Knockout struggled against the energy restraints, but to no avail. "You psychopath!" He shouted. "What are you doing to me?!"

"Merely an experiment." A monotonous tone replied. The lack of emotion his voice gave was unnerving, to say the very least. But the hidden meaning behind the words scared the red sportscar more than anything.

The Aston Martin watched his captor with narrowed red optics, attempting to discern just what this experiment entailed. His captor being the infamous Shockwave, however...it could be anything. But no matter what it was, it most certainly wouldn't bode well for him.

"And just what is this experiment?!" Knockout demanded. "Tell me!"

Shockwave ran a liquid through a scanner. "I'm researching just how closely Cybertronians resemble other life forms. You're aware that we are all directly descended from Primus? Granted, that was before any of our times, but he had the original CNA composition?"

Knockout cocked an optic ridge. "Where are you going with this…?"

"Primus' counterpart and opposite was Unicron the destroyer." Shockwave continued. "And from him was descended the life forms on that planet that was the object of our war the past three years- Earth. So, as Unicron and Primus were related, so too should our species be similar to the life forms referred to as humans. By how much…?" He picked up the liquid. "We shall soon see."

The former Decepticon's optics widened. "W-What are you doing?! What is that?!"

"A sample of DNA, the organic counterpart to our genetic material. I will fuse it to yours, and record the results that follow.*

"Fuse it to my CNA?!" Knockout exclaimed. "And what can you hope to accomplish through that?!"

"It's simple." Shockwave explained. "If the two genetic substances are compatible, one will consume and assimilate the other. In that instance, it is a matter of which genetic material is dominant. CNA? Or DNA?"

The Autobot tensed. "And...if they're incompatible?"

"It will override and corrupt your systems. You will be terminated."

Knockout struggled with renewed panic. "You can't do this to me! You can't!"

"But I can, Knockout." The violet scientist prepared a syringe of the DNA concoction. "I wonder...what would you look like as a human?" He injected the medic with the syringe.

Knockout cried out in pain as a burning sensation swept through him. "You...are a fool, Shockwave…!" He said through clenched denta. "If...this stuff...turns me human...I'll perish! Cybertron's atmosphere...is toxic! There goes your experiment…! No data! No triumph!"

"You are the fool, Knockout, if you think that I hadn't already considered that possibility. I took precautions in the case of such an event." And with that, Shockwave pressed a button beside the medic's restraints.

A round casing enveloped Knockout, confining him to the glass cage while he writhed in agony. Not feeling the slightest bit of remorse, Shockwave went about working on his experiment- he quickly purged the tank of the Cybertronian atmosphere, filling it with a gaseous solution of 78% nitrogen and 22% oxygen, standard breathing conditions for humans. The temperature inside was altered to be 74 degrees on the human measuring scale known as Fahrenheit.

Cleanser dripped freely from Knockout's optics as they shut tight, his mouth open in what Shockwave could only calculate as a scream of suffering. The soundproof casing prevented any sound from escaping. Yet another logical precaution.

It didn't matter whether Knockout felt pain or not to Shockwave. It would be over momentarily. The DNA inside of the new Autobot would seep into his systems, and either be absorbed or corrupt. Either way, it should stop-

-now.

Knockout fell limp, systems going into emergency stasis, and began to...change. To any Cybertronian, the sight would have made them purge their fuel tanks then and there. Metal collapsed in on itself, caving in and fusing multiple times, mutating the original form of Knockout. Once it had shrank a considerable amount, it...compressed. Flesh emerged from beneath the metal, coating it, until everything was completely organic. Crimson red hairs emerged from the pale life form. As all this happened, Shockwave watched and recorded in fascination. "So...it would appear that DNA is dominant...I would expect no less from Unicron's spawn."

No sooner had he made that observation than an alarm went off. "Autobots…" Shockwave muttered. "No doubt looking for their newest ally." He quickly downloaded the database of information to a Cybertronian Data Chip, and transformed, the CDC safe in his cockpit. Leave the human for the Autobots to find. It was their sort, anyhow.

Shockwave smirked inwardly. Knockout had betrayed the Decepticons and joined the human-loving Autobots. How appropriate that he should become one of the very organics he'd sworn to protect.