Nemesis (My version, very dark.)

[sunstar]

And here it is. This is the first half of the story.

NEMESIS

It was dark, very dark. The storm raging outside did not help make things any less terrifying. Thunder rumbled, causing the building to shudder with the concussive noise. The soldier trembled as he walked down the impossibly long hallway. He looked left and right nervously. Overhead, the lights began to flicker. The man began to breathe quicker. A low growl reached his ears. Glancing left and right quickly, the man saw nothing. The lights died, plunging the wide hallway into darkness. The man was sweating in fear. He tried to turn on his flashlight but his fingers were shaking too much.

Twin lights flicked on somewhere behind him. Turning, the soldier fervently prayed the lights were powerful flashlights carried by two other soldiers. He knew his prayer would never be answered. The twin lights were headlights. Squinting, the soldier made out a silver grill. Another growl rose from beyond the headlights. Quaking in fear, the soldier turned and ran for his life. Behind him came the sound of tires on hard cement floor. The lights never wavered.

The soldier burst outside into the driving rain and howling wind. Lightening flashed, revealing the stark Nevadan desert, and the unfolding Kenworth W900 truck bursting out of the opening the soldier had just left. The truck finished its change. It held out its hand, which was glowing a sickly green color.

“No, NO!” The soldier tried to run. He was seized by terrible nausea that doubled him over with violent spasms of agony and vomiting. His body couldn’t sustain this for long. It crumbled to the ground, blood pooling around him. The body seized one more time. From the mouth came a deluge of pale brown fluid mixed with solid brown bits.

Nemesis turned away from the body, its meal done. It folded back in upon itself until a simple truck rested where it stood. The truck rolled away toward a distant mesa.


Agent William Fowler heard his phone ringing. Cracking open his eyes, he found his alarm clock, the red numbers revealing it to be 3 AM. He picked up the phone and answered it.

“This had better be good.” He snapped.

“We have another victim. Same MO.” General Bryce was on the phone.

“Another victim?” Fowler was still half asleep.

“Docs say he got sick and barfed to death. I need you here at the Alden Military Base, yesterday.” The phone clicked off as a white searchlight lit up Fowler’s bedroom. Blinking at the sudden light, Fowler dragged himself out of bed. Within minutes, he was inside the helicopter on his way to Nevada.


“You think he is finally resting?” Arcee asked, turning toward Ratchet.

“He better be. If this insomnia keeps up,” Ratchet didn’t dare to finish. He didn’t need to. Bumblebee looked nervous while Arcee fidgeted.

“He’ll begin to break down mentally as well as physically, until his body shuts down. We all know where that leads.” Bulkhead finished, “Hey doc, why is Optimus not sleeping?”

“He has insomnia, which is the inability to sleep. I’ve ran every test I can think of to explain the insomnia, but I’ve got nothing. Insomnia is a sign of illness, not the illness itself.” Ratchet explained, “We all should be in bed instead of hanging out in here. Optimus will be fine. If it comes down to it, I can always sedate him so he will rest.”


Optimus bolted up in his berth, gasping, a scream dying on his lips. He listened, hearing no sound except the usual night sounds. Good, he hadn’t woken anybody up. He tried to recall the nightmare, but already it had faded from his memory banks. Deep in the back of his mind, Nemesis growled.

“You are not going to win, Nemesis!” Optimus muttered under his breath, “You will never win! I won’t let you hurt anyone ever again!”

Calming himself down with a few deep breaths, Optimus settled back into his berth. He swept his gaze around his room, his optics settling on a simple framed picture on his night table. He rolled to his side, his optics never leaving the picture. Within the simple frame, Elita One and Altima Prime smiled back. Optimus felt his optics prickle with unshed tears. He’d done enough crying already. Altima was safer with Alpha Q. Elita too. What Megatron did to her, he would pay.

Unable to rest any longer, Optimus rose and left his berth. Nemesis snarled, and Optimus shook his head. He knew Nemesis was stirring. Soon, it would be fully awake and Optimus would be forced to watch as Nemesis killed to sate its hunger.


“He threw up his own brain? Are you hearing yourself, Doc? How do you throw up your brain? You can’t! It’s impossible!” Fowler scowled.

“Tell that to Private Scott Furman! His brain is splattered beside him.” Doc stepped aside to let Fowler see, “It came from his mouth.”

“I would like to know what the slag happened!” Fowler snapped, “What caused this? Are we in danger from this?”

“Sir! We found tire tracks! They don’t match any vehicle here in the base!” a soldier called out.

Fowler waddled over to the soldier and knelt to examine the tracks. He saw a bit of red metal lying next to the tracks. The track was wide and well defined.

“No, it can’t be!” Fowler gasped.

“Sir?” the soldier asked, “The CSI’s say we are looking for a red Kenworth W900.”

“A red Kenworth?” Fowler forced himself to breath normally. Prime could not be behind this. There was just no way. Wait, maybe Prime witnessed what happened? Why would he be on the base in the first place?

“Something wrong?” the soldier asked.

“I ah, I have to go speak to someone about their… truck.” Fowler waddled off to find someplace quiet. Before long, a lone green SUV came to pick him up. Fowler had taken the scrap of red metal. Bulkhead drove him to the base. The Autobots were waiting in the main area as Fowler heaved himself out of Bulkhead and climbed up the stairs.

“What is the big deal?” Arcee stifled a yawn.

Before answering, Fowler turned toward Optimus.

“I was at a crime scene earlier. Want to explain why I found your tire tracks there?” Fowler glared at Optimus.

“Hold it!” Ratchet snapped, “Optimus has been here all night, sleeping!”

“Unless he was sleep driving.” Bulkhead found himself under Optimus’s withering gaze.

“Not helping, Bulkhead. I sleep walk, I have never been known to sleep drive, I think.” Optimus thought, “What did I do?”

“We found a victim who had vomited up their brains.” Fowler watched as Optimus went white, “What don’t tell me you are Emetophobic. I also found this.” He held up the scrap, which Ratchet took.

“Optimus, what is wrong?” Arcee asked.

“Nothing, nothing at all.” Optimus turned from her, “I’m fine.”

“This came from you, Optimus.” Ratchet held up the scrap, “What did you do?”

“Something you want to say?” Fowler asked.

Bumblebee chirped worriedly.

‘I should tell them, but I can’t. I can’t endanger them. It is safer this way.’ “I think I might have done some sleep driving. My somnambulism is getting worse.” The explanation sounded lame to him. He held his breath, praying it would be bought.

“That could be.” Ratchet mulled over the explanation, “I want to run a sleep test on you.”

“No need!” Optimus said quickly, too quickly.

Bumblebee beeped sourly.

“I know I should listen to Ratchet and have the test done, but I don’t need it. I’m sleeping fine.” Optimus reassured the yellow scout.

“Are you sure?” Arcee asked, “You know we worry about you.”

“I assure you, Arcee, I am fine.” Optimus smiled.

In the back of his mind, Nemesis growled again. Optimus felt the stirring of Nemesis’s ancient hunger. He forced it down and back to the back of his mind. He could never let his team find out about Nemesis.

Ratchet watched the Prime worriedly. He knew Optimus was hiding something from him, from all of them. He hoped Optimus would finally tell them when he was ready.

“Prime, you know something about this.” Fowler asked, his eyes boring into Optimus’s own optics.

“I do know something about this. Long ago on Cybertron, there were bodies found in the way you described. We discovered it was being done by an Energy Vampire.” Optimus felt Nemesis growl again, “An Energy Vampire feeds on the energy of its victims. The process is so painful that it makes the victims sick. It ends with the victim vomiting up their brains.”

“You are saying we have a vampire on the loose?” Fowler wasn’t sure if he heard Optimus right.

“How do you know?” Arcee asked.

“Back when I was a librarian, I did a lot of reading.” Optimus answered.

Nemesis hissed, voicing its need to feed. Optimus became acutely aware of the scent of warm energon and human blood in the room. Nemesis was hungry, and making sure he knew it. Optimus knew it would only get worse until Nemesis took over to feed. He forced all thoughts of Nemesis out of his mind.

“Are you feeling okay?” Ratchet drew out his scanner.

“I’m fine, Ratchet.” Optimus stepped away from the medic.

“One scan.” Ratchet growled, “Or else I knock you into stasis and keep you that way until I’m sure you are fine.” Ratchet’s left hand was replaced by a finely pointed tranquilizer which bristled as a needle was loaded into it.

“What part of… fine, one scan, after you put away the tranquilizer.” Optimus decided it would be better to give in then to be put in stasis. He did not want to go through what happened the last time he was coming out of stasis again. It wasn’t like Ratchet could pick up Nemesis on a scan anyway.

The scent of human blood and warm energon was getting stronger. Optimus felt Nemesis fighting its mental prison to escape and feed. He tightened his hold on that prison. Nemesis would have to try harder to escape. Optimus would not allow Nemesis to escape again.

Ratchet took his scan, noticing an anomaly he had not seen before. He decided to keep his mouth closed about it until he could get Optimus alone in his medical bay for further tests. Even if he had to knock Optimus into stasis, he would do those tests. Losing Optimus would cost the Autobots the war.


“Whoa, Arcee. That was some yawn.” Jack whispered as Arcee took him to school later that morning like always.

“I didn’t get to bed last night.” Arcee answered, “We all were up all night, except for Optimus, who managed to get an hour of sleep.”

“Let me guess, Optimus’s insomnia flared up again.” Jack said.

“That, and his somnambulism.”

“Did he go far?”

“No, not far. We’re here. I’ll pick you up after school.” Arcee yawned again, “I’m going to stay right here and get some sleep.”

It wasn’t long before Jack met up with Miko and Raf in front of the school building.

“Bulkhead fell asleep at a light.” Miko said.

“Bee managed to stay awake.” Raf added, “They must have pulled an all-nighter.”

“They did, dealing with Optimus’s insomnia, and his somnambulism.” Jack said, “Arcee is in the parking lot, sleeping.”

“Why don’t they chain him to his bed?” Miko asked, “That’s what my host parents did with me.”

“They chained you because you wouldn’t stop sneaking out at night!” Jack hissed.

“I’m from Japan, remember? My day is your night!” Miko hissed back.

“BELL!” Raf took off. Jack and Miko both gave each other dark looks before stalking off to class.


Ratchet watched as Optimus trained with his swords. Some of the moves scared Ratchet. He watched as Optimus tossed both of his swords in the air and slide to the right, catching both of them in his hands neatly only to drop into a tricky spin move. He managed to hang on to both swords much to Ratchets relief. Bumblebee and Bulkhead had decided to join Arcee in napping at the school parking lot after they both nearly got their feet cut off by Optimus losing a sword during that spin move. Ratchet had considered joining them, but an ambulance in a school zone would be too suspicious. Also, someone had to stay and keep an eye on Optimus to make sure he didn’t lose a sword into himself. Ratchet also found it fascinating to watch his Prime train. At that moment, a sword sailed dangerously close to his neck, causing him to squawk in surprise. Optimus leapt and caught the sword neatly. Ratchet checked his neck for fluid and found none.

“Would you be more careful? That was my head you nearly removed from my shoulders!” Ratchet snapped, “You need to take a break.”

“Sorry, Ratchet.” Optimus replied.

Again he became aware of the scent of warm energon, Ratchet. Optimus became aware of something else, a sound. He realized he was hearing the sound of Ratchet’s spark pumping energon through his body. The scent and the sound were so enticing. Nemesis growled throatily, its hunger clear. Optimus felt his hold on Nemesis’s mental cell slipping, and retightened his hold.

“You are sweating.” Ratchet looked concerned.

“I’m fine, Ratchet. I’m going out for a drive.” Optimus knew he had to get out of there, get away from the temptation to let Nemesis feed. He was already transforming before Ratchet could speak. Ratchet found himself waving away a dust cloud that rose from Optimus’s tires as he peeled out of the base. The dust settled on everything, forcing the Medic to groan. Sourly, Ratchet went to fetch a broom, duster, and dust pan. As he cleaned, he realized the dust was sand from the desert outside.


‘Feed! Feed! Feeeeeeed!’

Optimus winced with each word Nemesis uttered. When Nemesis spoke, it caused Optimus to suffer a severe headache. The scent of blood hung thickly in the air. Faintly, Optimus could hear what sounded like many drums beating together, some faster, and some slower. The scent and the sounds were enticing, so enticing. Nemesis threw itself at its prison walls. It sensed Optimus’s hold weakening.

“No, no! I won’t let you escape!” Optimus knew it was already hopeless. He was slipping back as the mental cage shattered. Desperately, Optimus tried to fling himself off the road. Nemesis growled, not allowing any interference.

“Optimus, stop!”

Optimus recognized the ambulance racing after him.

“Ratchet! Stay back! I’m not myself!” Optimus tried to scream, but his words were garbled with growls and screeches.

Ratchet looked around for something that would stop Optimus. He spotted an overpass coming up. There were no cars around. Picking up speed, Ratchet pulled even with Optimus. As long as Optimus didn’t try to shift into Maximum Overdrive, Ratchet could keep up.

“I know what is wrong!” Ratchet cried out, hoping Optimus could hear him, “It was you, wasn’t it? You are the Energy Vampire!”

That froze Optimus’s energon. Ratchet knew. Didn’t he realize he was in grave danger?

“See the overpass? I’m going to try the pit maneuver. I want you to do everything you can to go over the side of the overpass. That should shock your systems and knock you out.” Ratchet braced himself.

“You have it wrong!” Optimus switched tactics to his radio when Nemesis mangled his words, “You have it wrong!”

“What? You aren’t the Vampire?” Ratchet was confused.

“No, I mean yes! No time to explain! Get as far from me as you can before I turn you into lunch!” Optimus was losing
control, “Ratchet that is an order!”

The overpass was upon them. Optimus flung himself toward the side of the road. Ratchet threw himself forward, slamming into Optimus with enough force to flip him up and over the edge.

“What the slag?” Ratchet would have jumped and spun if he could, “Ratchet, what are you doing?”

“Agent Fowler. This is not what it looks like. I figured it out. Optimus is the Energy Vampire.” Ratchet transformed and leapt from the overpass, “He most likely hasn’t fed in a while. I’m going to offer myself to him.”

“What? Optimus is evil?” Fowler climbed out of his car.

“Energy Vampires are not always evil.” Ratchet knelt by Optimus.

Optimus suddenly transformed; his coloring fading as what looked like silver rust set in. His optics opened to reveal yellow instead of blue. Nemesis growled, his arm snapping out to grab Ratchet. His hand glowed a sickly green color. Ratchet didn’t resist.

“That is it; take what you need from me.” Ratchet whispered, “I’ll find a way to set you free from this curse.”

Nemesis snarled, releasing Ratchet. He turned on Fowler, and froze. His optics flickered between blue and yellow.

“Ratchet! Please! Get Fowler and yourself out of here! You have it wrong! Nemesis is the Energy Vampire!” Optimus’s voice was punctuated by guttural growls, “I’m losing control! Nemesis will feed until he is sated! I can’t control him! He’ll kill you both! Go! It’s an order!”

Nemesis let loose with a bone chilling scream. Ratchet backed away, scooping up Fowler as he went. Rising, Nemesis turned to face them. Opening his mouth, Nemesis let a single long, piercing note rise to the sky. Ratchet froze as did Fowler. They both tried to keep moving.

“What is this? I can’t move!” Fowler cried out.

“This is some kind of spell! Nemesis is using the Matrix against us!” Ratchet strained to lift a foot, “Bumblebee, Arcee, Bulkhead, help!”


“ARCEE!”

‘HONK!’

“Gah!” Arcee jumped a mile, “What has gotten into you two?”

The blue feme put a hand to her chest to make sure her spark was still working right.

“Ratchet called. He’s in trouble.” Bulkhead explained, “You are one heavy sleeper, Arcee.”

Bumblebee chirped his agreement.

“What is wrong?” Arcee checked her internal clock, “The kids get out in 20 minutes.”

“Ratchet said he was under attack by an energy vampire, with Fowler. I can’t raise Optimus.” Bulkhead explained.

Bumblebee beeped a reply saying that Optimus never remembered to turn his com on half the time.

“Someone is going to have to stay here to pick up the kids.” Arcee said.

Bumblebee pointed at himself. He would stay. Bulkhead had some medical knowledge, so he should go. Arcee couldn’t take all three kids at once. Once that was decided, Bulkhead and Arcee left, heading straight to Ratchets coordinates. They arrived and transformed.

What looked like a faded Optimus stood with his right hand glowing. Fowler was on the ground, his body shaking harshly as he brought up what must have been part of his lunch. Ratchet was shaking, looking miserable. He struggled to keep his own lunch where it belonged.

Bulkhead charged, his wreaking ball slamming into Optimus’s back. This broke Nemesis’s concentration, allowing Arcee to scoop up Fowler, get sprayed in his vomit, and guide Ratchet away. Moments later, Ratchet added his lunch to the mess Fowler already made. Bulkhead kept Nemesis busy.

“Careful, Bulkhead!” Ratchet groaned and heaved again, “That is Optimus you are fighting!”

“What did you do to him?” Arcee rubbed the medic’s back.

“He’s an energy Vampire!” Ratchet heaved, “I had nothing to do with it! Are you ever going to let the synergon fiasco go?”

“You hit on me, so no!” Arcee ducked as Bulkhead was sent flying over her head, “What is Optimus’s weakness?”

“How am I supposed to know?” Ratchet was silenced by a fresh wave of retching.

“Give me something to work with, Ratchet!” Arcee snapped.

“Well, I know Vampires can be killed by being staked in the heart. Silver hurts them to, so got anything silver?” Fowler spoke up.

“This is an Energy Vampire!” Ratchet snapped at the human, “From Cybertron! Earth remedies will not work!”

“I don’t see you coming up with any ideas!” Fowler shot back.

“Incoming!” Bulkhead screamed.

“Move!” Arcee scooped up Fowler again and dragged Ratchet out of harm’s way. Bulkhead landed right where they were seconds ago. He rose with a groan.

“Oh come on! I took a shower this morning!” Bulkhead raced back into battle, “Silver aint working! I’ve got silver in my wreaking balls!”

“Got a giant wooden stake?” Fowler asked.

“For the last time, we are not going to slay Optimus!” Ratchet hissed, “I know he is in there somewhere!”

“You sure?” Bulkhead was sent flying backward from Nemesis and landed on his feet where a resounding crack was heard, “Doc, I think I broke something.”

“My car!” Fowler screamed.

“Oh sorry, agent Fowler.” Bulkhead stepped off the ruin that was Fowler’s car, “You sure Optimus is in there? Cause I sure am not seeing him.”

“He is there!” Ratchet rose, his right hand changing to his tranquilizer, “I intend to save him!”

He took aim as Nemesis charged at him. There was a resounding boom as Nemesis was struck by a dart that promptly exploded. Ratchet fired again, the dart biting through Nemesis’s shoulder and emptying its contents into his body. Nemesis slowed, his colors darkening as his optics changed to blue. Optimus was back. He staggered as the effect of the tranquilizer overtook him. Ratchet caught him as he fell.

“I’m okay, so is Fowler. I’m going to help you defeat Nemesis. Let’s get you back to base.” Ratchet said.

Optimus nodded, not having the energy to talk.


Bumblebee had picked up the kids and taken them to the base when the call for a groundbridge came in. He opened the groundbridge as the kids settled into doing their homework. Arcee appeared first, carrying Fowler, who looked livid. Behind her came Bulkhead and Ratchet, who supported Optimus between them. Bumblebee gasped, which alerted the kids.

“What happened?” Jack asked as Bulkhead and Ratchet guided Optimus to a berth. He sank down onto the berth with a soft sigh.

“Ratchet figured it out.” Bulkhead said.

“Optimus’s somnambulism isn’t as benign as we thought.” Arcee continued.

“Kids, there have been strange attacks lately.” Fowler managed to control his anger with great difficulty.

“You mean the strange illness where you literally barf yourself to death?” Miko asked, “We talked about it in health class. All victims were healthy and there is no sign of infection or problem that would lead to them getting sick to death.”

“Yes, Miko, them. The sickness is an attack. Optimus is behind those attacks. He is an Energy Vampire.” Fowler explained.

“It’s not Optimus.” Ratchet broke the silence, “I can’t explain it yet, but I think Nemesis is a parasitic personality.”

“Care to run that by us in simpler terms?” Arcee asked.

“Optimus’s body is inhabited by two separate people.” Ratchet deadpanned.

“Oh that makes it all so clear!” Arcee retorted sarcastically, “Optimus in no way is a multiple!”

“It is true, Arcee.” Optimus’s voice was low, hollow, “Orion accepted what was happening. He died the day I was born.”

“And…” Bulkhead prompted.

“Where does the Energy Vampire fit into this?” Ratchet asked.

“Back when I first became the Prime, I was very nearly assassinated. I almost had no energy left to live. I was fading before Alpha Trion’s optics. Alpha Trion came up with a desperate gamble to save me. Elita One rose to the challenge. She saved my life by giving me some of her own life force. It wasn’t until later when I got very sick that we discovered that my assassin was an Energy Vampire. In the end, I became one too. Elita hunted down and killed the one who turned me, but that did not stop me. Nemesis is the name I take when I am overtaken. There is no way to defeat Nemesis, except by death.” Optimus turned his head to Ratchet, “You must kill me to protect Team Prime.”

Second half is coming!

[Al1701]

This great. Though, the vomiting up your brains it a little too...sensational. I would have made draining simply cause heart/energon pump failure. They just stop and Nemesis and moves on.

I can see why they wouldn't want to use this angle with Nemesis. Too bad.

[sunstar]

Nemesis basically drains you dry. I do agree that the brain vomit is a little sensational.

[Al1701]

Especially since it is literally impossible to vomit up your brains. So much bone and tissue would have to be so damaged you would be unable to throw up (and mostly likely dead) before your brain could reach your mouth. Not to much the muscles needed for the heaving are on the wrong side.

Now, liquified brains spilling out of the nose or ears cloud work because there are already holes in the bone and you just have to rupture a little tissue.

[sunstar]

Yeah, I should have researched it a bit more. I may alter the brain vomiting a bit to where it comes from your ears and nose instead.

[Al1701]

I research the hell out of stuff I put in my stories. I see it as part of the writing process.

[sunstar]

I get too excited to research sometimes.

[Al1701]

I've found researching is a good outlet for the excitement too.

[sunstar]

Here is the second half!

“I will do no such thing!” Ratchet hissed, “I will not be responsible for causing your death, Optimus! Without you, we have no hope against Megatron!”

“Don’t you see? I am a danger to you, all of you. Even now, I am barely keeping Nemesis contained.” Optimus bowed his head, pain flickering across his face, “Once Nemesis takes over, I will be impossible to stop. I do not want to hurt any of you.”

“Optimus, there must be a way to stop Nemesis without killing you.” Arcee felt weak.

“He causes me great pain every day. I am afraid there is no way.” Optimus whispered, his voice barely audible. He looked up, his gaze meeting the optics of his team, “It’s better this way.” He held Ratchet’s gaze, “You know what is coming. I know you do not want me to go through that. You can spare me that torture; spare yourselves that helplessness of having to watch me die.”

“Death isn’t the answer!” Miko screamed suddenly, “You snap out of this, Optimus! Who was the first Vampire? If you kill the first, you cure all!”

“Energy Vampires were created by the Dweller, which was killed by Seaspray.” Bulkhead shuddered, “I never saw Seaspray so angry.”

“I never saw someone so small take down something so big.” Arcee added, “She overloaded it with her own energy.”

“Wait! I just remembered something! Remus was able to save those who were turned by the Dweller by overloading them with Matrix energy.” Ratchet looked excited.

“One problem.” Arcee waited.

“Scrap it!” Ratchet muttered, “The Matrix can only be used by a Prime! Anyone got any other ideas?”

“I’m dying anyway.” Optimus spoke up, his optics hooded, his voice low, “You have not seen what it does, what it will do to me. It is a fate that I would never wish on anyone else, not even Megatron. Ratchet, please, end my suffering before it is too late!”

“You are not going to like it.” Raf said, “but we might have to call Megatron.”

Nemesis snarled angrily. Again, Optimus became aware of the scent of warm energon and human blood. The sound of pumping sparks and human hearts rose to a near deafening reverberation. Optimus winced, his hands going to his audio receptors, but that did nothing to lessen the sound. Nemesis roared, eager, and desperate to feed. It was then that Optimus realized he was screaming the word no. Silvery rust began to appear over his body.

“Nemesis! No!” Optimus fought desperately to remain in control. He rose, and staggered as he fought to transform and get away from Team Prime. Nemesis’s own screams mixed into Optimus’s screams. Optimus felt his arm move as Ratchet rushed toward him. The medic was sent crashing into a bank of diagnostic computers. Bulkhead rushed to his side. Arcee and Bumblebee stayed out of reach. Optimus finished transforming and took off. Twice, he crashed into a wall before making it outside.

“Bee, go after him!” Arcee ordered, “Don’t try to fight him!”

Bumblebee chirped and transformed so he could follow Optimus. Gunning his powerful engine, Bumblebee raced outside. He spotted Nemesis and followed. Bumblebee felt sick inside, wondering why no one had seen the signs that something was wrong. What kind of team player was he if he couldn’t see the signs that his own commander and Prime was in trouble? Bee thought hard. Had he even seen anything to indicate something was wrong?

Nemesis slowed a bit to smell the air. The scent of warm blood and beating hearts wafted over from somewhere to his right. Behind him was the scent of hot energon and the sound of a hammering spark. Nemesis decided the blood smell was much more enticing. He took off as Bumblebee stayed behind him. The yellow Autobot was an annoyance, nothing more. He would feed upon him later.

Optimus found himself in the same mental prison he’d kept Nemesis in for so long. He pounded on the bars but Nemesis only tightened his hold. Optimus knew he had to try to regain control. He sensed Bumblebee following. If he could regain control for a few minutes, Bumblebee would have the opening he needed to take the kill shot.

Optimus knew it was far too late to separate Nemesis from his body. He would never be able to survive without Nemesis. The energy vampire’s infection was everywhere. It had done what he had prayed it would not do. Within his body was a second infection known as the Dark Infection. Being the Prime, Optimus was tied to Primus. Primus was sick from the taint of dark energon, courtesy of Megatron. That same taint created the Dark Infection within Optimus. He knew that infection would remain until Primus was finally able to purge the taint from himself. Somehow, the vampire’s infection had merged with the Dark Infection, spreading throughout his body. Optimus knew that even when Primus purged himself free of the taint, the infection in his own body would remain.

-&-

“Mom, hurry up!” a girl called out to her mother, who was filling up the tank of their car, “I’m not going to miss Gobots again! Leader-1 has to embrace his dark side to try to say the earth in this one, and I always miss it!”

“I’m hurrying, darling!” the girl’s mother called, pulling the nozzle from the car. Overhead, the cloudy sky grew darker. The first few raindrops of the storm began to fall. As the mother began to pay for her purchase of gas, a pair of bright lights flicked on. She froze. Her daughter looked out the window.

“Mom! Come on already!” she called.

A growl sounded from behind the headlights. A bolt of lightning flashed, illuminating a red Kenworth W900 truck. It suddenly changed in a blur of moving parts, rising into the air.

“Is this some kind of Gobot?” the mother asked.

“I bet it is a character for that new Gobot movie!” the girl answered, “They said they were creating an all new evil that would make Cy-Kill seam very nice by comparison!”

Bumblebee saw Nemesis raise his hand and acted. Transforming, he fired a few quick shots to get Nemesis’s attention. Nemesis turned with a snarl, taking a hit from Bumblebees plasma weapon and staggering.

“We are getting out of here!” the mother scrambled into her car.

“I bet that is a new hero! Wait mom! Don’t leave! I want to get this all on tape! Mom!” the girl cried out, her cell phone out and filming, “I can’t wait for school Monday! This is going to be so awesome!”

Bumblebee dodged Nemesis’s blows. He opened his radio and contacted base.

“Sit tight! Bulkhead and Arcee are in route!” Ratchet answered, “And so is Wheeljack. I called him in. We need all hands on deck!”

Overhead, the Jackhammer soared freely, its weapon ports bristling. Bumblebee found himself tossed aside. A ground bridge opened to spit out Arcee and Bulkhead. Wheeljack didn’t wait for them to join the fight as he fired off the Jackhammers main cannons. Nemesis drew out his sword and sliced through both warheads. He did stagger back a bit with the explosions.

Inside the Jackhammer, Wheeljack lined up his main guns with Nemesis. His finger rested upon the fire button. Nemesis turned, his eyes blue, just as Wheeljack pressed the fire button. He gasped, watching as in slow motion, his twin warheads streaked toward Optimus. A loud knock got his attention. He opened the hatch, fully expecting to see Bumblebee’s devastated face. Instead, Wheeljack found himself being hauled out of his ship and dragged away by Bumblebee. The retort died on his lips when the Jackhammer exploded.

At that moment, Arcee and Bulkhead arrived.

“Not again!” Wheeljack lamented, “I just installed an all new interior, too!”

“Later, Wheeljack!” Arcee called out, “We have a bigger problem!”

Bulkhead charged at Nemesis again, only to get flung to the ground. He looked up to see Nemesis bringing his heeled boot down at his head. Arcee barreled into Nemesis, knocking him off balance and giving Bulkhead time to regain his feet. Wheeljack’s face mask slipped into place as he drew his twin katanas. Bumblebee held his position, laying down cover fire, as Wheeljack charged. Nemesis was ready for him. They locked swords.

“Optimus, I know you can hear me. You need to fight it off.” Wheeljack blocked a sword, and feinted left to avoid Nemesis’s second sword. Nemesis managed to land a glancing blow to Wheeljack’s hip. He only got armor.

“Optimus cannot hear you!” Nemesis blocked both of Wheeljack’s katanas, “You call yourself a master swordsman?”

Next thing Wheeljack knew, both of his own katanas were sticking out of his body. He was kicked aside. Bulkhead unleashed both of his wreaking balls, only to watch as Nemesis sent them both flying back at him by hitting both with his swords. Bulkhead went down, leaving Arcee and Bumblebee to engage Nemesis.

“Optimus, come on! Fight it! I know you don’t want to do this! Let us help you!” Arcee begged, her wrist blades out and ready. Bumblebee chirped his agreement. He put up his hands in an appeasement gesture.

“Optimus is no more!” Nemesis roared, and then grabbed his head in agony as Optimus fought through, “Don’t hesitate! Take me out! Hurry!”

Bumblebee shook his head no. Arcee’s optics went wide.

“I can’t do that!” Arcee cried out, “I can’t hurt you!”

“Do it! Don’t even think about it! Just do it!” Optimus screamed desperately. Nemesis reasserted himself by going after Arcee. Bumblebee tried to stop him but he was flung aside. Arcee backpedaled, trying to stay out of Nemesis’s reach. He was far faster. Nemesis grabbed Arcee, who felt his sword press against her back.

-&-

“Arcee!” Jack cried out, “Ratchet, do something!”

“He’s too strong! My tranquilizer barely affected him!” Ratchet searched through his supplies, “I’ve got nothing! The Spark Extractor? No! That would kill them all!”

“Remember what I said earlier?” Raf asked, “about contacting Megatron?”

“Why would we want to talk to Megatron?” Jack asked.

“Think about it. Megatron is the only one strong enough to stand up to Optimus. He can keep Optimus at bay.” Raf explained, “Which will buy time for Ratchet to come up with a cure.”

“You know, that could be smart.” Ratchet paused, “I’m going to use the Red Truce.”

“Wicked! What is a Red Truce?” Miko asked.

Jack and Raf both face palmed while Ratchet sighed.

“A Red Truce is issued during war when one side has a medical crisis to the other side which allows medics from both sides to work together.” Ratchet explained, “However, the other side can refuse to help if they don’t have the supplies or medics to spare.”

“Do you not pay attention during history class?” Jack asked, “No wonder you are failing!”

“Hey! I am not failing history, mister I’m failing math!” Miko snapped back.

“Not now you two!” Raf tried to cut between his friends.

“That D was an accidental grade! It was supposed to be a B!” Jack protested.

“Oh really?” Miko spat back, “Then why was it changed to an F?”

“Guys, please! Can’t we do this later?” Raf tried again.

“I thought those last five questions were for extra credit!” Jack hissed.

“Where’d you see that at?” Miko growled.

“GUYS!” Raf cried out.

“What?” Jack and Miko both turned to him.

“Look.” Raf pointed at the screen.

On screen, Wheeljack had gotten to his feet. He staggered toward Nemesis, pulling out the katana that had been thrust through his gut. Energon dripped from the wound. Pain flickered across his face with each step. Nemesis turned to block, only to scream as Wheeljack’s katana bit through armor to come to a rest inside Nemesis’s hip. Wheeljack dropped with a groan. Nemesis pulled out the katana and left it buried to its hilt in Wheeljack’s leg.

Arcee looked up from where she lay on her stomach to see Nemesis walking away from them. She couldn’t move because her back was slit open. She was in pain, darkness starting to cloud her vision. She tried to raise her arm, to get Nemesis’s attention, but her arm remained on the ground beside her. Her vision failed as she lost conscious.

Nearby, Bumblebee and Bulkhead were not fairing as well. Bumblebee’s left leg was crushed and his chest was badly dented, making breathing difficult. Bulkhead was losing energon from a deep neck wound. His left shoulder and arm refused to heed his commands. Bumblebee coughed, bringing up a wad of energon. Bulkhead was sure the scout was bleeding internally. He turned his head toward Arcee, who was lying in an ever growing pool of energon. It poured from her back in rivulets. She was clearly going into shock as her body shuddered. Slowly, she rolled to her side, facing Bulkhead. Her optics went dark. Wheeljack groaned from somewhere nearby. His second katana was buried in his abdomen. Bulkhead was sure that some of them wouldn’t survive this battle. His optics started to close.

The next thing he knew, Breakdown was above him, slapping his cheeks. Bulkhead sputtered, trying to bring his weapons to bear.

“Bulkhead, stop it! Red Truce!” Breakdown said, “Calm down. Knockout is working on stabilizing Arcee. Ratchet is working on Wheeljack. I need you to help me with Bumblebee.”

In the distance, Soundwave and Starscream circled in their alt forms. Below them, Megatron clashed with Nemesis. Starscream lined up for a pass. He streaked by Nemesis, releasing his warheads as he passed. The blasts stunned Nemesis, giving Soundwave his opening. He landed and transformed, his tentacles racing from his body to lock onto Nemesis. Quickly, Soundwave searched Optimus’s body for the source of the Energy Vampire infection. Megatron grabbed a hold of Nemesis, who thrashed, trying to break free.

Bulkhead and Breakdown knelt over Bumblebee, the former tying a tourniquet around the scout’s leg. Bumblebee twitched, unable to breathe, his optics wide. Knockout joined them.

"Easy, Bee. I’m going to help you.” Knockout placed what looked like a red knob on Bumblebee’s chest, “I need you to hold still, okay?” He attached a metal rod to bumblebee’s chest as he talked. He then picked up and unfolded what looked like a large metal spider with four legs. He set it up over the yellow scout and attached the metal rod to the center of the device. “Breakdown, Bulkhead, hold him down. I am going to try to pop his chest out. It’s compressing his rib cage, and he can’t breathe.” Knockout placed his hand on the device and pressed the button. The dent in Bumblebee’s chest popped out with a resounding pop. Bee let loose with a shrill screech. He groaned and coughed, bringing up more Energon. Knockout ran a scan, “You have some bleeding going on, but nothing too serious. You’ll be fine. It is just capillary bleeding in your chest. That will heal up quickly.” Knockout turned his attention to Bulkhead, “I’m going to close your wound.”

Nemesis shuddered, garbled screams and growls erupting from him as Soundwave searched. Behind them, the kids had joined the Autobots. They remained quiet. Starscream spotted them, and Nemesis raising his rifle. He didn’t think. He rushed to the kids and landed, opening up his canopy and bringing out an arm which he scooped all three kids into his cockpit. He raced away as Nemesis fired, ripping free of Megatron’s hold and Soundwave’s tentacles. Starscream never realized he had missed Jack.

“What were you three thinking? Nemesis or one of us could have easily killed you!” Starscream hissed, “You are lucky I saw you!”

“Thanks for the save, I think.” Miko looked around, “You are surprisingly roomy in here, Starscream.”

“You three are not welcome!” Starscream snapped, “I can’t believe I’m carrying humans…”

“You pressurized your cockpit.” Raf observed, “Nice thinking.”

“I’m going to land by your ground bridge. You three are going to use it.” Starscream landed, “It is far too dangerous here for you! Go!” He took off to pull off another run at Nemesis. Raf started to walk into the ground bridge.

“Where are you going?” Miko asked, “He forgot Jack!” She pointed to Jack, who was scrambling to get away from the battle between Megatron and Nemesis.

“I am going back to base, where it is safe! I can do more there then here!” Raf left. Miko sighed, and turned to run after Jack.

Nemesis was taking heavy damage. Megatron locked swords with the Vampire. He wasn’t surprised that Optimus of all people was an Energy Vampire. He had suspected the truth for quite a while. When Bumblebee came for the cure to Cybolic Plague, Megatron had encoded a second formula within the main formula. You had to know what to look for to find it. Ratchet had clearly not found the second formula. Long ago, shortly after the Matrix had become tainted, Sentinel had come up with that formula to help those suffering from the Vampire curse kick the infection. Megatron nearly got his head removed from his shoulders as he ducked under Nemesis’s swing. Taking a deep breath, he cleared his mind and focused on stopping the Vampire. Nemesis was not in any way Optimus. This was just the infection wearing Optimus’s face, nothing more.

“Fight me, Optimus. Don’t hold back. I know you are in there somewhere, hiding like the coward I know you are not! Stop holding back, stop resisting! Fight me like you mean it, Optimus!” Megatron taunted, “Elita was a coward. She ran instead of facing me like a Queen should!” A hard punch sent Megatron to the ground with scrambled circuits. Nemesis turned to grab Bulkhead.

“Bulk!” Miko cried out.

“Miko! You shouldn’t be here!” Bulkhead struggled, “Optimus! It’s me, it’s Bulkhead!” Nemesis wrapped his hands around Bulkhead’s neck and began to squeeze.

“Optimus, no! Stop!” Miko cried out desperately, searching for some kind of weapon she could use. She grabbed a large rock and flung it at Nemesis. It only dinged loudly against his boot. It distracted Nemesis enough for Bulkhead to wiggle free.

Wheeljack was back up, thanks to Ratchet’s quick repairs. He and Bumblebee had their weapons up and ready. Arcee saw Nemesis turn toward Miko and Jack. She cried out a warning to Bumblebee and Wheeljack, who both unleashed their firepower, catching Nemesis’s attention. Arcee still couldn’t feel her legs yet. Knockout said it would take a bit for feeling to return. She spotted Megatron, still dazed from the punch, roll over to his stomach, and pass back out. What interested her was his fusion cannon. If she could get to Megatron’s side… Arcee pulled herself forward with her arms, her legs tingling, but not wanting to listen to her commands yet. Slowly, she went from pulling herself along with her arms to an actual crawl. Pretty soon she was stumbling along on her feet. She dropped next to Megatron. Nemesis tossed Bumblebee into Wheeljack. Breakdown, Ratchet, and Knockout opened fire on Nemesis as Starscream strafed him from above. Lazerbeak screeched, diving to strafe Nemesis with her own weapons. Soundwave lashed out with his tentacles again. Arcee raised Megatron’s fusion cannon and took aim at Nemesis. Megatron finally shook off the dazed feeling and found that his middle finger was broken. This was going to hurt.

“Arcee, push down on my middle finger. That’s the trigger.” He braced himself.

“It’s broken? This will hurt, a lot.” Arcee pressed down on Megatron’s middle finger, which cracked as the fusion cannon erupted with a hot dark purple blast of energy that caught Nemesis on the shoulder, spinning him around and dropping him to his knees. He fell forward onto his hands. Megatron bit the inside of his mouth to keep from screaming. It would be a cold day in Kaon when it came out that an Autobot Feme nearly made him squeal. Knockout was there by him, checking him over.

“That finger is not supposed to bend that way.” Knockout popped the finger back into its socket and straightened it out. Arcee winced with each pop and crunch, “One splint later, boss? Megatron? Oh sweet Primus, I think I made him pass out.”

“KNOCKOUT!” Megatron roared, “I OUT TO HAVE YOU DISSASEMBLED FOR THAT!”

Optimus felt the cage weakening and threw himself at it. It shattered as he struck. Free at last, he ripped control away from Nemesis and sent it back into its cage. His optics went from yellow back to blue as his body took on its usual colors. He was breathing heavily. White hot agony, worse than anything he’d felt before, surged through him. All he could do was hold his position and clench his teeth with the waves of agony surging through him.

“Wait!” Ratchet and Knockout rushed to Optimuses side, “I think he is back!” Knockout added, “Optimus, can you hear me?”

Optimus looked up, his optics glazed over from pain, “Oh… Yes.”

“Don’t try to move.” Ratchet knelt, his scanner beeping, “Nothing that I can’t repair.”

“There is a way to defeat Nemesis, but it is not an easy thing to watch.” Megatron rose, an arm around his midsection, “Easy, Knockout. My internal repair programs are dealing with the repairs. You’ve caused me enough agony already.”

“There is?” Ratchet looked excited.

“There is, pioneered by Sentinel. It is a formula that brings out the infection and forced the body to fight it off. The spark extractor, if you will, doctor?” Megatron asked.

“I brought it with me. You know the agreement.” Ratchet handed the disk over, “Did Soundwave find anything?”

Soundwave came over, his face playing back the data he had collected. He tapped Ratchet on the shoulder and pointed at Optimus, his face showing a scan of Optimus.

“Um, I don’t understand.” Ratchet replied.

“Soundwave is telling you he found something inside Optimus.” Megatron translated “What? You picked up traces of dark energon? Inside Optimus?”

At that moment, Optimus felt his arms starting to give. His vision wavered. Nemesis growled, reminding him that it was not defeated, just contained. Optimus didn’t think he had the energy to speak.

“Raf?” Ratchet looked up, “You found another code inside the formula for the cure to Cybolic Plague? We’ll be there shortly. Optimus looks like he is about to go. Bulkhead, Wheeljack, I need your help. Megatron, dark energon inside Optimus?”

“Don’t look at me.” Megatron was already heading toward his groundbridge. Soundwave shrugged and followed. Starscream flew ahead into the ground bridge. Knockout and Breakdown both followed.

“But!” Ratchet sighed and turned to Optimus, “Let’s get you home and fixed back up.”

Bulkhead and Wheeljack came over, the both of them looking like scraplet leftovers. They knelt, helping Optimus to his feet. Optimus sagged, having no strength to even support his own weight. Bumblebee joined them, favoring his left leg. Arcee reached them last, her gait awkward. Ratchet looked them all over. He was going to have his hands full with repairs. Arcee was still bleeding from her back wound, and it looked like there was some damage to her nervous system. She would be second. Bumblebee coughed up a small wad of energon and spat it aside. He might have some internal bleeding going on inside. Bulkheads left arm hung limply at his side. Wheeljack was also limping. Ratchet turned his focus to Optimus. Optimus needed him the most right now. Megatron had done a number on him. Nemesis could be bubbling just below the surface. Ratchet decided upon his options. The first thing he was going to do was put Optimus into stasis. Then he would turn his attention to Arcee. Once he got her bleeding under control, he would check over Bumblebee.

Back inside the base, Ratchet refused to allow anyone to set foot outside his med lab. Arcee was on a berth while Bumblebee was inside the scanner. Optimus was on the second berth, still conscious. He had refused Ratchet’s offer of being put in stasis. He also refused any medical attention until after Ratchet had tended to everyone else. Bulkhead was already done and helping Ratchet out with Arcee. Wheeljack was in a chair next to Optimus. He was tasked with the job of watching over the Prime.

“Ow!” Arcee winced, “careful back there, Bulkhead!”

“Easy, Arcee, I’m almost done sewing you up.” Bulkhead reassured, thankful that Ratchet had forced him to practice repairs on that medical dummy. He knew how to do the repair Arcee needed, which freed up Ratchet to tend to Bumblebee. Ratchet checked Bumblebee’s scan. The scout did have some bleeding going on, but it was very small. Already it had stopped. Bumblebee would likely bring up wads of energon for the next few hours, but he was fine. Wheeljack waved off medical aid. His internal repair programs were already dealing with the damage he took. He would be fine soon. Finally, Ratchet was free to tend to his Prime.

Optimus opened his optics as Ratchet went to work on him. He was in pain, but due to his high tolerance for pain, he was able to block it off. His vision wavered as colors seemed to bleed into each other. Ratchet was talking, no, shouting something, but there was no sound. Darkness bled around the edges of his vision. No, not this, he would not black out. Optimus blinked, trying to clear his vision, but it seemed to only make the encroaching darkness worse. He was tired. He should rest. No, no resting, no need to rest. Optimus knew that if he gave in, there was a chance he would never wake up again. That was the one thing he had silently swore to himself that he would never put the team through back during his battle against Cybolic Plague. Optimus felt stasis coming on and allowed it to overtake him.

“Ratchet?” Bulkhead questioned.

“It’s okay, he’s in stasis. I’m going to keep him that way until I can come up with a plan to destroy Nemesis.” Ratchet reassured the green wrecker, “Optimus will recover. I have many different treatments I can try, including the new formula Raf found.”

“Is it safe? We don’t know what it will do, or even what it is for.” Bulkhead looked worried.

“Or why Megatron would hide it like this.” Arcee added, “What do you think Optimus meant by not wanting us to watch him suffer?”

Arcee had refused to leave Optimus’s side. She was in a chair next to his berth. The kids were gone as Bumblebee had taken them home. Wheeljack was out gathering up the remains of his ship. Ratchet sighed.

“The energy vampire virus is very violent. I have seen it before. They call it a doctor’s nightmare because I can’t do anything for the one affected. I have to stay my hand. Anything I do gives an edge to the vampire. This is an infection that can take a long time to recover from.” Ratchet explained, “This is very hard on loved ones, and even harder on the one affected.”

“What will happen?” Arcee asked.

“Optimus will experience a range of symptoms from high fever to multiple seizures as his body battles the infection. He will cry out as pain hits. He may scream incoherently for hours on end. He may suffer a catastrophic multi system failure that he can’t overcome. He may lose any of his senses, or the ability to talk. He may never be able to transform or walk again. Whatever happens, Optimus needs to know that we are there for him.” Ratchet answered, “Even I don’t know what will happen.”

“Will he die?” This came from Bulkhead.

“He might, depending on how severe the infection is.” Ratchet turned away and carefully brought Optimus out of stasis. He hoped the stasis nap would be enough to get Optimus through the long hours ahead.

Optimus came around, his optics darting about before freezing in place and clouding over. The light in them dimmed. The left optic turned yellow and brightened. It tracked Ratchets movements. Bulkhead shuddered, which brought the optic to rest upon him. He watched it stay on him as he walked toward Ratchet.

“That is just plain creepy, how it follows you.” He said, “It’s like it is alive.”

“Nemesis is aware of us.” Ratchet said, “Optimus is being suppressed.”

A tone sounded on a computer. Knockout appeared on screen.


“I’m coming over. As a doctor, I cannot in good faith let you do this alone, especially since I am an expert in treating vampires.” Knockout said, “Red Truce?”

“Why should I believe you?” Ratchet asked.

“Sentinel’s formula works, but it is not intended for use in a Prime. I was there when Sentinel died. Megatron took the blame, but it was not by Megatron’s hand that he died. It was because he was an Energy Vampire. I gave him his cure, but his body rejected it. In the end, I was forced to take his life in a mercy kill. There is another way. Nemesis must be starved to death. You have to believe me!” Knockout looked worried.

“Megatron had Sentinel’s blood on his hands!” Ratchet snapped, “You expect me to believe that fuddycock?”

“Megatron was with me at the time! That blood got on him when the vampire attacked itself! You are lucky because you didn’t see what I saw! Sentinel was literally trying to tear himself apart! He ripped out his own throat! That is what killed him, and how Megatron got Sentinel’s blood on his hands! We tried to save Sentinel!” Knockout cried out, “You didn’t see it, Ratchet!”

“Fine, Red Truce, no funny stuff or I will personally drop kick you through the ground bridge, understand?” Ratchet asked.

“Crystal clear.” Knockout shut the computer off. The groundbridge hummed to life as Knockout entered through it. He went straight to Optimus’s side, taking note of the yellow optic that followed his every move, “Nemesis, you will be destroyed. I will not allow you to take another Prime. Your infection stops here! You will never infect another transformer again!”

The blue optic brightened a bit before diming again. Optimus suddenly screamed, his body becoming stiff. The yellow optic became very bright. Knockout grabbed Ratchet to stop him from running to Optimus’s side. Bulkhead stood behind him.

“What is going on?” Arcee asked, yelling to be heard over Optimus’s continuing screams.

“Stay your hand, Ratchet! Nemesis is only showing what it can do!” Knockout yelled.

Optimus’s body began to arch up as he screamed. The scream was cut off to end in a strangled gurgle. His body arched until he was supporting his weight with just his head and his heels, his arms dangling off the sides of the berth. He was now in the shape of a perfect c. Ratchet tried to get to him, but Knockout tightened his hold. He stopped resisting. Optimus crashed back down onto the berth. His chest heaved up and down laboriously. The yellow optic was watching them again. It seemed to be mocking them. The blue optic brightened a bit. It was clouded over with agony, but the fact it had gotten brighter was a good sign. Optimus was still there and fighting.

“Is it me, or is Nemesis laughing at us?” Bulkhead asked, watching the yellow optic shake a bit.

“I wouldn’t be surprised.” Knockout replied, “Nemesis will fight hard, Optimus will have to fight harder. This is going to be a long night.”

It was quiet for a few hours. Bumblebee and Wheeljack returned. The Autobots handled their usual night activities. Ratchet and Knockout prepared to spend the night near Optimus in the med lab. Bumblebee decided to go to bed since he had to get up early the next morning to take the kids to school. He knew he probably wouldn’t sleep.

-&-

He didn’t know when he fell asleep, or how long he had been sleeping. He knew he still had several hours to go until he needed to leave. What had woken him up? Why were the lights all on? Bumblebee felt confused. A strange new pain gripped his chest. Bumblebee had heard the stories about how when a Prime dies, every transformer feels the death. The last time this was felt was when Remus Prime died. Bumblebee got up and ran toward sick bay, praying fervently that he was wrong. Arcee turned as Bumblebee rushed into sick bay. Her face reflected that she was feeling the strange pain too. Even Knockout looked depressed. The yellow optic was burning very bright. The blue optic was very dim, so dim that it was no longer casting any light. Bulkhead lumbered into the med lab, his face filled with sorrow. Knockout shook his head. Ratchet finally broke the silence.

“Optimus is going. Nemesis is just too strong for him to handle.” Ratchet replied softly, “He is not going to make it.”

At that moment, Optimus screamed again, his body writhing in extreme pain. He went rigid again and arched up until he was supporting his weight with his head and heels. His screams stopped with a strangled gurgle.

“It’s an Arc de Circle seizure.” Knockout spoke quietly, “It is not a real seizure. It is a muscular reaction.”

Optimus held the position for 20 minutes before crashing back down to the berth. The yellow optic winked at Knockout, who almost charged over to do something about it. He settled for a low growl instead. Ratchet gave him an odd look.

“What? Nemesis started it. I know, stay my hands.” Knockout made sure to send the dirtiest look he could come up with at the yellow optic. He remembered Sentinels fight against his own vampire, Poe. Poe had been pretty ruthless, forcing Sentinel to literally tear himself apart in front of him and Megatron. Megatron had tried to hold Sentinel’s hands away from his body, but Sentinel had broken free. That was how Megatron had gotten Sentinel’s blood on him. Optimus screamed, bringing him out of his memories. Again, the Prime went into spasms that ended in the Arc de Circle seizure. His arms trembled as he came crashing back down five minutes later. He began to writhe and spasm repeatedly. Knockout put a hand on Ratchet’s shoulder, wanting nothing more than to treat his patient. He knew that anything he did would give Nemesis an edge. He checked the annoying yellow optic, which stared right back at him. Knockout was tempted to move and see if it would keep following him.

-&-

Nemesis knew it was winning. Optimus didn’t think he could continue the battle. He was exhausted, his body heavily damaged. The damage was slowing him down. He looked out upon the vast wasteland, watching for Nemesis. Something struck him hard, dropping him to his knees. He crumbled to the unforgiving ground. This was it, he had lost.

“So that’s it then. You are giving up. My Lifemate never gives up.” Someone was standing over him.

“Elita? What are you doing here?” Optimus looked up at the pink feme. She was taller than Arcee, her face older.

“I’m here to get you back up onto your feet.” Elita did not lean down toward him.

“I can’t, Elita, I’ve lost.” Optimus looked away, only to find his head being turned back to her with her boot.

“Get up, Dad.” A female sparkling appeared by her mother’s side. She wore Optimus’s colors, but had her mother’s body.

“Altima too?” Optimus asked.

“We love you.” Altima smiled, holding Elita’s hand, “Don’t let me lose my Dad.”

“Don’t let me lose my Lifemate.” Elita said, “We are here. We are not leaving you, not like this. Don’t worry about Team Prime. I’ve got that covered.”

“How touching, a family moment.”

Elita turned, pushing Altima behind her, “Nemesis, be gone!”

“I think not!” Nemesis moved fast. Altima didn’t even have time to scream. She managed a weak gurgle instead. Nemesis held her in the air by her neck.

“Nemesis, you let her go! This is between you and me!” Optimus roared, trying to rise. He body refused to obey his commands. He pulled himself together, and managed to get to his knees. Elita knelt, offering him her shoulder so he could get to his feet.

“Daddy…” Altima was starting to turn blue, “Save me…”

“I’m trying, Altima! I can barely move!” Optimus nearly went down again. Elita supported most of his weight.

“Let her go, Nemesis.” Elita snarled, “She has done nothing to you!”

Optimus lowered his head, “Elita…”

“No, there is another way! Don’t you ever dare think like that, ever!” Elita hissed.

“No, Elita. Nemesis and I, we’re one and the same. I refused to believe it for so long. I tried to hide it from everybody. I get it now. There never was a Nemesis, just as there never was a Poe. You are me, Nemesis. You are my greatest fears and darkest desires. You are the Dark Infection.” Optimus let go of Elita and stumbled toward Nemesis, “My father could not accept himself after he killed for the first time. He hated himself. That hate gave rise to Poe, and Sentinel’s mind snapped. It was Sentinel, not Poe, which tore him apart. You are powerless here, Orion Pax.”
Nemesis shook, dropping Altima. He staggered backward, his colors reverting back to Optimus’s normal colors. When he looked up, his optics were blue. Optimus was staring at his old body, his pre-prime body. Orion fumbled for his glasses and put them on. He blinked, giving himself a shake. Only then did he finally smile.

“Optimus, we finally meet.” He offered his hand.

“Orion.” Optimus accepted the handshake, “I should have realized this long ago.”

“You did, long ago.” Orion smiled, “We never remember anything short term. Remember our communicator? Alpha Q had to make sure it was on before we left for the library every day.”

“Stop with the ‘we’. It’s creepy.” Optimus said, “I thought you died when I-we-you accepted the Matrix.”

“I became you.” Orion said, “Until you used the Matrix to destroy Unicron. Then I had to be you for a bit. When that human kid restored the Matrix to us, I remained separated from you. I blocked the memories about what happened on the Nemesis, when we, I mean I served Megatron.”

“Besides the decoded entries, is there anything I need to know about?” Optimus asked.

“Nothing at all, I didn’t realize until later that Megatronus was evil.” Orion said, “It wasn’t until I decoded that image of you that I realized what happened to us.”

Altima suddenly screamed, hiding between her parents. Elita put herself in front of her. Optimus and Orion turned. Orion gasped while Optimus moved until he was in front of Altima and next to Elita. Just ahead of them, the ground groaned and gave away to reveal a black river.

“What is it?” he asked, not sure if he could believe his optics.

“It’s the dark infection!” Orion screamed, “It’s proliferating!”

“That is not good.” Altima spoke up, “We can’t stop it. Only Primus can, by healing himself of it. Dad, don’t go where I can’t follow!”

“Stay with me, Optimus!” Elita cried out.

“Fight, Optimus!” Orion turned, “I know what must be done!” He raced toward the black river and dove in, “Don’t ever give up! Fight for those who love you! Fight for your family!”

The rift sealed shut and Optimus found himself alone once more. He turned his focus on waking up.

-&-

When Optimus woke up, the first thing he noticed was the fact something was laying on the right side of his body. Turning his head, he recognized the young feme curled up next to him. Altima was asleep. She sighed in her sleep, mumbling something intelligible. Optimus smiled, watching his daughter sleep.

“You woke up.”

Optimus turned his head toward the voice, careful not to disturb Altima, “Elita.”

“I heard everything and felt it too.” Elita smiled, “I’ve been so worried. Altima has been worried too.”

“Did I defeat Nemesis?” Optimus asked.

“You did. Ratchet and Knockout decided to put you into a medically induced coma for a while. It has been almost two weeks. How do you feel?” Elita asked.

“I’m fine.” Optimus answered, “How about you?”

“I’m better now that you are awake.” Elita rose and came to the bedside, “Altima has been refusing to sleep until she knew you were going to be okay. She finally allowed herself to sleep after Ratchet explained to her that you were sleeping normally. You scared us both pretty badly. Arcee called us to give us a chance to say good bye to you. You crashed on Ratchet twice before he could stabilize you after you beat Nemesis. There is something else too. You are in the clear. Nemesis is gone.”

Altima shifted and settled into a more comfortable position. Optimus watched her sleep, remembering all the mornings he would awaken to find Altima sleeping against him. Altima never slept between her parents like most children did. She was a daddy’s girl. Optimus moved the arm under Altima a bit so she was ensconced in his gentle hold. He felt his optics drifting shut. He allowed himself to relax and rest, surrounded by the love of his family.

-&-

“Easy, easy does it.” Optimus was leaning on Ratchet as he attempted to take his first shaky steps. He had spent another week after waking up confined to his berth. He had not enjoyed not being able to get up. During the week, Ratchet had spent 30 minutes twice a day exercising Optimus’s legs and arms to help him build up some of the strength he had lost. Ratchet held onto Optimus as the Prime took a tentative step. His legs shook from the effort.

“I’m here, Dad.” Altima appeared at his side, “You can do it.”

Optimus took another step followed by another step. He stumbled, and was thankful Ratchet was right there beside him.

“Easy, Optimus, you are still very weak. Take it slow.” Ratchet encouraged.

“You can lean on me too, Dad.” Altima smiled.

Optimus raised his arm so Altima could take her position. Leaning on her helped him out a lot. He managed to take several more steps before Ratchet called an end to the session. The short walk had taken a lot out of Optimus, and he was glad to be returned to his berth inside sick bay. Altima curled up on his right side, her face turned up so she could watch him. Altima had helped him combat the boredom of the last week. Elita came in to take up her post from her chair.

“You did well. After being so sick like you were, most transformers are usually still bedridden. You are not pushing yourself, I hope?” Elita asked.

“I can’t afford to be out of action for long, Elita.” Optimus answered, “I know you are doing your best, but Megatron is not one to wait long. Wheeljack was brought back to base in three pieces.”

“Wheeljack was put back together in one piece by Ratchet. We are doing fine. I’ve already bested Megatron twice. Take your time and heal. We all need you to be 100%.” Elita replied.
“I’m healing, my love.” Optimus said, “I hate feeling useless. What good am I like this?”

“Healing takes time. You can’t rush it.” Altima sat up, “I know what you are going through because I went through it too. Remember when I had Mononucleosis?”

Optimus and Elita both looked away, each one remembering their greatest nightmare. They both knew how close they had come to losing Altima. Optimus remembered his fear at coming home to find Altima on the floor, unconscious. She had not responded to him at all. The worst thing he ever had to do after getting Altima to Ratchet was call Elita. That night after Ratchet had explained what happened, that Altima had suffered a severe allergic reaction to the antibiotic he put her on, was the longest one of their lives. The dawn brought some good news. Altima was responding to the medication being pumped into her small body. Ratchet kept her in a medically induced coma for two weeks so she could recover.

“I remember, Altima.” Elita broke the silence, “It was the worst time of my life. I thought we were losing you.”

“I can’t forget.” Optimus looked down at Altima, “I never left you during that time.”

“You told off the entire council.” Altima remembered with a laugh.
“I thought for sure that Ratbat was going to bust a crankshaft. Alpha Trion was clearly trying not to laugh at him.” Elita remembered.

“While I was with Altima, I fell asleep. I woke up on a berth and ran to Altima’s room. Ratbat was there. He had watched over her while I slept. I saw pain in his optics. Ratbat told me he had lost his first born son to disease. He understood the pain I was going through.” Optimus said, “Ratbat understood why I chewed him out.” He felt a yawn coming on. He would have to rest soon.

-&-

“That is it, Dad.” Altima encouraged, “You can do it!”

Two weeks had passed with little Decepticon activity. Optimus stood without assistance. Ratchet stood at his side, ready to step in and provide assistance. Optimus took a step on his own. His body was much stronger now. He was nowhere near ready to tangle with the Decepticons. He was still stuck in sick bay. It would not be long until he was able to return to his quarters. Optimus stumbled, his foot catching on the floor. Ratchet was there, keeping him up and providing a steady hand. Together, they completed a circle around sick bay. Ratchet stopped, letting Optimus continue on his own.

“You are recovering well.” Ratchet said, “I feel that you are ready to be released from sick bay.”

“Really? No offense, but it does get dull in here.” Optimus said.

“You will have to stay confined in your quarters for another two weeks. We’ll see where you are then. After that, I’ll keep you confined to the base for a couple weeks. You are getting there, Optimus.”

“How soon do I get to get out of here?” Optimus asked.

“How does now sound? Think you can walk there?” Ratchet asked.

“I’d run there if you let me.” Optimus smiled.

Altima raced to his side as Ratchet discharged him. He leaned a bit on Altima as he walked. The base was a hive of activity. Wheeljack was almost done making repairs to the Jackhammer. Bulkhead was helping him while Arcee oversaw the kids doing their homework. Bumblebee chirped a greeting to Optimus as he passed, carrying some materials for Ratchet. Optimus smiled, hearing his team calling out greetings and sharing their joy at seeing their Prime looking so much better. Optimus knew he would recover fully and be back among them again soon. This was where he was meant to be.

The End

[weirdraptor]

Nemesos reminds me a little of the Resident Evil Nemesis in sheer single-mindedness. I like it.

[sunstar]

I was inspired by Resident Evil's Nemesis. Glad you liked it!