:Forced Cooperation:

Sheldon woke up feeling… well, nothing, actually. He expected to feel pain, or maybe even the blissful floaty feeling of morphine. He had fallen down off a ladder while doing his routine sweep for spy cameras or microphones. He had lain on the floor for over an hour with his back broken. He had coughed a few times and seen a fine spray of blood. That meant a punctured lung.

So why wasn't he dead?

"Sweetie? Moon Pie? Are you awake?"

He tried to move toward the sound of Penny's voice, but he froze when he heard a whirling sound.

"It's okay, sweetie," Penny reassured him softly. "I know you feel a bit, umm, weird, but it's the best I could do on such short notice. Now that you're awake, we can figure out something better."

Sheldon tried to take a deep breath, but that, too, felt alien to him. He could feel himself start to panic. Penny must have noticed because she moved quickly. "Wolowitz! Get over here!"

He heard the swift shuffling of feet and felt the vibrations of hands touching him.

"Okay, Sheldon. I know this is new, but work with me here. Think about your eyes, and concentrate on seeing," Howard mumbled.

Sheldon started to berate the engineer, but Penny spoke again. "Please, Sheldon. Just try. For me?"

He couldn't resist her plea. He focused on his eyesight and slowly the darkness receded. He saw Penny leaning over him, looked both scared and happy. Wow, she was bright! Her hair was so golden, it shone like sunlight. Her eyes were like faceted emeralds. He could see every pore in her silky skin. He looked to the side and saw Leonard, Amy, Bernadette, Howard and Raj. They were watching him fearfully. Everything seemed so bright to him! Colors were vibrant, dazzling even.

He looked back up at Penny questioningly. "What happened?" He jerked at the strange cadence of his voice. It was robotic, mechanical.

Penny bit her bottom lip briefly. "You were hurt," she said softly. "Dying. I was so scared we were going to lose you, Moon Pie. Please don't hate me, but I couldn't let that happen. I had to save you."

Sheldon watched her carefully. "How?"

Penny looked over at the others. She looked apologetic for a second before steely determination lit her eyes. "I brought you here, to the empty store beside the restaurant. I forced Howard and the others to help me."

He glanced at them, seeing them cringe. "How?" he asked again, returning his gaze to Penny.

"Your body was broken," she whispered, tears forming in her eyes. "So, I had Howard make you a new one. It's kind of crude, since it was a rush job, but it will do for now. Amy and Bernadette transplanted your brain and spinal column into the body. Leonard and Raj gathered whatever they needed. It took five days, but you're alive."

The tears spilled down Penny's cheeks as she reached over to caress his face. "Please don't hate me," she whispered. "I couldn't let you die."

Sheldon was shocked by how easily his mind sorted through the information she gave him and the thoughts in his head. He was used to thinking at high speeds, but this was like 'breaking the sound barrier' speed. "I'm a cyborg?" he asked hesitantly.

Penny nibbled on her lip as she moved away and held out a hand to him. He reached for it, and twitched when he saw the wiring and steel rods that were now his arm. Penny pulled him up and he found himself looking into a full length mirror.

He took a tentative step, followed by another. He lifted his arms, rotated his wrists, and then turned around. He moved right up to the mirror and looked at his form intently. "I look a little like C-3PO from The Phantom Menace," he mumbled.

He turned to face Penny, who looked worried. "Penny! This is marvelous!" he shouted.

She sighed and her shoulders relaxed as she rushed forward to hug him. For the first time in his life, he didn't worry about germs. Why should he? He was a cyborg now! His fondest wish come true!

He looked over at his friends, who were still cringing together against the far wall. "Fear not," he laughed magnanimously. "I am very happy!"

Penny cleared her throat and pulled away. "Um, it's not you. They're afraid of me."

He looked at Leonard with confusion. "Why?"

Penny pulled the gun from her waistband and showed him. "It may have something to do with my threatening to kill them if they didn't help me save you."

"Sheldon," Amy pleaded softly, "I am so sorry. She was crazed. I love you. I would have never done this to you if she hadn't threatened me."

He looked from Amy to Penny and back. "Then you don't know me very well. This has been my dream all my life, Amy. My unique, marvelous mind, inside a body that will never get sick or die?" He turned to Penny and pulled her against his cold, iron body. "Thank you," he whispered gratefully.

Penny laughed with joy and nodded. After a moment she pulled back and waved the gun at the group again. "Okay, minions. Moon Pie is back and we are only just getting started. Now that he's up and running, I'm sure he has a few design suggestions and up-grades. Let's get to work."

Sheldon watched as the others paled and hurried over to the table and desk in the corner. He looked down at Penny and wished he had lips to grin with. "Minions?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Hard to hold a gun on a friend. Besides, they were all for letting you die. They said it was more humane." Penny snorted. "Screw humane. I wanted my Moon Pie back and that's all that mattered."

Sheldon placed a hand on Penny's back. "You know, I never gave you enough credit, Penny. You'll make an excellent second-in-command. Now, let's go see if we can't make me even more impressive."

Penny walked across the room and Sheldon followed happily. Who says you can't have it all?