his mind. Now, on the second day, having so worked hard the day before, he had little work to do, so he decided now was the best time. As he walked towards the medical bay, the vehicons cowered slightly upon seeing him; his emotionless faceless figure always sent the heebie jeebies down their spinal chords. Soundwave displayed the rolling-eyes emoji, and continued down the hall. When he reached the door, he typed in a cod to the pad, then walked in the opening doors, into the cold dark room. Glancing around, he spotted the femme on the medical table, but not Shockwave. 

Darkshade looked the same. Her armor, dull, in need of a good buffing, but still as beautiful as ever. The energon that once stained her face plate had been wiped off. She was layed back, flat on her back, with her servos on top of her chest plate. She looked so peaceful, as if she was simply recharging. Her vitals showed she was stable, her breathing calm and steady. She didn't move, as still as if she were a corpse. She looked so...dead, like she was one with the Allspark, yet the steady beating of her spark was unmistakable. All the life and color that once filled her seemed to be...ebbed. One of the fingers on her servos seemed to be reaching out, out of place. Soundwave noticed it, and he itched to move it back into place, but hesitated to do so; if Shockwave caught him touching one of his patients...let's just say it will not end well. The more he thought about it, however, the more it compelled him to move it. It was just...a thorn in his side. It took away from the perfection of her body, and ruined the entire image. As much as he tried to ignore it, it was impossible to do so. His servos twitched at his side, and he finally gave into his desires. Slowly he lifted a skinny arm towards the femme, and extended a trembling finger towards hers. Just inches away, all it would take was a slight push, just a press down, to complete the image, foolproof the painting. Now centimeters away, he could sense the pressure in the air. Slowly, and lightly, he touched his fingertip to her cold one. 

"What are you doing?"

Soundwave jerked his finger back, and brought his arm immediately to his side, turning around as he did. Shockwave stood there, emotionless, eyeing the mech. Soundwave didn't move. 

"Well?"

Soundwave pointed to the imperfect finger, like a kid pointing at a toy in a christmas display. Shockwave only stared, then shook his head and started over to the femme. When he got there, he moved Soundwave's arm out of the way, then pushed Darkshade's finger into place; to Soundwave, it was like putting the final piece in a large frustrating puzzle. It satisfied him to see everything in it's place. 

"Please refrain from touching the patients." Shockwave said simply, before pratically shoving Soundwave out of the room, and shutting the door. 

~~~

Optimus wandered out of the medical bay. After receiving a full report on Knockout's condition, and learning multiple medical words he rather not know the meaning of, Ratchet had kicked him out so he could get some work done. As he walked down the hall, he heard a sort of grunting coming from the training room. He walked to some windows that peaked in, and jumped for the ledge. Thank goodness he was growing rapidly to his full size; he wasn't sure how much longer he could  go being shorter than Arcee. Grunting  in frustration, Optimus climbed on top of a stack of energon cubes, wobbling at the instability, and peeked inside. Starscreem stood in the middle of the room, with his servos clenched, and his face scrunched. He seemed to be struggling with something, and in pain. He jumped up in the air, and flapped his arms around; it reminded Optimus of the video Miko had showed him with a grown mad dressed up in a chicken suit dancing to some ridiculous song that had gotten stuck in his memory files for a month. 

"Come on, come on!" The seeker growled. "Transform already!" Transform? 

"Um, Optimus, what are you doing?" The voice startled the prime, causing him to stumble backwards, and fall into the pile of cubes. He popped his head out, turned around, and looked up at Smokescreen, who was trying his absolute hardest not to laugh. 

"Sorry...sir..it's just...were you spying on Starscream?" 

"No. I'm just...observing him. I must ensure he is not up to any tricks." He glanced up at Smokescreen, hoping he had convinced him. His expression said he had not. 

"If you say so..." Smokescreen walked off, stifling a giggle. 

"I do say so." Optimus muttered, then walked to the entrance of the training room. He continued to watch the seeker, amused by his strange trials and dances. It was hard not to laugh; he looked absolutely ridiculous. The way he jumped into the air like an earth feline when it touched cold water, or the strange squawks and screeches he let out. It sounded like a room full of tropical birds. There was no reasoning behind his actions. Yet, Optimus noticed, in each little trial, his wings would shudder slightly, then grow still again, and the faint beginning of a transformation was heard, before it was cut off. It was as if...he was unable to transform. 

"Do you...require assistance?" Starscream let out a squeak in surprise, not having noticed the prime watching him. Immediately, he flushed in embarrassment, when he realized Optimus would've seen all his dances and heard his noises. 

"No." He muttered, too quickly

"It seems like you are trying to transform."

"I am."

"But, you can't." 

"Don't just assume that!" Starscream snapped, then stormed out of the room, pushing past the prime and down the hall to his new berth, which was really just a converted closet. Optumus sighed, then walked down towards the medical bay. 

If Stasrscream really couldn't transform, he would have Ratchet check it out.

~~~

As nighttime approached the Nemesis, all was still, quiet. Megatron hadn't appeared all day, though the sounds of battling could be heard in the combat room. Shockwave spent most of the day tinkering in his lab, always keeping an optic on the femme, checking on her occasionally. Every so often, Soundwave would come in, check in with Shockwave on Darkshade's condition, stare at her for 5 minutes straight, then walk out. It was quite creepy in a sense. All the while, Darkshade never showed any signs of change. 

As the night grew dark, and most everyone was in recharge, everyone felt tense, Autobots and Decepticons alike. 

Tomorrow was the third day. Tomorrow would determine who would live, and who would perish, if not reunited with their partners. 

Tomorrow could change the fate of this war forever.