A/N: it's a little short… but I think it fits
Oh yeah! Made a new drawing for this story! It's at my DA!
Galem: Let's find out in this chapter ^^
Red170: here's an update ^^
Shanter: aww thank you!
CastielLunaWinchester: hehe thanks!
HTTYDTF For Life: aww thank you so much!
Lil-B-Rebel: thank you
AutobotGuy710: Thanks!
XxAceLawxX: Yup! They sure do!
Storygirl747: Here's an update :D
Mywinx14: Yeah. I just thought adding her would be awesome and ouch! I just ran 5 laps around my whole school building. Yeah… didn't end up that great.
AllSpark Princess: Don't worry, I've done my research. All will be explain
The Silvernote: update ^^
Yuki. sawer. 7: aww thank you!
Chapter 10: Truth
Ratchet glanced over to the papers on the clipboard in his hands and then to the girl lying asleep on one of the beds in the Med Bay. Her brother's condition wasn't a concern to the medic. He was just unconscious with no injuries at all. His sibling on the other hand was in a critical condition. After two full hours of performing cardiac catheterization, the CMO and his assistant could finally relax for a bit. She was stable now.
"Her vitals are stable." Jolt said, snapping Ratchet from his thoughts. His assistant walked around the bed and stood next to his teacher. The medic was surprised when Ratchet comm. linked him to prepare for a cardiac catheterization, but nonetheless he complied. This was actually the first time he ever done a cardiac catheterization to someone and he didn't expect that someone was actually a little human girl. He was expecting it to be one of the soldiers at NEST. Then again, none of their records show that they have heart defects. "Her temperature has also turn to normal." He continued.
Ratchet nodded. "Thank you, Jolt. Please inform the others that we are finished and no visitors are allowed until I say so, exceptions to Prime and Lennox." He said to the younger medic.
Jolt nodded and his holoform sizzled away.
The CMO sighed through his nose. Really this girl… She had a heart attack due to her Tetralogy of Fallot right after she saved the day? Truly, after the moment she revealed that she has the real AllSpark and outsmarted the Decepticons, everyone was going to give the girl their gratitude. The Prime himself was about to thank the girl for her deeds. So imagine his face when she suddenly had a heart attack. It was almost like Optimus was going to have one too.
"If only you'd tell the truth." Ratchet said, staring at Zoe's peaceful face.
The door hissed opened and heavy footsteps was heard. "Ratchet." The voice of the Prime echoes in the silent room. Said medic turned to face the Autobot Leader with Lennox standing on his large servo. Optimus lowered his servo so Lennox could climb down. He shifted down into his alt-mode and his holoform appeared a second later. "How is Zoe's condition?" he asked concernedly.
"Stable. For now." Ratchet answered as he turned to glance at the girl.
Lennox stared at Zoe's face. She was paler and her lips were a bluish color. They moved to a different part of the med bay so they wouldn't disturb the girl's slumber. "Did… Did she have a heart attack because of Barricade?" he asked.
"Her conditions are like this from birth." Ratchet gave the clipboard for Optimus and Lennox to see. The two read over the biodata quickly, skimming over the pages. "The Tetralogy of Fallot… is a complex Congenital Heart Defect. A cardiac anomaly that refers to a combination of four related heart defects that commonly occur together. The four defects are Ventricular septal defect or VSD, overriding aorta, pulmonary stenosis and right ventricular hypertrophy." He explained as he crossed his arms over his chest.
Lennox raised an eyebrow. "And she has these till now?" he frowned.
"I looked into her medical records." Ratchet grabbed a file from the table. He 'searched and copied' medical records of the girl from the hospital and decided to keep it for future purpose. "Says that a few weeks after her birth, on the 28th of April in 1993, she had surgical intervention in her neonatal period and six months after, she undergo a complete repair. I could say that her surgery is a success, but it will cause effects in the future." He finished, holding the file in his hand tightly.
"What is the matter, Old Friend? Is there anything else that might be a concern?" Optimus asked when he caught Ratchet tightening his grip on the file.
Ratchet breathed from his mouth, "No… I'm just disappointed that I couldn't detect it first. When we first met, I noticed a difference, but I didn't see anything that would lead to this." He said, regret in his voice.
Lennox placed a hand on his chin, remembering the time at the dinner party. "So that's why she cut you off when you were about to say something… she knew that you could detect her illness."
The medic nodded. "Yes. She was very smart to avoid me all the time."
Optimus placed a hand comfortingly on his medic's shoulder. "It is not your fault, Ratchet. What matters now is that Zoe is save from harm. You and Jolt did well." he praised, a smile on his lips.
"Thank you Optimus—,"
Beep Beep—piiippp
"By the AllSpark!" Ratchet dashed towards the room where Zoe and Aiden were staying. That loss of beep meant something bad has happened or her conditions suddenly became critical again.
Both Optimus and Lennox followed the CMO in any case he needs any help.
"Zoe!" Lennox ran into the room and stopped mid-way when he spotted blood dribbling to the clean white floor.
Drip drip
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Beep Beep
Zoe stirred as she regained her consciousness. The first thing she saw was the bright light that was shining above her. She narrowed her eyes, trying to adjust her eyes to the light. The familiar beeping sound could be heard. She averted her eyes to her left, spotting the beeping heart monitor. She moved her left arm, but felt it was stiff. She raised her left arm slowly and stared at the needle and the small plastic tube that was connected to the IV fluid bag.
'…I remembered… I had a heart attack and scared the living daylights out of everyone.' Zoe thought as she gently lowered her arm. She slowly sat up, grimacing. She sat on the edge of the bed, trying to gather her thoughts. Her brother was asleep on the bed right next to hers. She carefully walked towards her brother, leaning on the metal pole that has the IV fluid bag. As she was beside the bed she gripped her brother's hand as tightly as she can with her right hand. "…you're alright." She whispered, glad to find that her brother was okay.
Her head perked up when she heard voices talking in the background. 'Mr. Lennox?' she recognized his voice. She was guessing the other two were Optimus and that medic, Ratchet.
"—she undergo a complete repair. I could say that her surgery is a success, but it will cause effects in the future."
Zoe gripped on the metal pole. Without thinking twice, she pulled the IV catheter out of her arm. She didn't care that her arm was bleeding from the sudden tug. She let the small plastic tube fall to the floor. She glanced down and ripped out the heart monitor's pads from her chest. The beeping noises were replaced by the straight piip that indicates someone's heart is not beating anymore.
'Everyone is the same.' Zoe thought bitterly, her eyebrows furrowed down.
Drip drip
"Zoe!" Lennox's shout was heard as he enters the room. She didn't bother to look at him. She just kept her eyes on her brother's sleeping face. "Y-You're awake!" he stuttered in disbelief.
"Primus child! What were you thinking?!" Ratchet yelled as he appeared beside Zoe. His electric blue eyes trailed over to her bleeding arm. He grabbed her left arm and inspected the damage. "You can't just pull it out! It hasn't been an hour since your surgery is done. You shouldn't even be moving! Go back to bed this instance before I tie you to it!" he ordered as he ushered the girl back to bed.
"Wait here. Optimus can you keep an eye on her?" The medic asked the Autobot leader as he went to get a new IV catheter. "Lennox, go get me some alcohol and some cottons. They're at the top cabinets." The field commander nodded and went to get the items Ratchet needed.
Zoe scoffed as she sat on the bed. "What's the point? I'm going to die either way." She mumbled under her breath.
Optimus heard her mumbling. "Do not say that young one. You are still far too young to say that." He frowned as he sat beside her.
"What do you care? Everyone's the same." Zoe said, her eyes staring at her bleeding arm.
The Autobot Leader raised an eyebrow. "May I know what do have we in common?" he asked curiously.
"The eyes. The looks. I hate them." Zoe pointed out.
Optimus waited. She wasn't being very specific. Of course their eyes looked similar. They are the Autobots. All of the Autobots' eye color are blue. He didn't get what she mean by 'looks'. "Do you mean you hate our species?" he inquired.
"I'm not talking about your species' appearance." Zoe corrected, closing her eyes. "I hate it. I despise it. I loathe it." She continued.
"What do you hate exactly?"
Zoe's eyes narrowed. "Sympathy. Pity. I see it in your eyes. You talk as if you understand what it feels like to know that your life is limited. You only feel sympathy, but you don't really understand anything." She curled up her hands, staring at her fists. "Everyone who knows about my sickness are all the same. I don't need your sympathy or your sugar coated words. I know that I'm going to die sooner or later."
"I overheard my doctors said that I won't live long. Your medic is the same as the others. He's just trying to brighten my mood. He doesn't understand anything." She finished, her eyes gave a hard and cold glare.
Optimus stared at the youngling. Her voice was calm, but it hurt his spark at how she was telling it. It was true. He's a Cybertronian, a being from another planet who functions differently from the lifeform on earth. His parts could be repaired or changed into a new one. On the other hand, humans cannot. True there are transplants, but the chances of survival were very slim for them. They are a fragile being.
The man placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "It is true, I do not truly understand how you are feeling, knowing that your time is limited because of your illness." He admitted, his eyes staring at the brunette. He stood up and kneeled down in front of the girl. His large hand was placed over hers'. "But I do know, what we are showing you are not pity nor sympathy. It is empathy. We are soldiers. We have our own fears when we are facing the enemy. We might die or survive to live another day, but our feelings are always the same. The feeling to know you might not survive the battle. I myself once felt it back in Cybertron. I almost die in the hands of Megatron, but Ratchet saved my life." He told her a little about him.
"It is safe to say that I understand what you are feeling." Optimus chuckled. "You have something to live for, correct?" he continued. Finally a respond. She nodded her head slowly.
"Good. Keep on living for the ones you love." He ruffled Zoe's hair, standing up to his full height. "Do not think that your time is limited. You have all the time in the world to recover." He smiled.
"…I guess." Zoe mumbled, finally realizing what Optimus meant. She never really did talk to anyone like that. Not even to her own brother or her family. She never exchange thoughts to anyone. Everyone in school deemed her as a cold-hearted freak who doesn't care about anything. Now that she share her feeling with Optimus, she can understand what others are thinking, the feelings of soldiers at least. She can relate to that. "Thanks…" she mumbled embarrassedly, a small blush on her cheeks.
The Prime kept the smile on his face as he heard her voice. "Ratchet is just concern about your health. He has no ill intention. I can assure you that you are in capable hands. There is nothing that Ratchet cannot cure." He reassured.
"I got the things Ratchet needed." Lennox came, holding the two items. He had a smile on his face. He glanced over to Optimus and then to Zoe. "Did something happen while I was gone?" he hinted. He knew what happened. He heard the whole thing.
"What do you think?" Zoe asked sarcastically, staring at Lennox smile as Optimus chuckled.
"There it is… the sarcastic girl I used to know." Lennox shook his head as he placed the items on the table beside the bed. "Now let's clean that blood off your arm."
Ratchet sighed, a smile visible. He was leaned against the doorframe. He overheard the conversation just like Lennox. It doesn't take long to find a needle. After all, it is his med bay. He decided to let Prime talk some senses into the girl before entering the room. Turns out, Optimus did his job quite nicely.
He decided it was time he enter the room. "You're lucky I still have some new IV catheters… Slagging Liaison didn't approve my medical list yet." He walked towards Zoe and inspected the wound. "I'm going to insert the IV catheter again. This time, do not, I repeat, do not take the needle out. Do I make myself clear?" he asked, a threatening tone in his question.
Zoe pouted and looked away. "Whatever."
"I'm going to count to three." In a second, Ratchet inserted the IV catheter. Zoe winced. The medic pulled out the needle and removed the protective cover from the end of the tube and inserted it to the catheter hub. He secured it first before taping the tube to her skin. "Now was that so bad?" he asked as he cleaned up.
Zoe glared. "What happened to one, two and three?" she asked, trying to ignore her throbbing arm.
Ratchet shrugged. "I rather not make you tense and miss my shot, hmm?" he teased. He gave her a glass of water and a pill. "Drink your medicine." He ordered.
'…Ratchet just teased… The heck is going on with these people's mind?' Zoe thought as she drank the medicine Ratchet gave her. She turned to look at Lennox and Optimus, a questioning look on her face. "Can I ask? What happened to Barricade and Frenzy?" she asked.
The three figures tensed at her question.
"Well?"
"They are detained in the brig." Optimus answered. "Questioned by Ironhide and Prowl, if Barricade and Frenzy does not cooperate… we might have to execute them."
Zoe stared at the Autobot leader. "Oh…" she responded lowering her head.
She just can't let them both be executed.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
A short one… I just thought it'll be better to leave it like that until the next chapter ^^
Writing Optimus was a tough one! I love his wise and leadership character! It's just so much fun writing him.
We saw a little improvement in Zoe's character. Will she show her true colors more?
Special thanks to:
HTTYDTF For Life, Lil-B- Rebel, Renrinrin and Darkdarling98 for adding this story to their favs!
Special thanks to"
Yele98, HTTYDTF For Life, Renrinrin, Darkdarling98, Weirdchick27 and Firespark15
for adding this story to their alerts!
reviews are always appreciated! No flames please ^^
R&R please!