Hey everyone! I'm back already with another chapter! I'm on a roll! Whoot!

This one is short, but I hope you like it. P.S. Sorry for any grammar errors.

Transformers Prime: The Medic's Assistant

Chapter 49: Hurt

Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers Prime

(Autobot Base)

Stormracer and Optimus rushed through the groundbridge portal. Once they made it back to base, they saw everyone else huddled in the medbay. Both ran over to see Bulkhead laying comatose on one of the medical berths. Everyone had a scared look on their face as Ratchet tried to stabilize him.

"Ratchet, what happened?" Optimus asked.

"Tox En exposure, among other things," Ratchet said, "he's suffering a complete systems failure." He looked at his assistant. "Stormracer, I need your servos over here!"

Stormracer went into high alert as she ran past the others to Ratchet's side.

The two worked diligently while the others helplessly watched. Miko was watching from the side, very upset from what she was seeing. The other kids and Fowler tried their best to comfort her, but they too were worried for the green mech.

Time went by and Ratchet and Stormracer were still trying to stabilize their comrade. They had many machines connected to him, the beeping sounds blocking out the silence in the room.

The bots remained by Bulkhead's side as they watched Ratchet and Stormracer work. Miko was sitting on the platform with her legs pulled to her chest. She would glance at Bulkhead but then look away, having a hard time seeing her guardian in his state.

"It's going to be okay, Miko," Sierra told her, "Bulkhead is in good hands."

The Japanese girl didn't say a word as she kept her eyes on the floor.

"I know what it's like," the redhead continued, "when Storm got seriously hurt, I was so scared. But it's going to be okay. Bulkhead's going to pull through."

Miko frowned at her. "Stormracer wasn't exposed to ToxEn when Airachnid stabbed her. And she wasn't alone. Why didn't Bulkhead have a partner?!"

Stormracer heard this from the side. Her spark clenching in her chest, she shut her optics and continued what she was doing.

Eventually Jack, Sierra, and Raf had to return home to their families. Miko however refused to leave and stayed behind.

Stormracer barely said a word. The only times she did speak was to answer Ratchet about Bulkhead's vital signs. Other than that, she remained quiet as she checked Bulkhead's readings and made sure he was still hooked to the machines. She was too upset to speak. Seeing her friend in the state he was in was eating her alive. They already lost Cliffjumper. Were they going to lose Bulkhead as well?

Up on the platform, Agent Fowler was on his phone talking to his superiors. "Yes, Sir," he said before hanging up. Flipping his phone down, he looked at the bots. "Turns out highlights of your Big Apple adventure got caught on security tape. The Pentagon needs me to run interference with the mayor." He looked at Bulkhead as Ratchet ran scans on the wrecker. He felt bad for having to leave. "I'd try to stall but..."

"Go where you are needed, Agent Fowler," Optimus told the liaison, assuring him it would be alright, "there is nothing more you can do for Bulkhead at this time."

"Keep me posted, Prime," Fowler said. He turned around and started walking to the elevator before turning around again. "I mean it." He then entered the elevator and made his way up to the roof.

Arcee was at the small computer messaging Wheeljack about what had happened to his partner. It wasn't long before he messaged back.

"Wheeljack's on his way," she told everyone.

Miko looked at her in anger as she stood up. "I can't believe you're giving up on Bulkhead already!"

"All I meant was Wheeljack and Bulkhead are close," Arcee explained, "I thought he'd want to be here."

"I know what you meant!" the Japanese girl said angrily as she turned around and walked away.

"Miko, where are you going?" Optimus asked.

"Home! While Agent Fowler can still give me a lift."

The bots watched as she made her way into the elevator. She was still frowning as the door sealed shut.

Arcee was about to go talk to her before Optimus put his servo on her shoulder.

"She needs time," Optimus told her.

Stormracer let out a deep vent before checking one of the cables.

After a while, Ratchet and Stormracer had managed to stabilize Bulkhead. Ratchet was at the computer setting the wrecker up before letting out a sad vent. He turned to look at the others. "Bulkhead is stable, for the moment. But I've had to induce stasis."

Hearing the sound of an engine approaching, everyone looked over to see Wheeljack driving through the corridor before transforming into bot mode.

"What's the damage, Doc?" he asked Ratchet as he walked over.

"Bulkheads suffered massive trauma to his central neural conduit," Ratchet answered.

The wrecker walked over to him. "I've watched you work. You're a maestro."

"The Tox En exposure has caused system wide shut down on a submicronic level. I can't even begin to operate until Bulkhead regains some strength."

Wheeljack frowned as he turned to Optimus. "You gonna tell me who did this to him?"

"At the moment, I believe it is best to focus our attention on Bulkhead's recovery, rather than revenge," the Prime answered.

Wheeljack however did not agree. "You do that." Walking away, he transformed and sped off down the corridor he entered through.

"Wheeljack will most likely do something rash you know," Ratchet told Optimus.

"And I am not sure we could stop him if we wanted to," Optimus said.

Time went by as Ratchet and Stormracer continued monitoring Bulkhead. Stormracer's emotions were eating her up from the inside, but she refused to show it. Checking the wrecker's readings, she constantly glanced at Bulkhead, thinking something would happen when she wasn't looking.

"Stormracer?"

Hearing her name, the teal femme glanced over to see Arcee walking up to her.

"You okay?" Arcee asked with a concerned look on her face, "you haven't said a word this whole time."

Stormracer avoided eye contact as she looked at the floor. "I'm fine," she lied.

"We're all worried about Bulkhead. It's okay. You and Ratchet are doing all you can-"

"I'm fine, Arcee," Stormracer interrupted, "I just... I just..." Fighting back her tears, she turned around and went to check something else. "I'm just trying to stay focused."

Arcee knew something was up as she looked over at the others, them looking concerned as well.

Ratchet watched as his assistant continued monitoring the patient. He knew something was wrong, but he was too focused on Bulkhead's wellbeing. But now that he was stable, she was still very quiet and insisted to keep working. He looked up at Optimus. "May I speak with my assistant in private?"

Optimus glanced between the two then nodded. "Arcee, Bumblebee, let us leave the medic and his assistant with Bulkhead for now," he told the others.

Once the three left the med bay, Ratchet walked over to his assistant who was checking Bulkhead's spark rate.

"Stormracer, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she fibbed, refusing to look at him, "a lot's just happening and I want to make sure Bulkhead pulls through."

"You're not fine," he said with a frown, "you haven't looked or said a word to anyone this whole time. I've seen you grieve before, but I've known you long enough to know there's something else bothering you. Now what's wrong, Stormracer?"

After a long pause, Stormracer finally looked at him. Her optics were already watering as she frowned at the medic. Unable to contain it any longer, she let it out. "I should have been there with him."

Ratchet's face softened. Now he understood why she was so upset. "Stormracer, there's nothing you could have done. He was exposed to so much Tox En and had to face insecticons. It's a miracle he's made it as long as he has. You wouldn't have been as fortunate. It wouldn't have changed any-"

"I could have helped him!" she angrily interrupted as she turned around to fully face him, "someone should have been there with him! He needed a partner, but you didn't want me to go with him! You should have let me go! He's hurt because you didn't trust him!" Stormracer couldn't hold back the tears anymore as they began streaming down her face. Her angry expression was soon replaced with a look of sadness. "I could have helped him." She covered her face and lowered her helm as she began sobbing. The tears continued streaming as they dripped off her chin and onto the floor. Her shoulders shook as she cried.

She was caught off guard when she felt Ratchet's arms wrap around and embrace her. Her optics were wide as he held onto her tightly. He had never hugged her before. The only other times was when she initiated the hug. Her optics filling up with more tears, she shut them tight as she hugged him back.

"I'm sorry" she cried, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I'm just so scared. I don't want to lose another friend."

"I know," he told her calmingly, "it's alright."

She sobbed into his chest as more tears escaped. "Why can't this war be over already?"

Ratchet let out a vent, unable to answer as he held her. Once she started calming down, he pulled away but had his servos on her shoulders. "I know you wanted to be by his side, but the outcome wouldn't have changed. You would have been exposed to the Tox En yourself. He would have wanted you to be safe."

Stormracer sadly lowered her head.

"But know that you are helping him. You're helping me to make sure he's getting the aid he needs. All we can do is keep doing our part and hope for the best."

Wiping away her tears, she gave him a nod.

The others soon returned into the room once things calmed down. After a while, Bulkhead regained some strength. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to allow Ratchet to finally operate on him.

Stormracer was alongside Ratchet while everyone else watched from the side. Once the medic was done with the operation, he looked at the others.

"Bulkhead will survive," Ratchet told them, though he still sounded upset, "but because the damage was so severe, he may never be fully functional again."

Everyone sadly looked down. Though they were happy Bulkhead was going to pull through, they knew how hard it was going to be for him.

"We should call Miko and let her know," Arcee said. Walking over to the computer, she opened the comm channel and tried calling the girl. But it went straight to voicemail.

"Maybe she just doesn't want to talk to anyone right now," Stormracer said.

Just then a call came in through the commlink. Arcee immediately answered. "Hello?"

"Hey, Arcee, it's Sierra," the redhead's voice said through the comm, "sorry to bother you guys. How's Bulkhead doing?"

"He's going to make it," Stormracer said, "but the damage was pretty bad. He might not be able to fully function. But we'll make sure he gets the help he'll need."

Sierra sighed. "Well, I'm glad to hear he's going to make it. Is Miko still there? Jack, Raf, and I tried texting her but she's not answering any of our messages."

She's back home," Arcee said, "she had Agent Fowler give her a lift."

"But I called her host parent's house and she's not there."

All the bots looked very confused.

"Maybe she went out for a walk," Stormracer thought out loud.

"Maybe. We just want to make sure she's okay."

"We will try to get a hold of her, Sierra," Optimus said, "thank you for calling."

Soon after the girl hung up, the bots glanced at one another as Arcee contacted Agent Fowler.

"Hello?" the liaison answered.

"Sorry to bother you, Agent Fowler," Arcee said, "but did you get Miko home alright?"

"What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding very confused.

"She said she was going home and that you would give her a lift."

"Sorry, but I didn't see her come up at all. Is everything alright?"

The bots grew more concerned. Soon after Arcee hung up, she and Bumblebee went up top to look for Miko. Because they didn't see her come back down the elevator, they thought she would still be up on the roof. But they saw no sign of her. Immediately they went back down to the hangar.

"She's not there," Arcee said.

"Where could she have gone?" Bumblebee asked.

Ratchet had a terrible thought as he looked at Optimus. "You don't think..."

Thinking the same thing Optimus vented. "I do."

The team tried contacting Wheeljack, only to get no response. His energy signature was cloaked, making it impossible to locate him on the scanners. They tried contacting Miko's phone again, but it still went to voice mail.

"Wheeljack wouldn't actually take Miko to a fight, would he?" Stormracer asked.

"All I know is he'd better bring her back unharmed," Arcee said angrily.

Time went by as they continued trying to contact the wrecker. Finally, they received a call from the Jackhammer.

"Hey, bots," Wheeljack said.

"Wheeljack, what were you doing?!" Arcee exclaimed sternly, "we've been trying to reach you for hours!"

"Yeah, sorry bout that," he said, "the kids here with me. She's safe. I'm coming to drop her off now." The call then cut.

Though the bots were glad Miko was alright, they were still upset. They were gathered around the computer when the wrecker and Japanese girl returned. Wheeljack was limping as he dragged his pede against the floor and held his arm, looking like he had just got out of a serious fight. Miko thankfully didn't have a scratch on her, but she slowly dragged her feet beside him with a sad expression on her face.

Arcee knelt down and placed her servo on Miko's shoulder. "Miko, you okay?"

"She's fine," Wheeljack said, "kids a pro."

"I wasn't talking to you," Arcee angrily snapped at him.

Miko looked at the others. "How is he?"

Bumblebee and Stormracer sadly looked down.

"Bulkhead will survive," Ratchet answered, but still sounded upset, "he may never be fully functional again."

Hearing this made Miko feel even more sad. She tried fighting back the tears before running over to Bulkhead.

"Miko, I don't think it's wise for you to-" the medic was stopped by Optimus, telling him to let her.

Miko slowed down and walked over to her guardian still in stasis on the berth.

Wheeljack limped over as he looked at Bulkhead. He felt uncomfortable seeing his partner still laying there. He looked at the others, seeing they were all looking back at him.

"I'm... not sure I want to see Bulk right now," he said, "not like this." Turning around, he transformed and drove back down the corridor.

The bots watched him leave before looking over at the girl now sitting on Bulkhead's chest.

Miko sadly looked at her best friend. "I'm never leaving you again." Her tears started falling as she lowered her head and cried.

Stormracer sadly looked at the scene. She wished she and Ratchet could have done more for Bulkhead. But they did all they could. All they could do now was wait for him to wake up.

(The Nemesis)

Knock Out watched as the insecticons carried Hardshell's body past him down the hall. He didn't feel sad for them. In fact, he was glad there was now one less bug to deal with.

Good riddance, he thought as he walked away.

What a day it was for him. First, he was immobilized by the warship. Second, he was sent to New York to retrieve a relic, only to be hit by a train twice, have his paint job completely disfigured, and return to the Nemesis empty handed. Third, he had to remove a live grenade from Soundwave's drone, Laserbeak, and immediately dispose of it before it could blow him up. And fourth, when he finally did manage to fix his paint job, it ended up scratched again seconds later by those confounded insecticons. Needless to say, he was having one of the worst days of his life.

Megatron of course was furious at not just him, but at Dreadwing and Hardshell for their failures. Soundwave was the only one who brought their leader a relic. The resonance blaster. Knock Out fumed at the praise Soundwave was getting from Megatron. If it wasn't for the two autobots and humans, he would have gotten the phase shifter for Megatron. Then maybe just once he would get some respect.

And despite Hardshell, that annoyance of an insecticon, coming empty handed as well, still got a pat on the back for supposedly scrapping Bulkhead. He wouldn't stop boasting about it to his fellow insecticons. Though that did change when the wrecker known as Wheeljack called and mentioned the green autobot was still online. How Knock Out loved the look on Megatron's face when he heard that. The warlord then had Hardshell go out to terminate Wheeljack, only to come back as a lifeless husk. But that wasn't the kicker. The bug wasn't killed by Wheeljack. He was snuffed by a human! Ha! So much for the great Hardshell.

Though Knock Out had to admit it was a shame Bulkhead survived. Then again if Hardshell's story was accurate, he might still be at death's door. Well, dead or alive, at least the wrecker will be out of commission. That was fine by him.

What about Stormracer?

Stopping in his tracks, Knock Out's helm lifted up once the thought popped into his head.

She's most likely upset. Bulkhead is her friend after all.

He frowned at his conscience and argued back.

Why should I care? She's an autobot.

You should go see her to make sure she's alright. She would appreciate it.

No! I'm not going to check up on her because I like her. Which I don't!

Then just go to confirm if Bulkhead's dead or not. And if anyone asks, tell them you went to settle a score.

The doctor went back and forth with the voice in his head, trying everything he could to talk himself out of it. He understood how hard it was to lose a friend. He really did. But at least she had her teammates with her she could talk to. Scrap, the big bots probably still alive! Knock Out wasn't that lucky! He had no one to talk to after Breakdown past!

No one but Stormracer.

She was willing to listen to him. She listened to every word he said. She even helped him build a memorial for his fallen partner. She was there when no one else was.

And now she was the one hurting.

His expression softened. Thinking it over, he let out a vent and pinched his brow.

"I'm going to regret this."

And that was chapter 49! I hope you liked it. Next chapter will be a SR/KO chapter yay! Hopefully I will update again soon. Until next time! God bless!