Hello everybody! I'm back! For those of you who don't know, I have been out of state for the past few days for one of my uncle's memorial service. I spent nine hours driving to Omaha on Wednesday, spent time with family and cried a little on Thursday, then drove back for nine hours with a whiny little sister (my 21 year old sister…) all the way back to Wisconsin. I loved driving past the Mississippi river both times, but if anyone decides to take a trip and see the Mississippi, I highly recommend driving through the border between Minnesota and Wisconsin going into La Crosse. The cliff side views are gorgeous and very impressive to see in person. It was like what I imagine the Grand Canyon would look like with more trees.

Anyway, I brought my lap top with me and when I had time in my hotel room I continued to write more on the story. And I know I promised more Cass in this one, but I had an interesting idea for Arachnid and Antaeus. I realized that I have left the Eradicon out of the story for quiet a while and I wasn't really sure how I was going to continue him through the story, but then I remembered I haven't done anything at all with Arachnid and I have a big plan for her play later on. Be sure to let me know in the comments if anyone wants to hear more of this idea and if I should continue with it or not.

Special shout outs too: Megatronas, Vampgirliegirl, and Cao dreams in books. To Megatronas, thank you for your mazel tov for Breakdown and Knockout. I took a shot of German dark beer to celebrate for you ;}. To Vampgirliegirl, you are just my little cheerleader aren't you. Don't give up on me! To Cao dreams in books… Yes, the quote was kind of directed in your direction, but I had the thought to use it before I saw your last comment. You just sealed my decision to use it now XD. And I just might make a drawing of that scene with Knockout later done the road… No promises on when I get that done. O.o

Remember, don't be afraid to comment and ask questions in the review. I love to hear from my readers!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any stocks, trades, or licensing from the Transformers franchise. All rights are reserved for HASBRO entertainment.

MERCY

Chapter 25

To wear your heart on your sleeve isn't a very good plan;

You should wear it inside,

Where it functions best.

-Margaret Thatcher

Both medic and his assistant walked down the short corridor arm in arm. Never have the two of them been so happy then they were at that moment. Breakdown smiled warmly at the way Knockout clung to him; his red helm nuzzling his bondmate's shoulder and his arms clinging to the bulky appendage attached with it. The blue mech's free servo reached around to ghost over Knockout's thin yet gorgeous digits, and lightly squeezed them comfortingly. His lover's idle engines delicately purred in appreciation, and Breakdowns' cooed in the same understanding.

Onward the two marched, not caring who could see them, or even acknowledging anyone passing by if they had. They even left their connection to each other open so they could feel the calming of one another's content. Both Knockout and Breakdown agreed to how delighted they were with the outcome of their union… They were now carrying.

Everything was falling into place, and their thoughts and feelings were now upon even ground. That is, until Knockout felt a sudden tinge of doubt in Breakdown's thoughts. "What's wrong?" The red mech questioned as his hold on his lover's arm tightened. Realizing that his resolve had slipped, Breakdown quickly shook his helm defensively.

"Oh! No! Nothing really. It's just… Well…" There was no point in trying to hide anything now. Knockout would be able to find out about it sooner or later anyway. "I… I was just thinking about Cass… And how he is going to handle everything we need to tell him."

"Yeah… I understand that." Knockout nodded in agreement. "I've been thinking about that a lot too… But I'm also concerned about how this will affect our little one." He took one of his servos and caressed his abdominal plating. With a saddened sigh he glanced back up at his partner. "I have actually given this some very serious thought, and we should probably consider making this… A dormant conception."

"What?" The former wrecker shuttered. "But that… That means you would have to stave off development and delivery for almost a year!"

"I know this seems a little extreme, but just hear me out for a minute." The medic explained while he continued to mindlessly stroke his torso. "Now that we know that Cass is expecting he is going to need some looking after. Not only is it because of his ignorance… I mean, bless the kid, but he didn't even know what interfacing was until a month ago… But all of that aside, he is carrying Megatron's heir… The heir to the Decepticon cause for Primus sake!"

They both stopped outside the med-bey doors, and Knockout quickly faced Breakdown, servo in servo. He did his best to smile, but his optics furled from the sad thoughts in his helm. Plus, there was no way he was going to be able to hide anything from his mate. Even before they bonded, Breakdown could read his lover's body language like a data-pad. This was hard for Knockout, he could tell right away, so the blue mech just stood there and waited for the red mech to continue his thoughts. "Once that little dictator is born, I will have to drop everything at a moment's notice to help that kid raise his kid. Also, at this rate, both he and I would end up going into labor very close to the same time! I wouldn't be able to help Cass when I'm already on my back side with my struts in the air screaming like a wild insecticon… Which, come to think of it, is kind of the same way I got put in that position in the first place."

"Knockout…" Breakdown snorted and kissed the top of his mate's knuckles to let him know he was still paying attention, even if he was trying to keep himself from laughing. "Be serious though. You saw how teeny that kid's frame is. He is without a doubt going to need an emergency cesarean. We can time that precisely and schedule his operation and your delivery separately."

"It's more than just that," the smaller mech slightly griped, "because even if we pull all of that together without any complications, there is still the issue of taking care of the sparklings. It is going to be difficult enough raising one sparkling in the middle of a civil war with half the attention of his creators, let alone having to fight for their attention from a sparkling he's not even related too…"

The blue mech lowered his frame so he could follow his partner's gaze. Knockout had upset himself so much he couldn't look straight ahead anymore. "You almost make it sound like you'll be doing all of this alone." Carefully, Breakdown lifted his mate's helm up by his chin and smiled in an attempt to appear encouraging. "I will be here my love… You will not be alone in this."

"But you will still be off completing orders and missions for Megatron, and I would be able to handle that just fine if I didn't have to worry about my duties at the same time." Again Knockout patted his plating and stared at it with a small glimmer of pride in his gaze. "I… I just don't want our young one to feel like he needs to compete for our affection… For our love. He deserves better than that."

The red mech could feel his lover's tension, but it didn't linger. It quickly changed back to content and pooled over the medic's spark chamber. The warmth that followed it was encased in place when Breakdown wrapped his arms around the form of Knockout's chassis. "You do realize you have been referring to our young one as 'he' this whole time." The larger mech smirked. "How are you so sure we're going to have a mech?"

"I'm not sure." Knockout sighed once more; this time relieved. "A bearer just knows… I guess."

This reply made Breakdown chuckle in his throat, before he lifted a servo to cradle his bondmate's helm. As he did this, Knockout buried the side of his faceplate in the crevasse of the taller mech's chest and swirled his metallic silver hand over the sturdy blue armor. Then they just stood there in silence. There was no time for the cozy couple to just stand around, but for them it was necessary that moment. Both of their sparks called out to one another in search of comfort and reassurance.

"It will be okay…" Breakdown whispered through their bond while he gently tightened his grasp on his mate. "One thing at a time… We will figure this out."

"Mm-hm…" The smaller mech mumbled his reply. He didn't even notice he had closed his optics because he was so comfortable, but he wasn't quite ready to open them. Just a while longer. He didn't feel like he was asking for much. Just a little while longer in the love of his function's embrace. That is all he needed. "I love you..."

"And I love you…"

"And I'm going to be sick." A third voice above their helms chimed in without warning. Breakdown was so surprised that he jolted and turned with Knockout out from under the vocals source. When he noticed who it was the former wrecker snarled crossly.

"Good move…" Arachnid chided as she climbed down from the ceiling. "I was sure I was going to be sick on you."

"If I wanted to be as droll as you Arachnid, I would continue your predictable banter and just say you're a sick individual all together." Knockout sneered at the multiple limbed feme as he peered around his mate's arm. "But that would be a little too on the olfactory, wouldn't you say?"

"There is a lot I would really like to say." She replied in that snub tone that Knockout just absolutely despised. "But… I appear to be pressed for time. I just dropped by for some coolant salve for my back." Slowly the spider like rogue walked over to Breakdown and caressed the bottom of his chin. "I'm still a little sore from our last… 'Close encounter'."

The medic actually knew that Arachnid's taunting was actually directed at him, but her efforts were rather ineffective. Knockout wasn't blind or ignorant, he knew Breakdown had a small crush on the feme for a time, but that was about as far as it ever got. It didn't bother him in the slightest if his lover still found her attractive or that she still found ways to get Breakdown's engines revving. In the end, the former wrecker still came back to him, and that was all that mattered. However, Breakdown didn't respond at all to Arachnid's advances nor her over all presence. One thing he definitely didn't appreciate was her constant pestering towards Knockout. Whatever sense of attraction he once had for the feme was gone now, and his first initial reaction was to get Arachnid away from his beloved and leave him alone. So he took the servo beneath his jawline and placed it carefully back to her side.

"Sorry Arachnid, but the ward is closed until further notice." He stepped in front of the doors to deepen his point. "We have a few critical patients that need to be left to rest without being disturbed. If you really need it, ask a drone to drop by and pick it up for you. I'll even take the time to mix you a special blend."

"Not that you don't already have enough suitors to make your back side sore to begin with…" Breakdown announced through his bond, which caused his partner to laugh into his arm. Arachnid merely stood there in confusion and just as she was about to ask what was so funny, a loud crashing thud interrupted her and alerted the two mechs.

"Cass!" Knockout gasped as he ran past the other two Cons and whisked himself into the med-bey. Thanks to Soundwave doing his best to distract himself for the three weeks Cass was off ship, the doors were now programmed to instantly shut behind any medical staff that passed between them. Which meant Arachnid wouldn't be able to peer inside and spy for too long.

"Did he say Cass?" She asked before Breakdown had the chance to follow his partner. "That name sounds familiar. Whom did you say was in there again?"

"Just some random shmuck we found during one of our missions for Megatron." The large mech replied. "You can find his file in the archives under 'Nun' ya'."

"Nun' ya?"

"As in 'your business', Arachnid." Breakdown wasn't sure what to feel most embarrassed about first for the feme. The fact that she had fallen for such an easy setup, or that she didn't have time to hiss at him angrily before the door closed tight on her face. But he didn't have time to celebrate his well-deserved slam. There was a patient in need, and his partner was already ahead of him.

"Quick Breakdown!" The medic called out as he cradled his arms beneath Soundwave's frame. "Help me get him back to his berth! He must've fallen out and tried finding his way back on his own!"

"N-No-No…" The weak telepath's vocalizer crackled as Knockout anticipated it would. "P-Pl-Please-ease… Ca-a-as-pian… T-Take me to-to Cass… Caspian…"

"Is that what you were trying to do?" Knockout made a tsk sound as he shook his helm. "You could've hurt yourself!"

"Take it easy Knockout." His assistant made his way to the other side of the room; stepping over a small tray of tools that Soundwave most likely knocked over. "There's no more that you can do to him now that he hasn't already done to himself."

"I could think of something if I wanted too!" The fiery red mech wasn't done ranting. He was about to give the third in command a real good piece of his processor, when Soundwave stopped him. The slim mech kneeling before him reached out with his arm, and weakly grasped Knockout's shoulder.

"C-C-Cass…" The static was getting worse. It was almost spark breaking. "Cas-pian… P-P-Please-ease… C-C-Caspian-n…"

"Haaaah…" Knockout grumbled irritated. "I have been way to fragging nice to you lately. Breakdown? Can you bring his berth closer to Cass's?"

"If we switch his charging docks with Laserbeak's and add an extension we should be able to manage it." The assistant answered as he was already in the middle of disconnecting the symbiote from her docking port. As he walked past the other two mechs with Laserbeak gently cradled in his large servos, Soundwave struggled to stay up right.

"L-L-Laser-b-beak… K… Kkkkkk…" His vocalizer finally shot out and the only thing that emanated from his oral cavity was heavy static. He pushed himself a little too far and as a result he lost whatever strength he had left in his body. The telepath couldn't hold his weight any longer and he collapsed into Knockout's arms.

"Hey! Hey! Worry about yourself for a while!" The medic wanted to shout, but he couldn't stay angry at how helpless the navy blue mech was at the moment. So he huffed impatiently as he wrapped Soundwave's arm around his shoulder. "You are going to stay in your berth and rest until I give you the okay. We will put you right next to Cass, and if anything happens I will make sure you are the first to know. But right now he is recharging peacefully, and Laserbeak will be okay after she has recharged too." As soon as Breakdown hooked Laserbeak to the wall opposite of the computer console and realigned Soundwave's berth next to the wounded young model, he walked over to Knockout. He tucked his arms under the telepath's frame and set him back onto the berth carefully. The red mech stepped over to the other side of the medical beds so he could reattach Soundwave to a charging station and energon line.

Before he finished all of the attachments he glanced at Soundwave with a glimpse of pity. The third in command earned his position on the ship with very little effort through his strong will and broad mind, and aside from Megatron his fighting skills still remained unmatched. Yet there he laid before the ships doctor weak and vulnerable. His dermas exposed and parted as he gasped for cool air, his metal plating convulsing from the aftereffects of his self-inflicted despair, and the violet luminescent glow in his proto form nearly dimmed to a complete fade. Knockout shocked himself when he actually thought to himself, 'Poor Soundwave…'.

"When Cass finally wakes up, he is going to need you more than he ever needed anyone." He said quietly as he attached one last sensor to Soundwave's chassis. "And if you don't take some time to take care of yourself, that poor young model is going to be on his own. You're not going to do that to him are you?"

Soundwave briefly winced when Knockout accidently grazed a tender place close to his shoulder joint, but he did hear everything the doctor said to him. When he relaxed the telepath shook his helm cumbersomely in agreement but tensed again when he felt Knockout's digits grazing the edge of his optical visor. He tried to flinch away from the unexpected touch, and he really surprised Knockout so much that he needed to place one of his servos over Soundwave's abdomen.

"Don't move like that!" The red mech didn't mean to yell and he unintentionally alerted Breakdown to assist him. "I didn't mean to startle you Soundwave, but I should really look into your optics and make sure you're not showing any other symptoms."

He still reached for the sides of the visor, but Soundwave still put up a resistance. He shook his helm and weakly tried to grasp Knockout and Breakdown's wrists, but it was no use. The giant mech gently held down his arms and his partner finally steadied his helm.

"Please stay still, this won't hurt. It will only take a—."

Knockout had found the small switch he needed to automatically open the visor behind the telepath's audio, but when he finally saw why Soundwave put up such a struggle the veteran medic froze over his patient. He was not expecting to see what was before him, and he had no idea how to really react to it. This wasn't new to him by any means. He had seen the same anomalies on other patients, but usually when they were on the verge of deactivation… And the look in those fear filled optics made Knockout's energon run cold.

Breakdown noticed his lover's shock right away, but before they entered the room, he had blocked out their bond, so he did not truly understand the extent of Knockout's sudden shift. The larger mech brushed one of his servos over the red mech's shoulder and that seemed to alert him back to the present.

"Uh…" He seemingly choked on his small collection of optical fluid, and he was able to accumulate his thoughts before any of them could roll down his face. Quickly, Knockout replaced the visor and with shaking arms he rushed to tuck Soundwave into a more comfortable position. "L-Like I said… That didn't hurt at all." He didn't slow until his servo reached down to Soundwaves' and suddenly felt the spindly digits gradually wrap around his own. The third in command still couldn't vocalize his thoughts, but his obvious emotions of sadness and, oddly enough, relief reflected over his lip-plate's. He was undoubtedly upset, but it seemed he was trying to tell Knockout that it was okay. It was okay because the medic just didn't know and he was forgiven.

The medic's air vents quietly hitched, but he composed himself as he patted the thin fingers and set them back to Soundwave's side. "Rest… Just rest and everything will… Everything will seem clearer when you wake up."

Soundwave was out like a light when Knockout finished speaking. He was too exhausted to do much else, and once his helm listed tiredly to the side Knockout immediately ran over to the opposite side of the room. Breakdown was right behind him, and his instant reaction was to hold the sides of his mate's sides from behind. He could feel the red mech shake in his soothing hold and gently stroked his large servos up and down the length of Knockout's arm struts.

"Are you going to be okay my love?" He didn't have to wait long for an answer. Knockout spun himself around and buried his tear-filled face into Breakdown's chest. As he softly cried in the comfort of his lover's embrace, he muttered his concerns with a wavering voice.

"It… It appears those mod-swings are hitting me a lot sooner than I thought they would…" He tried to joke, but the hiccups in his oral intake were too overwhelming to hide. "So alone… Soundwave has been so alone for so long… And he kept so much to himself… I just… I don't…"

"I know." Breakdown whispered. "I saw it too, but we are not going to turn away… He will not be alone when he reboots."

"Just stay here awhile…" Knockout whimpered when he felt his mate's frame shift and thought he was getting ready to step away. "Hold me awhile longer… I will be myself again soon. I just need you here…"

"This really shook you up, didn't it?" The larger mech still whispered and even rocked on his pedes. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll be here for as long as you need me."

"I will always need you." The shorter mech opened their bond again and calmed when the reassuring feeling of their connection flooded his spark chamber. "I will never leave you… Say you will never leave me…"

"Never my love… I will always be here for you." Breakdown replied with no hesitation in his spark and kissed the top of Knockout's helm warmly.

"Promise…?"

"I promise…"

"Haaa…" Antaeus sighed in his lounge chair while he swirled his glass of high grade in his servo. "I'm so board… I wish I knew where Starscream ran off to… These videos are starting to get stale." His larges holo-screen played the last recording he made of himself and Starscream. It was the shortest one he made, but it was still very alluring to watch. It made his engines rumble calmly, but without anyone to share his arousal with it had become just a little dull. For a few days he was actually contemplating whether he wanted to show the videos to Steve yet and bribe him for his affection. But unexpectedly, someone actually came to him instead, and he gladly opened his doors to his new conquest.

"Well, I'm sorry my company isn't really living up to your standards." His guest stood from her seat on the opposite side of the room and stalked over the back of the Eradicon's chair. "But I must say, I'm rather impressed with the quality of these clips… You are amazingly sturdy. That stamina of yours is really impressive."

Arachnid put both of her servos on the violet mech's shoulders and slowly lowered them past his chassis while she leaned in closer. She casually sprawled the rear of her frame outward as her sharp digits teased the seams of Antaeus's torso. She also traced the edge around the cube of highgrade with her opposite servo, enticing the drone to lift the glass up to the side of his helm. The feme listed her helm over the crook of Antaeus's shoulder and neck-cables so she could lap her glossa smoothly along the edge of the glass.

"Mmmm…" She moaned in tandem to the audio that played with the video on the holo-screen. Ever since she ran into the tall Eradicon on the ship, she had been spending a lot of time in his quarters. The two of them have known each other from before Arachnid returned to the Nemesis, and since she didn't have her own personal space yet, she took advantage of the drone's hunger for company. She was rather glad to give it to him anyway. The spider like feme had spent too much time alone in space, and although her past time of 'collecting' was appeasing for a while, it still wasn't as satisfying. "That tastes really good…"

"As do you, my lady…" Antaeus turned his helm to the side and leaned in to kiss the enticing feme beside him, but she stopped him with her index digit for a brief moment.

"Hold that thought." She teased him more with a gentle bite in the air. "I came here tonight with some information, but I need you to do some more research on the subject for me."

"Are you already calling in that long ago favor I still owe you?" The Eradicon spoke over the sleek finger and even licked it lightly to the tip. "If you do that, I'm afraid you will never return to take advantage of me anymore."

"Oh you'll never have to worry about that, my loyal servant." Arachnid stood once again and walked around the other side of the lounge. She settled herself over Antaeus's lap by cradling her legs around his hips and took the glass of high grade away to swirl it under her alluring gaze. "You will always be my favorite toy… But before we indulge in pleasure, we have some business to sort. Have you heard of any rumors about Megatron and his most recent conquests?"

"Yes, there have been a few." He answered honestly, but the slicking sound of his spike paneling opening indicated a hint of his impatience. "A lot of the Eradicons in my section have been whining and griping about some grounder named Cass or something."

"Mm-hm…" The feme responded with a half sound of provocation in her hum. "That brings me to the next thing I need from you. I need you to find out as much as you can about this Cass, and report back to me as soon as possible."

"Why is Megatron's new mesh biter so important?" Antaeus knew he shouldn't bother asking since he wouldn't really get an answer, but she wouldn't have asked if she didn't think there could be an opportunity or profit to come out of it. "Does he have something dirty on our ever-imposing leader? Oh…"

"He might…" Arachnid hissed softly while she rocked her hips over the drone's growing erection. "But maybe we should worry about the dirty things I'm going to do to you first. You can start when I have my fill of you."

"Ah… Your wish is my command, Lady Arachnid…" The Eradicon groaned while he watched the hot black and violet feme drink the rest of his high-grade in one gulp.

"One more question." Arachnid announced before she tossed the glass behind her and took one last notice of the recording playing on the holo-screen. "How did you manage to get Starscream into your berth?"

"I got my servos on other videos of him also fragging one of the Vehicons." Antaeus tried to answer quickly as his erection grew painfully larger. "I told him as long as he pleased me, I wouldn't show the recordings to the whole ship. I even convinced him that if anything happened to me the video would play on a hidden server somewhere on the ship."

The feme lifted her helm up in brief laugh. "And he fragging bought that?"

"Like cheap energon sweets."

"Ha! You are one devious son of a glitch!" Arachnid started to bite the drone's neck; gleefully earning multiple moans, and passionate pawing along her thighs and hips. "And that is exactly why you will always be my plaything…"

-END-