~Knocked-Out~

Confession

"Sparkinice? You joking!"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Ratchet snapped. " I know the disease of the Spark-Broken when I see it, and you had it!" Knockout sighed, then turned to Optimus, who had now, fortunately, grown to the same size as the cherry mech.

"So, explain to me again, what happened?"

"You collapsed after Starscreams Pledge, and were taken to the medical bay, where you were diagnosed. Our guess is that the femme you bonded with went through the same thing."

"So, Darkshade is well now?" An awkward silence filled the room, as no one dared to repeat what Ratchet had told them, for fear of breaking his spark all over again.

"We... are not certain, but often, in case of Sparkinice, one of the partners will wake, and recover, while the other...does not."

"Do you mean...that Nights....Darkshade is..."Knockout chocked on the word.

"Not well, we believe so." As soon as the words had escaped Optimus' mouth, Knokcout felt a sob start to build up. His breaths became shaky, uneven, and his already broken spark cracked once more. He turned to Ratchet, fighting not to let a tear slip out. Being a medic, he had heard of Sparkinice, and knew what it was, yet he had never learned enough to properly treat it.

"Th...there is a cure, right?" His question came out in a squeak. To most, it could come off as embarrassing. He didn't care right now.

Ratchet sighed, shaking his helm.

"There's...no...cure?"

"No, no, there is a cure, but it's...complicated."

"Please, enlighten me."

Ratchet sighed again. "In order to save the other partner, you must be reunited with her..."

"And she's currently on a heavily cloaked warship that could be anywhere in the world." Knockout finished the statement, and hung his head low. "There's no way to find or track it."

~~~

"Shockwave, any change in Darkshade's condition."

"Unfortunately yes."

"Unfortunately?" Megatron raises an optic ridge.

"It is as I feared. With her spark no longer beating, her systems are starting to shut down."

"How long does she have?"

"48 hours, at the most."

Megatron showed no emotion to the statement, but inside, his spark had dropped. He had hoped she would have longer.

"Lord Megatron, I believe it is in the best interest of Darkshade that we allow the Autobot to come and heal her"

"I appreciate your thoughts, Shockwave, but I already have a plan. Why let the Autobots willingly come here, when we could force them?"
~~~

"Um, Optimus? Can I... clarify something?" Knockout asked sheepishly.

Optimus nodded, as Knockout took a real breath. This could be a mistake.

"Me and Nightstreak...we...never bonded."