Disclaimer: Transformers are the trademarked property of Hasbro and their licensed agents. Ellie(Urielle), Livewire and Alpha Quatrus are original characters and the intellectual property of the author, so unauthorized use of the original characters is prohibited (i.e. If you want to use them, ask first.) No infringement is implied or intended. No financial gain has been received.
A/N: This is a section of an, as of yet, unwritten story in the EllieWorld(Children of Megatron) plot line. It takes place about 15 years after Children of Megatron. Rated T for safety's sake. Sequel to "Bad News." Tracy
Hard Answers to Hard Questions
"Why? Why is this happening?" Optimus Prime asked in anguish.
"She is a direct human descendant of The Prime," Alpha Quatrus explained. "He was a brilliant scientist and wanted to make certain his children were protected. He used our technology to encode her very DNA to trigger the processes if conditions warranted them. When she was implanted with Cybertronian technology, it unlocked the programming. As soon as she was impregnated by Voksot's machine, it triggered the process."
"What process?" Livewire asked.
"Optimus, you need to let him go so somebody can explain to us what you two are talking about," Ratchet said.
"Urielle is dying," he answered simply as he released his daughter's unified.
"What? I've detected nothing wrong with her," Livewire insisted.
"It's really not that simple. It is not a disease that is native to this planet. My guess is she always had a latent version embedded within her genetic code. It was the same disease that killed the population of my home world. I believe she can be saved in the same manner I was."
"What do you mean by that?" Livewire wanted to know.
"You were correct when you speculated that most Cybertronians possess DNA. It is because we each were once biologics, or the descendants of biologics. Some of us, when we chose to save our lives by becoming technologically based life forms, retained our memories of when we were humanoids. Others, because they just couldn't make the transition from a biological being to a mechanical being, had their memories wiped. It seemed that those of us that were unattached at the time didn't feel the disconnect as strongly as those who were.
"It was difficult enough to learn to handle our new bodies, but when you added a mate in the mix, someone who desperately clung to what you once were, it proved traumatizing.
"So, what I am saying is that this disease is very slow moving. Within fifteen to twenty years, she will succumb to it and there will be two choices; allow her to die as a human, or transform her into a tech form."
"How is this done?" Ratchet was curious as he looked at his old friend.
"I was an assistant to Uriel when the pandemic struck. I still retain the memories and skill-set to aid in the metalous procedure.
"First, she will have to be submerged in metalous; there is plenty for our requirements in the birthing pools. Then, we will require the proper radiation to bond the material to her genetic code; that is where our spark bonding ultimately came from. Next, she will have to be placed in a supply of Energon and finally, the proper programming will have to be applied.
"Really, she will be, for all intents and purposes, 'reborn' as a Cybertronian."
"There are only two facts he's incorrect on," Ellie supplied from the door. She had sensed her father's despair and came as soon as she could.
Wordlessly, she shut the door and walked up to Optimus. Eagerly, he knelt and scooped her up to sit over his chest plates. She telescoped her arm around his neck to hug him fiercely.
"Which two facts?" Ratchet asked.
"The first is that the disease first started to spread when I bestowed the blade to dad."
"What?" Optimus asked as he gently pulled her back so he could look at her.
"Then, when you restored some of the blade back to me, it sort of retarded its spread. The time in Voksot's machine just sort of sped things up, and thankfully, the hormonal changes from the pregnancies have slowed its progression as well."
"What was the second thing I was wrong about?" Alpha Quatrus was curious.
"The time table. The transformation will have to occur within the next two years. Definitely before my next seeding cycle, and after this latest pregnancy is over."
"Are you certain?" Livewire asked.
In answer, she held up her right arm and pulled the skin tight against her inner elbow. Easily identifiable was a spider web effect of various shades of gray.
Alpha Quatrus scanned the area, and then switched to his radiation detection vision. He gasped and jerked back when he saw how far the disease had progressed.
"What?" asked Livewire and Ratchet in unison.
"Scan her for radiation. The low spectrum end is the disease."
"Oh dear Primus!" Ratchet exclaimed.