Hey, guys! Consider this chapter revised. I'm almost done with the revisions!

Thanks to:

Stesuna the Dragon - Yeah, but Ratchet is too much of a gentleman for that. Yes, you are my muse for this story!! You should be proud because you're one of the reasons I'm popping out so many chapters so quickly!

Chapter 23

Nexia's Mysterious Illness

Nexia awoke disoriented and confused, wings and stomach twanging in pain. She wanted to sleep on her stomach but her the deep lacerations made it difficult for her to sleep. She looked around and realized that she was back at the Lennox household; it had been a while since she had slept there.

Her memories came back in a rush: the conversation with Moonracer, her conversation with Optimus, and more importantly - her dream with her grandfather. Because of that conversation she now knew that her sparkmate cared deeply for her.

The winged girl stood and stretched, somewhat confused to why her wounds were still present. Usually they heal themselves after a day or two of the healing sleep; the wounds on her stomach were an exception due to their intensity. She quickly changed into a pair of blue cotton shorts and a dark green halter top - one that would actually match Hound's paint.

"I guess I should go talk to Ratchet…" Nexia said softly to herself as she descended the stairs. She was greeted with the happy face of Sarah as she entered the kitchen. Sarah embraced the winged girl in a tight hug, causing the girl to wince. It was worth it, though. She like seeing Sarah's happy face. The winged girl wiped her face as the older woman pulled back and placed a hand on Nexia's forehead.

"Dear, you feel a little warm…let me check to see if you're running a fever." Sarah said, frowning as the winged girl pulled away, smiling. It was true; Nexia's core temperature was several degrees above normal and a light sweat was forming upon her face. She would not be deterred, however, and decided to say that she was alright. She needed to talk to Ratchet and she needed to talk to him soon.

"Sarah, I'm a Phoenix. We're supposed to be naturally hot. Its kid of a no-brainer." she said with a chuckle. Sarah frowned, pushing a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. The older woman studied the winged before finally nodding and letting her pass.

"Be careful. Ratchet would be spark-broken if we let anything happen to you." Sarah said as she watched the girl summon FlameSpark. Nexia smiled back and waved as the Black Flamed Unicorn trotted off towards the Autobot base. When they were out of range of the overprotective female Nexia doubled over, coughing up a storm. Her temperature increased another two degrees, greatly worrying the horned figure underneath her.

"Lady Nexia? Are you well enough to travel in your condition?" the Black Flamed Unicorn asked, slowing down as the girl swayed. She placed a hand to her head as she nodded slowly, trying to steady herself upon his great back. She needed to talk to Ratchet.

"Yes, just get us there quickly. It's probably just a cold from the rain. I'm sure it's not that bad." she smiled, waving a hand dismissively. FlameSpark nickered in consent and cantered off towards the base. He was worried, however, as she was swaying upon his back once again.

The red optics of the glossy blue-green femme twinkled in the daylight. She smirked as she sat upon the berth in her small quarters, deciding to finally call in her report. Now was as a good time as any to contact her Decepticon lord. He was an impatient one; he was also the one who gave her the scar upon her chest.

Moonracer to Lord Starscream. she said, sending the message through her endoded long ranged communication system. At first she only heard static but soon she heard the voice of a mech of whom she both despised and admired.

Speak, femme. You are trying my patience. his voice sneered at her through the link. He was growling, alerting the glossy blue-green femme that her commanding officer was in an impatient mood.

The winged girl is weak. Rumble's serum successfully lowered her immune system. She was away last night in the rain which means that she may be ill as well. Moonracer said, lounging back upon the berth. She heard scoffing on the other end of the communications link causing her to frown. He didn't trust her…but she didn't blame him.

Do the Autobots still trust you, you worthless piece of scrap metal? the screeching voice of Starscream sounded in her head. She nodded but then realized that Starscream couldn't hear the nod. She would have left him hanging but he would probably find her and beat her for being impudent.

I put on quite a convincing act, if I may say. she said, smirking to herself. All but Optimus, Ratchet, and Nexia trusted her…but she could easily remedy the situation.

Don't get so full of yourself, femme. You need to steal the winged femme's spark. By now she should be dead and the pathetic excuse for a medic would be fawning over her. the gray an silver jet screeched. Moonracer frowned at the mech's choice of words regarding the medic, but she knew that there was nothing she could currently do about it. He was, after all, being pathetic.

Don't worry about it. I'll get your precious spark. Moonracer said, sighing softly. It was times like these that she hated working for that Slaghole Starscream.

You better, femme, or else I'll turn you into a pile of scrap metal. he said, severing the communications link. He was not joking. Starscream never jokes about things he wants.

Moonracer stood, exiting the room and running, almost literally, into the warrior twins. She stumbled back, a bit surprised, before suddenly realizing that her optics were still vermillion. She hastily changed them back to blue before turning to smile at the twins. She held the smile, giving them a small wave as she turned to walk elsewhere.

As she walked away Sunsreaker turned to his brother, scratching the top of his helm. He was really confused and he didn't like being confused.

"Was it just me, bro, or did she just have Decepticon optics? They were red when I saw them…then they switched to blue." he questioned, watching the femme as she rounded the corner.

"I dunno but we better tell the boss-bot. This is important." Sideswipe said, motioning wildly with his clawed hands. Sunstreaker nodded and they scuttled off to find Optimus.

The winged girl clung to the Black Flamed Unicorn best she could in her weakened state. Her health seemed to be declining in a matter of hours, something that indicated that no good would come of this ordeal.

"Why is it that EVERY time I'm going to see Ratchet I'm either inured or fatally ill?" she muttered to himself, drawing a chuckle from the large horned figure. It was no laughing matter but the way she said that comment was comical.

"What? It's true!" she exclaimed, breaking into a fit of coughs. This time, though, she could feel the coppery taste of blood well up in her throat and stain her mouth. She spat the blood into her hand, staring at it with a mixture of shock and confusion.

"B-blood? Why? It's only a normal cold…unless…whatever that mech injected me with is doing this." she trailed off as a dizzy spell hit her. She gripped her forehead, trying to stop the world from spinning as she dismounted FlameSpark. Instead of dismissing him, however, she used him as a crutch as they entered the base. She was greeted by the familiar form of Hound, who gave her a thumbs up due to the color of her shirt.

"You feelin' alrigh', darlin'?" he asked her, bending down to her level so she wouldn't have to crane her neck. She smiled reassuringly at the large mech but the blood on her lips caught his attention. His metallic eyebrows rose in alarm but the winged girl cut off whatever it was he was going to say.

"Don't worry. I'm off to see Ratchet as we speak." she said, nodding her head in the direction of the Medical Bay. The forest green scout said nothing as she and FlameSpark made their way down the hall and into the room on the right. She sent a thought through their bond to the medic, stifling a giggle as she heard a small crash in the storage room. She leaned heavily on the Black Flamed Unicorns shoulder, panting as if that simple action had drained her of her energy.

"Nex!" Ratchet exclaimed once he caught sight of her weakened state. He scooped both girl and horned beast into his hands, setting them down upon the human reserved medical table. The blood on her lips worried him greatly as he performed several scans.

"I'm back, Ratch. I love you." she smiled, showing the medic her blood-stained lips up close. He transformed and activated his holoform, placing a hand on her forehead. The medic frowned, running another a full-body scan on the winged girl as she settled back against the body of FlameSpark. The Medic had set him on the table as well.

"I love you, too. I'm so sorry." he breathed as he knelt down, cradling her against his chest while the scan was running. When it had been completed he stopped stroking her hair to review it. He frowned again, aware of the winged girl's increasing heart rate. Her heart was beating too fast. Her immune system was running haywire; the simple cold she should have had was turning deadly.

The mech left for a few minutes to fetch a cold rag and some antibiotics to help boost her immune system. He returned shortly, placing the cold rag upon her forehead and carefully injecting the antibiotics into her bloodstream. She smiled, going to say something but instantly broke into a coughing fit. Blood stained her lips again but the winged girl only wiped it away.

"Oh no…" the medic gasped while the Black Flamed Unicorn nickered in concern. She continued to cough as the world started to spin around her once again. Suddenly, her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she slumped back, cracking hear head against the table. He scanned her again, sighing in relief when he found that she merely had a cold. It was a bad one but it wasn't anything that he, as a medic, couldn't cure with time.

Ratchet smiled softly and sent a spiritual caress through their bond, smile widening as he saw and heard her sigh softly. He sat beside her, as holoforms can't contract human viruses, determined to make her feel better now that she saw that she was worth something to the medic. She was the world in his eyes.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe went racing past the Medical Bay, quiet when they passed the actual door, and dashed around the corner to Opimus' office. They crashed into the metallic door due to the force and speed of their journey, creating a loud bang that echoed in the hallway. The door shot open, revealing a frazzled Prowl and an amused Optimus.

"What are you two doing?" Optimus asked, trying to hide his laughter, and raising an optic ridge. The two twins looked at each other before Sunstreaker burst out the information in their native tongue. He was too excited and worried to respond in the native human tongue.

"Moonracer is evil!" he exclaimed, waving his hands around to further explain his point. This time Prowl had also raised an optic ridge at the older twin's actions.

"Now, we all know that she's a femme but she's hardly evil. Do you have any proof?" Prowl commented, walking back inside the Autobot leader's office. Optimus beckoned the two inside lest they wake anyone who was in recharge. The two hastily followed him, determined to make the other older bots believe them. Moonracer was evil; they were telling the truth…for once.

"Optimus, it's true! Let us tell you what happened!" Sideswipe pleaded, placing his hands on the great mech's desk. They stared into each other's optics until Optimus conceded, realizing that this was not one of their mean tricks or pranks. The mech leader nodded his head in their direction, indicating that they should begin their story.

"Ok, Sides and I were walking normally down the hall this morning after getting our morning cup of energon." Sunstreaker had started, trying to keep his voice light in such a serious situation. It wasn't working as everyone in the room was tense.

"We were about to enter our quarters, which is across from Moonracer's, and we turned to greet her when her door slid open." Sideswipe continued for his twin. He was the gentler of the two assassins but kept his gaze steady as he talked.

"She bumped into me and when we locked optics her optics were red!! She had the optics of a Decepticon! She's EVIL" the yellow warrior finished for his brother, spreading his arms to make his point.

"Maybe it was a trick of the light." Prowl said, trying to come up with several possibilities for what the duo had seen. The strategist was still somewhat skeptical at the far fetched story; all the pranks were not piling up in the twins' favor.

Optimus, however, was starting to believe the twins. He thought back to the cruel sneer on her face when she confronted his CMO the night Nexia escaped from the clutches of the Decepticons. He also thought about what the winged girl revealed to him in their conversation yesterday. Optimus Prime was a leader who paid close attention to the small details.

"I believe you." the blue and red flamed mech said, catching the attention of the two arguing parties. He was completely serious; his will was iron.

"You do?"

"What do we do then?" both parties asked at the same time. Optimus nodded his head in response to Prowl's question before turning his attention back to the mischievous warriors. They would come in handy during his plan.

"There is nothing we can actually do until we have more proof. For now we must watch and wait." he large mech sighed, drawing disappointed looks from the duo perched in front of him. They were disappointed but tried not to let the disappointment show on their facial plates.

"Aye captain, oh captain, my captain!" Sunstreaker announced before turning and running from the room. The two older mechs turned to Sideswipe for an explanation but all the red warrior could offer was a shrug before he, too, exited the room after the yellow warrior.

The cold-sparked medic was showing one of his softer moments; Nexia's head was in his lap while he was stroking her hair. He pushed her bangs away from her face as she groaned, fluttering her eyes open. Ratchet smiled tenderly at the girl in his lap as she reached up to caress his face. His hand softly held hers as the female's hand was trembling.

"What happened?" she asked, her voice was a bit hoarse from the disuse. He took the hand that was skimming over the skin of his cheek, softly kissing it as he smiled down at her. FlameSpark nickered as a reminder that he was behind her. She smiled softly at the two but had to turn her head to cough, not wanting to accidentally spit or cough blood on the holoform's pale skin. He didn't mind; he patiently waited until she finished her coughing fit before answering her question.

"You fainted. I'm not surprised, love. Your body was put under so much stress from the past few days." the medic said, kissing the sick girl's burning forehead. He sat back against the Black Flamed Unicorn, cradling Nexia in his arms, before suddenly sitting up with an idea. He smiled secretively before glancing at the girl in his arms.

"Hey, Nex?" he asked, bending over the ill girl. She opened up one bleary eye, prompting the medic to continue.

"Will your spark help you heal?" he asked, bringing the small intricately shaped necklace from his subspace pocket. She shrugged, not really sure if the outcome would help her because she was not truly injured - just sick.

The effect was almost immediate when he slipped the chain around her neck. Color returned to the winged girl's cheeks and her head cleared. In return the crack disappeared from the glossy surface and a glow presented itself inside the globe. The glow, however, was still incredibly dim; the winged girl was still weak.

"It worked!" Nexia said, happy for the relief. Despite the reprieve from the pain her body was still far from completely healed and it needed more time to recuperate. She sighed, still very tired because of the sudden illness.

The medic leaned over, cooing softly into her ear, and urging her to get more sleep. She finally drifted off with a small smile on her face as the medic behind her settled into a comfortable position behind her. FlameSpark closed his eyes, settling into a deep rest as well, letting the medic lean his head on his shimmering black flank. Soon enough all three of them were fast asleep, unaware of the glowering red optics of the Decepticon femme hiding in the shadows.

"Now it is time…and you shall be mine, you foolish medic. Your little lover will be long dead and I'll have my 'happy ending'." she hissed, slinking back into the darkness to make sure that all of them wouldn't awaken.