Prowl walks down the corridor on the thirty-seventh floor inside 'base zero' with Aurora by his side.
As he had predicted, it had been easy for the special forces to take control over the building without Torrent's presence. And in hindsight, it had turned out that they had been extremely lucky, that the operational leader had chosen to leave the building.
If Torrent had been present during the attack on 'base zero', then Prowl has no doubt that the numerous explosive devices, that the syndicate had planted within the buildings around their operational headquarter would have been detonated.
It would have resulted in the complete destruction of the center of Iacon and caused innumerable civilian deaths.
He mourns Thundercracker's fate, but at the same time, he is grateful that what happened did happen, because the alternative, with millions of deaths, would have been unbearable.
The only thing they can do now is hope that Thundercracker recovers from Retrograde's illegal procedure while they seek justice on behalf of the blue seeker. His sacrifice was not in vain and will not be forgotten.
They have all eight leaders of the syndicate in custody while their victims have been liberated.
The Joint Investigation Unit has suffered numerous losses during the operation, with 109 deaths solely in their fight against Retrograde and Torrent, but it was to be expected.
"Let me do it." Aurora says, when they stop in front of the locked door into Torrent's office, and Prowl moves a bit away while the SIO cautiously hacks the digital lock.
There is a beep when the code is verified and the door unlocks.
They share a wary glance before Aurora grabs the door handle and slowly pulls it down. To their relief nothing happens when the door opens and the SIO steps cautiously into the office.
Prowl follows Aurora inside, but stops at the sight that greets him.
"Get our forensic technicians here." He says gravely as he stares at the sturdy cuffs at each corner of the berth that is placed in the middle of the room, "He most likely kept Thundercracker captive here."
"I'm on it." Aurora answers grimly.
Hotspot frowns as he reads the copy of Retrograde's documentation of the neuropsychiatric procedure and the information about Thundercracker's identities, that Athena has sent to him in advance.
He can already now identify several legal and ethical issues pertaining to Thundercracker's situation.
Most importantly which one of the identities have the right to exist.
The original?
Or the previous?
And what about the current one?
It is not just a matter of reversing the procedure, if it turns out to be reversible, but also about which identity have the right to the seeker's frame.
The original identity have the strongest legal entitlement to exist, but there is also the ethical matter of the sparkling, that the original Thundercracker have no emotional bond with.
Skywarp, as the sire, can protest against it if the original Thundercracker wants to abort the gestational protocols, but since the gestation is in its early beginning, he stands weak in the justice system.
Another ethical issue to take into consideration is the fact that a lot of time has passed since the original Thundercracker existed, which can cause severe mental health issues in the original identity.
Is it ethically justifiable to bring the original identity back into existence, with their knowledge of the risks to his mental health?
Will he ever get a meaningful life after what has been done to him?
There are so many unanswered questions.
Then there is the previous identity whose life has been one long traumatic experience until he was liberated from captivity 10 years ago. Despite his experiences, there is hope in his future and the strong emotional relationship between him and Skywarp as well as the existence of their sparkling is a strong ethical argument, that speaks in favor of the previous identity's right to exist.
Finally there is the ethical issue with Thundercracker's current identity. While the current identity is in a very immature stage of development, it still has the same right to exist as the other two, and it's going to raise a lot of ethical questions, if the procedure is reversible and they allow the original or the previous identity the right to exist, since it will kill the blue seeker's current identity in the process.
It all ultimately depends on whether or not the procedure is reversible.
If it isn't, then the current identity naturally retains the right to exist, but if it turns out that it is reversible, then thorough legal and ethical considerations must determine which identity has the greatest right to exist.
His research and recommendations will form the basis for the final decision by the Ethical Council.
Thundercracker's situation is extreme and hopefully the only one of its kind, but if there are more cases out there, then the outcome of Thundercracker's case will form the legal precedent for the cases that might come.
::Thundercracker and Nacelle have arrived.:: The receptionist announces.
::Send them in.::
He rises when the door opens and welcomes Nacelle with a handshake before he turns to Thundercracker.
"Welcome Thundercracker." He greets with a smile and gesticulates with his hand towards a pair of chairs, "Have a seat."
Thundercracker looks around the room and walks over to study all of the specialized equipment in the cabinets along the walls until Nacelle with a gentle grip on his arm guides him to a chair and asks him to sit down.
"So, Thundercracker, do you know why you are here?"
"T-to g-get b-b-bet-t-ter."
"Yes, we will try and find out what we can do to help you." He says softly, noticing the severe case of stammering that Athena had informed him about, "To begin with, I want to examine you, take a few samples of your energon and ask you some questions. Do you have any questions before I start?"
"What that be?"
He follows Thundercracker's pointing digit and takes the advanced model of a processor down from the shelf.
"This is a processor. It is our processor, along with our spark, that makes us who we are." He explains and folds out the model to show the intricate internal parts, "It is also our processor, that controls every part of our frame and makes everything function, either consciously or unconsciously."
"You help make p-proc-cessor better?"
"Yes, I work with how we can help patients with various physical or psychiatric diseases in their processor recover from it or get a better life with their illness."
"Is m-my pr-ro-c-ces-ss-or d-d-da-m-m-ag-g-ed?"
"Athena suspects it, and that is why she has sent you here. So we can find out."
"First, I want to test your processor for neurological deviations. It will give me an indication of if there are any physical damage to your processor, and if there is, which systems that are affected." He explains when the blue seeker doesn't have any further questions.
He activates the optics chart on the farthest wall.
"I want you to look at the chart and tell me the shape of the second symbol in the third row."
"Sq-quare."
"The fifth symbol in the sixth row?"
"Cir-c-cle."
"The fourth symbol in the ninth row?"
"Sq-quare."
"And the seventh symbol in the twelfth row?"
Thundercracker hesitates a bit.
"T-t-r-iang-g-le?"
"Correct."
He moves his chair to sit right in front of Thundercracker and snaps his digits simultaneously by the blue seeker's audios.
"Any difference in your hearing?"
"No."
He holds a digit in front of Thundercracker's optics, "Keep your optics on my digit and follow it as it moves."
"Normal optics movements." He remarks satisfied.
"Give me a wide smile and then look very angry."
"Excellent."
He moves a bit back to give Thundercracker some room to move.
"Stand up."
"Take a few steps forward."
"Move back again."
"And sit down."
Thundercracker follows the orders smoothly without any issues with his balance or coordination.
"Good."
He moves closer again and holds both his hands out to Thundercracker, "Take my hands and squeeze them as hard as you can."
"Perfect."
He holds his palms vertical, "Place your palms against mine and push as hard as you can."
"Excellent."
He keeps his palms vertical, "Now I want you to pull my hands towards you as hard as you can."
"So far so good." He says and returns to his desk to write his observations down on a datapad, "I can't find any neurological deviations, which is a good sign. I have already read Athena's Mental Status Evaluation and know that you have issues with your memory. I'm going to ask you a few questions about neurological symptoms, that you might have experienced, which also can be an indication of damage to your processor."
"Have you at any point felt pain in your processor or frame that couldn't be explained?"
"No."
"Have you at any point felt dizzy?"
"No."
"Have you at any point experienced dark spots in your sight?"
"No."
"Have there been an incident, where you lost consciousness?"
"No."
"What is the first thing you can remember?"
Thundercracker looks down and caresses the tiny bulge in his midsection with great care.
"T-to-r-r-ren-nt m-mak-king m-me f-feel g-go-o-od. T-taug-g-ht m-me t-t-to int-t-er-f-fac-ce. T-told m-me I have h-his sp-park-k-l-ing in-s-side m-me."
Hotspot shares a glance with Nacelle.
"I want you to try to remember anything from before that moment. Anything will suffice, be it an image, a sensation, a feeling."
Thundercracker offlines his optics and frowns in deep concentration.
"F-feel-ing."
"Where?" Hotspot asks.
"H-Here." Thundercracker answers and rubs his chestplates, "F-feels wr-ong. Sad?"
He onlines his optics in confusion.
"W-why d-do I f-feel s-sad?"
"Do you remember when I told you that it is our processor and spark that make us into who we are?"
Thundercracker nods.
"While you have lost your memories, your spark still remembers the feelings that are associated with them. So your spark feels sad because some of your forgotten memories have made you sad."
"It is good to know, that what has happened hasn't affected your spark." He adds and looks at Nacelle, "I suggest, that you and Nacelle work on identifying the feelings associated with your forgotten memories. Maybe it can help you remember."
He unsubspaces a butterfly needle and several test tubes.
"Now I need to take a few samples of your energon." He takes Thundercracker's left arm in a gentle hold, "It will hurt a little when the needle penetrates your energon line, but you do not feel any pain thereafter."
There is a hiss from the blue seeker when he pushes the needle into a large energon line, but Thundercracker remains still, and Hotspot rapidly changes the test tubes as they are filled.
"There." The needle is pulled out, and Thundercracker rubs the puncture wound until the small trickle of energon stops flowing from it.
"You are an exemplary patient, Thundercracker." He praises while he subspaces the energon samples, "I'll bring these down to our laboratory technicians before we proceed to the scan."
Nacelle looks into the scanning room through the glass wall that separates it from the control room.
Thundercracker lies completely still as he has been instructed to while the large scanner constructs a detailed image of his processor.
Hotspot is using a new technique called molecular Magnetic Resonance Imaging(mMRI), where targeted MRI contrast agents with high specificity and high relaxivity are used to create a clear image of the many processes, that are going on inside the processor.
"What are your current thoughts about his condition?" He asks the clinical professor.
Hotspot looks away from the continuous flow of detailed images of Thundercracker's processor that are generated and stored on a large databank.
"I have yet to discover any neurological damage to his processor, but it doesn't mean, that there aren't any, which is why I still need to study the mMRI images before I can make a conclusion." He explains, "I also need to study the data material from Thundercracker's previous identities and the basic identity template that are the basis of his current one, to get a deeper understanding of what happens inside his processor after the reformatting and how his new identity is developing. It will give me an indication of if it is possible to reverse the procedure."
Nacelle turns around, his optics full of worry.
"Is he ever going to recover from this, if it turns out to be irreversible?"
"Yes." Hotspot answers calmly with a reassuring smile, "Our processor is a wondrously adaptable thing. It is designed to learn and adapt to the world around it. And with the right assistance, it can even recover from substantial damage."
"But his memories will still be lost."
"That is true, but it doesn't mean that we can't help the victims recover them." The clinical professor answers, "We have access to their lost memories through the many datapads Athena has found in Retrograde's laboratory. If we can't return them to their owners through a reversal of the procedure, then we can maybe return them through other means, for example as an fabricated experience."