I have a poll on my profile page asking a question I really want to have answered. I'm trying to get as many answers as I can, and very few people visit my profile. I've gotten literally one answer in a week, and that's sad. Please answer, and be honest about it.

I only own my OC's!

SICK MIND

One month later

Pema and I start down the stairs after getting ready for the day. "Morning, Shey. Morning, Pema. Shey, you heading to your bending lessons?"

"Yeah." I grab the overnight bag I had packed the night before as Bandit flies over and perches in his usual place on my shoulder. Pema slides up to her seat at the table, her similar bag next to the door. She's wearing an orange floral print shirt and brown jeans with a wide orange belt, orange socks, and white tennis shoes. She's got a brown hoodie hooked on the back of her chair. Her hair is in a ponytail held with an orange band, and she's wearing an orange headband. I'm leaning on the wall wearing a yellow floral print shirt and brown jeans with a wide yellow belt, yellow socks, and my white tennis shoes. My brown hoodie is hooked over my arm. My hair is braided and secured with a yellow band, and I'm wearing a yellow headband.

"You want anything to eat?"

"Still got the morning sickness." I sigh heavily.

"The twins need it." Mom hands me a cereal bar.

I take it, open it, and start nibbling, hunger starting to overpower the nausea. "Thankfully, Miko's been going easy on me since I told her."

"What does the team think?"

"They think I need to forget about my deadline. The coming Harmonic Convergence is going to affect the balance, and Aang told me I have to know the elements and save the world."

"You look like you haven't been sleeping well."

"Dreams about what Aang told me." I shake my head. "Being the avatar stinks sometimes."

"Come on. We have to get going. You know Miko hates to wait."

I yawn and rub my eyes as I climb out of Optimus. Pema runs to the platform and joins Raf in his racing game. I jump onto the other platform where the computers are and sit down on a chair. I yawn one more time before my head falls on the table and I fall asleep. "Optimus, you are not going to believe this. I have just managed to pinpoint the location of the Decepticon warship."

I immediately shoot up from the chair as everyone gathers around, Sierra too. She's been coming to the base with Jack and Arcee since they started dating.

"Good job, Doc Bot." Ratchet cringes at the nickname.

"How did you penetrate their cloaking technology?"

"I didn't. I was experimenting with variable frequency wavelengths when I stumbled upon it. Even still, the ship might be experiencing some kind of electromagnetic breach."

"With Megatron deceased and the element of surprise…"

"We can cause some serious damage."

"Also on the same frequency, an Autobot emergency beacon."

"The Decepticons can wait. There may be Autobots in distress. Ratchet, bring your medical kit."

"Can I go?" I look up.

Ratchet shakes his head as he opens the ground bridge. "Oh, well. More time for training!"

"Oh, joy."

Miko and I ground bridge to the Grand Canyon with Bandit. "Let's start with move a rock. Remember, the key to earthbending is your stance. You've got to be steady and strong. Rock is a stubborn element. If you're going to move it, you've got to be like a rock yourself."

"Got it."

"Good. Now the actual motion of this one is pretty simple." Miko slams the rock against the canyon wall. "Okay, you ready to give it a try?"

"I'm ready." Thankfully, this time, unlike previous times, the rock moves, rather than me. Pema cheers for my success.

"Keep your knees high, Twinkletoes!"

I struggle to hold a rock on my back, while Miko bends up the ground, sending me off-balance. The next exercise has the two of us digging through rock with our fingers. Next, Miko gives me a Water Tribe club Jack had brought to the base. "Jack doesn't even know we have this." She blindfolds me and I try to smash rocks Miko brings up. I finally get one after about five times. In the next exercise, Miko builds herself into a shield of rock which I have to push back over a marked boundary. I am successful. In the next exercise, I am standing on two pillars of earth tossing a rock into the air while switching hands to catch it each time. Miko walks between the two pillars of earth and uses earthbending to shake the pillars. "Rock-like!"

A ground bridge opens up and Optimus and Ratchet walk through. The wind blows in the sand in the desert as they see the ship buried in the sand. "A crash landing. Buried here for centuries." When they get to the ship, Ratchet transforms his hand into a laser and cuts an opening into the ship. Once Ratchet is done, Optimus kicks the opening down and the two walk inside. Ratchet then turns on a flashlight so they can see clearly. "If they traveled in stasis mode there may be survivors." The ship suddenly moves and the two Autobots lose their footing. Eventually they regain it and continue walking through the ship. Optimus then uses his strength to force open a rusted door. When they look inside, they are in shock. Bodies of dead Autobot soldiers are lying everywhere. Their bodies are rusting while there are pools of a discolored purple-like energon. "Optimus! These Autobots didn't perish in the crash!" Ratchet does a scan on one of the dead bodies. "They're displaying the effects of a virus!"

"This is a plague ship." Optimus moves to step forward.

Ratchet puts his hand in front of him. "Don't touch anything! The virus could still be active!" The ship shakes once again and the two Autobots stumble back against the wall. Ratchet and Optimus point their flashlights upward to see an Autobot dangling from wires. The body slides down from the wires slightly and drops of the infected energon fall from the Autobot and land on Optimus' face. He grunts as he tries to swipe it away, but the energon is deep in his systems. "No!"

"Have I ever told you you're like Toph? Like, identical to Toph? You're a drill sergeant!"

"Gets the job done, doesn't it?"

"I guess…" I glance toward the right, even though we have no way back without a ground bridge. "We'd better get back. The Autobots may be starting to worry."

"I'll call Jack and ask for a ground bridge." Miko starts to walk away with my lemur perched on her shoulder. She turns back and smiles at me. "Good job today, by the way. You're finally an earthbender."

"I finally beat the block. Earth is just my natural opposite, as an airbender."

Miko and I run through the bridge and stop in our tracks. Optimus groans as he is lying down on the berth in the med bay. His faceplate under his left optic is slowly changing into a brown color. I'm the first one to react to what we see. "OPTIMUS! NO!" I run to the med bay and my guardian's side.

Ratchet scans the infected area. "Cybonic plague."

"It's only contagious if made contact with the infected energon."

Jack walks over and lays a hand on my shoulder, causing me to scowl. "Jack, get away from me. I'm fine right here. Why don't you go cuddle Sierra?" I shrug his hand off and walk up the stairs.

Pema crosses the room and lays a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Jack will come to his senses."

"Part of me doesn't want him to. Part of me has a crush on that sick prime down there." A tear rolls down my cheek slowly. "First, I lose all the airbenders, then I lose Optimus." I whisper.

"Optimus isn't going to die. Ratchet will fix this."

'"I will protect the last airbender."

"And I'll have my eye on the last of the primes."'

"Shey?"

"I'm fine. I was just thinking back to something he once told me."

"What was it?"

"That he would protect the last airbender. I told him I would have my eye on him, but I failed." I sit on the floor and wrap my arms around my legs, resting my chin on my knees. Pema crouches down and pulls me in for a hug.

"What was a plague doing on an Autobot spaceship?"

"Its passengers were infected. The virus wiped out millions on Cybertron during the Great War. There isn't an Autobot online who hasn't lost someone close to the plague, but…"

"But we all need Optimus." I stand out of Pema's hug. "Without him, I'll never restore the balance to my world." Bandit perches on my shoulder and coos softly. I absentmindedly reach up and scratch his ears as I listen to the Autobots.

"The Cybonic plague was engineered in the Decepticon Biological Warfare Program, by Megatron himself."

"Well, you guys have a cure…right?"

"No…cure." Optimus rasps.

We widen our eyes in shock and horror. "There's no cure!?"

"Optimus please, Save your strength."

Miko crosses her arms. "That's not possible."

"Would Megatron create a disease without a cure? What if he caught it by accident?"

"It's not like we can ask Megatron, Jack. He's pushing up lugnuts."

"But we may be able to access the Decepticon database. For a moment, we still have a fix on their warship's coordinates."

"Bumblebee, Sheyenne, come with."

Miko walks over and takes the lemur. I reach over and grab my staff while ensuring that I have my fans in my pockets and my water skin's strap around my shoulder. "I'll be back, I promise." I jump from the higher platform to catch up with the two Autobots. "Pema, I will come back."

"Arcee, quickly."

The ground bridge opens up in the middle of a hallway aboard the Nemesis. Bumblebee, Arcee, and I flip through the portal and get into our fighting stances. Arcee and Bumblebee activate their blasters while I just point my staff. "Let's start with the lab."

We walk around cautiously as we make our way to the lab. When we get to the lab, we hide behind a wall just in case a Deception walks out of the lab. Our instincts are right when Knockout casually walks out of the lab. He stops for a brief moment, sensing something is off, but he just shrugs and walks down the hall. We then enter the lab once coast is clear. Bumblebee and I are looking for anything interesting.

Meanwhile, Arcee walks over to the computer. She types a couple of words and information begins to show up. "I'm in the network."

I look around in awe. I come up towards a window and look inside. At first, it's a little bit blurry. When I look closely at it, I widen my eyes as I gasp and stumble back. I crawl backwards from the window and begin to sweat. That's not possible. "Bu-bb-bb-bum"

"Sheyenne are you okay?" Bumblebee walks next to me. "Looks like you saw a ghost as you guys say it." I point a finger towards the window. Bumblebee raises an eyebrow before he looks through the window. He widens his optics as he slightly backs away. "It can't be."

"I've searched every file. Nothing!"

"Well, search again! Clearly, you missed something!"

"Arcee."

"I've scanned the entire database!"

"Arcee!"

"Did you use a redundant quantum algorithm?"

"Don't tell me how to research! You think you're the only one who cares about Optimus?"

"Arcee you need see this." Bumblebee points at the door.

"What is it you two?!" Arcee storms over. As she gets to the window, the door automatically opens and Arcee widens her optics in shock.

"What is it? What's going on?"

A body that is hooked up to life support is lying down on a berth. The body is the leader of the Decepticons: Megatron.

"It's Megatron. He's alive."

"WHAT?"

"You said that he was dead!"

"That's not possible."

"Who's Megatron?"

"Scary. None of us have ever seen him, but he's the one who crushed Bee's voice box."

"Wow." Pema breathes.

"Well I'm staring right at him." Arcee and Bumblebee activate their blasters. I am shaking as I slowly walk up to the lifeless body, fans out and open, just in case. "Good news is, Megatron isn't exactly staring back."

"Megatron…" Optimus gasps.

"Save your strength, Optimus. Earth needs you. You're team needs you. I need you."

"He's critical. Hooked up to life support. Time to finish this once and for all." She begins to charge her blaster.

"Wait! Don't!"

"One good reason, fast."

"Megatron may be Optimus' only hope for survival."

"What are you talking about?"

"Does he display brainwave activity?"

"Spiking hard. His sick mind is still at work."

"Perfect! If a cure exists, Megatron may be the only one who knows it. You must enter his brain and find it."

"WHAT?!"

"Enter Megatron's brain? Ratchet, are you out of your fragging mind?"

"Is that even possible?!"

Bandit flies out of Miko's hands and over to Pema's shoulder. She reaches up and scratches his head, causing him to purr.

"The Decepticon lab should contain all the equipment you need for a cortical psychic patch."

"Have you guys ever even down this before?"

"No. But I have thoroughly studied the theoretical literature. Invented by Decepticons. Outlawed by Autobots."

"Whoa. Can't we just haul Megatron through the ground bridge and buy us some time to figure this out?"

"Time is one thing that Optimus doesn't have! One of you must try this! I will NOT allow Optimus to pass knowing that Megatron will outlive him!"

"Ratchet, I would lay my life down for Optimus. Anytime. Anywhere. But a mind body split…"

"I'll do it."

"You will?"

"Are you sure Bumblebee?"

"Bee's the best scout there it."

Raf looks down as Jack Pema, Sierra, and Miko begin to comfort him. Bandit even joins in, licking Raf's cheek.

"Why has the electromagnetic shielding not been repaired?"

"The crews are working as quick as they can, Lord-."

Starscream slaps the talking vehicon on the faceplate. "We are leaking a trail! All the Autobots need to do to pinpoint our position is to access the correct frequency wavelength! Accelerate your efforts!"

"Yes, Lord Starscream." The vehicon and his friend go back to their stations.

"Doctor in the house." Knockout greets as he walks in.

"Ah, Knockout. And how is the patient doing today?"

"Same old."

"An inglorious fate that he should remain in this vegetative state."

"On the contrary, Megatron's body might be scrap metal. But his mind is still percolating."

"Keep that to yourself. That's blasted Soundwave sees and hears everything."

"The eyes and ears of the Decepticons."

"Well, as long as their master remains in limbo, so does their cause. The Decepticons deserve a strong, alert leader."

"One who would require a loyal second-in-command." Starscream chuckles. "A candidate will have to earn that post by making a strong case to said eyes and ears."

"A case for showing mercy, Lord Starscream?"

"You scratch my back, I scratch yours." Starscream smirks.

Arcee walks over behind Megatron and hooks up the first end of the cortical psychic patch. She then walks over to our hiding place and looked at Bumblebee. "Bumblebee you don't have to do this."

"I have to try." Bumblebee looks over at Arcee and gives her a thumbs-up.

"This is like Jack learning Bloodbending. Though, some good could come from bloodbending, just like some good can come from a cortical psychic patch."

"Ratchet, we're ready."

"Initiate cortical psychic connection."

Arcee hooks up the other end of the patch behind Bumblebee's head.

Bumblebee widens his optics before the world behind to disintegrate around him. Bumblebee looks at his hands just to make sure that everything is going right so far. He looks at his surroundings to see a metal bridge on top of lava. Bumblebee then proceeds down the bridge to look for the information.

"Communications downlink activated. This will allow us to see and hear everything Bumblebee does while in Megatron's subconscious mind."

Jack gapes. "Whoa. Where's that?"

"Looks like Kaon."

"Bee says it looks like Kaon. The Decepticon capital back on Cybertron."

"Ratch, Optimus' vitals are…"

"I know."

"Optimus' vitals are WHAT!?"

"They're not good."

"Do something, Ratchet." I whisper, "I'm stuck here, but you're not."

"Ratchet is doing all he can. Right now, our hope lies in Bumblebee, and not the avatar."

"Quickly, Bumblebee I know you're in unknown territory. But you must figure out where information might be filed in Megatron's mind."

Bumblebee continues to walk up the stairs until he sees Optimus standing before him. "Optimus!" Bumblebee runs up to him.

"Bumblebee that is not Optimus, but a figment of Megatron's mind it cannot see or hear you."

A dark laugh is heard as Bumblebee looks up to see Megatron on higher ground. "Optimus Prime, your Autobot armies are defeated, bow before your new master."

"Never, Megatron. One shall stand, one shall fall." Optimus activates his swords.

"So be it." Megatron activates his sword and jumps down from cliff. The two enemies charge at each other with full speed, but when Optimus is about to make the kill, he misses and Megatron slices through Optimus, causing him to disintegrate.

Raf gasps. "What?"

"That never happened."

"It's not a memory. We're seeing Kaon as Megatron has created it. In his darkest dreams."

Miko crosses her arms and glares at the screen. "This guy is messed up."

Pema leans back. "I could say the same thing. Reminds me of what my school taught on Afiko." They all turn to look at her. "I went to an Air Nomad school, where the Air Acolytes send their children."

Bumblebee hides behind a rock as Megatron walks off. Suddenly, the rock begins to change as it forms another Optimus. Optimus walks behind Megatron and activates his sword. "Megatron, your treachery ends here."

Megatron says nothing as he retracts his sword and charges his cannon. Bumblebee then runs out from his hiding spot and gets into the way of the blast, but it was useless as it hits Optimus and he disintegrates. "The Autobot scout." Bumblebee looks up with fear in optics. "Punishment for trespassing on my domain is your destruction!" Megatron holds up his blade as Bumblebee prepares for the worst, but instead of Megatron killing him, the blade just goes through him. Bumblebee hums in confusion as Megatron looks at him in surprise and shock. "How can this be?" He swipes his blade at Bumblebee over and over, but the blade continues going through him.

"Megatron can't touch Bee?"

"Because he is not a creation of Megatron's mind, Bumblebee is immune to his physical attack."

Pema smiles. "That's good, right?"

Jack grins. "The universe is actually being kind to us for once."

"What the heck is up with the whole universe thing?"

"Weird stuff has happened to us when you weren't around."

"You are not wearing phase displacement armor." Megatron observes as he walks around Bumblebee, "Your eyes track my movement so you're not a hologram. And I do not believe in spirits. So tell me scout, what are you?" "Megatron." An all too familiar voice says. Bumblebee and Megatron turn to see Optimus, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee standing before them.

Miko blinks up at the screen when Optimus, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead walk up to Megatron on the screen. "Uh-oh. Special guest stars."

"And I spoke to soon."

"This is not good."

"What the?" Bumblebee walks up towards himself. He waves his hand in front of himself. "Hello?"

Megatron yells and fires at the three Autobots, who disintegrate. "YOU were real! THEY were not! A cortical psychic patch, how unexpected."

"We've stirred Megatron from his oblivion. He's becoming self-aware."

"Things can't get-"

"DON'T JINX IT!" I say over the comm link as Pema and Sierra say the same thing there.

Arcee and I continue to keep guard while Bumblebee is unconscious. "Do you think he's okay?"

"I'm not sure. Come on Bee. What are you doing in there?"

The doors suddenly open as Knockout, Soundwave, and Starscream walk into the med bay. "Knockout, if you would be so kind as to provide your expert medical opinion to Soundwave for the historical record."

"Simply put: unaided, Megatron could remain in this deathless slumber forever."

"Megatron would not have wanted to be seen this way. To stand idly by while he remains captive in his own body, it's not just." Starscream sighs. Soundwave doesn't buy the act Starscream and Knockout are putting up. He points to the brainwave activity on the screen.

"Brainwave activity. NOT evidence of consciousness. Merely in an endless dream from which Megatron may never wake."

"Soundwave, we must face reality. Megatron is lost to us."

"The only honorable option would be to show him mercy."

"A simple throw of the switch."

"Quick. Painless. Compassionate."

Arcee and I widen our eyes as we contact base. "Ratchet, are you hearing this?"

"If Megatron perishes, Bumblebee's mind will remain separated from his body forever."

"We'll lose Bumblebee and Optimus?"

"Great job Jack."

"Smooth Move, Sis."

"The only way you could have entered my mind is via cortical psychic patch. But the question remains: what happened to me?" Bumblebee doesn't answer. He just stands there shaking slightly. Then Megatron's memory slowly comes back to him. The day the Autobots destroyed the space bridge. The inside of the space bridge blew up one by one. He remembers reaching out his servo for his undead army, but the space bridge blew up. "The space bridge explosion? And yet, if you're in my head, I am not one with the All Spark! So tell me scout, do I still function?"

"Bumblebee, we are out of time!"

"You're in the med bay on the Nemesis. I came here because one of the Autobots got sick because of the Cybonic plague."

"Cybonic plague? Someone else besides myself is unwell?" Megatron's question earns a nod from Bumblebee. "Optimus!" He begins to laugh. "Such irony! But after ages of endless battle, the mighty Optimus Prime is felled by a simple virus from the distant past! And what makes you think I would save the life of my oldest enemy?"

"Megatron! Your treachery-!" Megatron fires one shot at Optimus, causing him to disintegrate once more.

"I can help you get what you want."

"Oh, and what is it that I want most?"

"The chance to destroy Optimus by your own hands."

Megatron laughs. "Did you not see? I do slay Optimus by my own hand. At will! Whenever I desire!"

"But if you let the plague kill the REAL Optimus, you won't get the chance to truly do it."

"Bee told Megatron that if he lets the plague virus kill the real Optimus, Megatron won't get the chance to do it himself."

"Smart." Jack says.

"Twisted." Miko smirks.

"But is Megatron really going to buy it?" Raf asks.

"I hope so." Pema says.

"Soundwave, do we take your silence to mean you concur with Knockout's medical expertise?" Starscream earns no response from Soundwave. "Speak now or forever hold your peace." Starscream reaches for the cable. "Going…going…"

Arcee and I are getting ready to attack, but before Starscream pulls the cable, Soundwave points towards the cable that links Bumblebee and Megatron together. Starscream hums in curiosity as he walks behind Megatron's berth to see one of the ends of the cable connected to his head. "Uh-oh."

"After our deep history together, to not watch the spark ebb from Optimus' eyes with my very own. Well played, scout." Megatron opens his hand to reveal a cube with Cybertronian words. "The chemical formula for the cure you seek…not that I expect you know how to read it." Megatron says. Bumblebee is about to grab it, but Megatron closes his hand and the cure disappears.

"Huh?"

"Not yet."

"Seriously?"

"Just how am I supposed to destroy Optimus as you propose while I'm trapped here in a perpetual daydream? Once you release me from this prison, you will have the cure."

"Come on. Come on." Arcee slightly shakes Bumblebee.

"Can't he get the cure any faster?"

"You must guarantee my recovery. Or Optimus fades to gun metal gray…the REAL Optimus." Bumblebee looks down for a moment to think.

Ratchet is rewinding and fast-forwarding until he gets a picture of the cure. "Arcee, we have the formula! Disconnect Bumblebee now!"

Arcee immediately pulls the cable from Bumblebee's head.

The world in Megatron's mind begins to crumble and disintegrate around them. "You were watching. You tricked me!"

Bumblebee begins to disintegrate into green dust.

Megatron tries to grab him, but he disappears. "No! Take me with you! TAKE ME!" Megatron begins to disintegrate as well.

"Hurry, Bee!" Arcee shakes him.

I hold out my staff as Starscream bends down to see us. Bumblebee then comes to life and points his blaster at Starscream. "What?" A ground bridge opens up behind us. He then activates his blasters and yells. "Intruders!"

Bumblebee and I dart into the portal. "Allow me!" Arcee shoots the cable, causing it to disintegrate. She then jumps through the portal a second before it closes.

It takes a whole day, but Ratchet cures Optimus of the Cybonic plague. Ratchet helps Optimus off the berth. "That's it. Steady."

Everyone keeps clapping and cheering with joy and relief. "Please, save the hero's welcome for my physician, and my scout."

Bumblebee then bows as everyone begins to clap for him.

"How are we going to get home tonight? Arcee won't leave Optimus, he's in no condition to drive anybody home, and Bee just got out of Megatron's mind, so Ratchet wants to check him over."

"We could all ride in Bulkhead."

"Or…" I pull out my bison whistle. "We could use this."

"What is that?"

"A bison whistle. Dad just gave it to me."

"And how will a bison whistle get us home?" I ignore Jack's question and lead everyone up the elevator. Once at the top, I blow the whistle. Within two minutes, Ikki lands on the top of the rock formation hiding the Autobot base.

"A real sky bison."

"This is Ikki." I Airbend up to the back of her head and testing the knots I had tied before coming to the base that day. The others smile and climb into the saddle. "You guys ready? Ikki, yip yip."

Raf crawls up to the saddle horn and sighs. "How did your father manage to find a sky bison so much like Aang's? I've seen your pictures… but I thought this breed was extinct."

"And I thought the species of lemur I got was too, but Bandit doesn't seem to mind." I motion to the small lemur sleeping in my lap.

"We're all that's left. Air Nomad teachings won't die out, but airbenders might. It's just me, Sheyenne, and Ikki now."

"That's sad. Since you're the avatar and Pema doesn't want to marry, the Air Nomads are probably going to die out, aren't they?" Pema and I share a look of apprehension.

After we drop Jack off, Pema and I head home. I lead Ikki into her shed and give her some food and water. While I do that, Pema unties the rope and hangs it on its hook. After I'm done, Pema joins me and the two of us airbend the saddle off the bison.

We smile at each other and share a look. "Are you looking forward to the twins, or were you upset that we were taught that all life is sacred?"

"I've been looking forward to it since Ratchet showed me his scan when I was three days along."

"What about Jack? Were you hurt when you found out he was dating Sierra?"

"A little, at first. But he's my best friend, and we needed a non-bender. What's got me so angry now is that he's caring about the babies when it suits him, at a time when I need him to be here. What about you? Have you settled in here?"

"Of course! It's like I've lived here all my life!"

"Good. Glad to see you've settled in so well. Spirits, I'm so happy to have a sister!"