Shards (Transformers Prime, Shattered Glass)

Chapter 10

"How much longer? You said it would be soon, how soon?"

Knockout sighed at Rafael's pestering "When I said 'soon' I meant a week or two, not a day or so."

"Aww," the little boy's shoulders slumped "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

The boy went quiet for a few minutes and Knockout went back to his work.

It had been nearly a month since Raf had joined them and it had been a rough transition. Humans were difficult to care for, Knockout discovered, especially young, injured, grieving ones.

Most alarming was his shift in mass. Apparently if humans' bodies didn't have acsess to a variety of nutrients they literally shrank and there was so little to Raf in the in first place neither Knockout or Soundwave had noticed it. It had been 8-17 who'd mentioned off-handedly that he thought the human felt lighter when he picked him up.

At first Knockout thought that the Vehicon was crazy, but on second thought humans were unbeleivably unpredictable and after several hours scouring the Internet, the doctor realized that a diet of instant oatmeal, granola bars, and beef jerky was hardly healhy. There were other things as well, but that seemed the easiest one to fix. That was, until they found out that humans don't actually WANT to eat what's healthy, or at least Raf didn't. That was a fight none of them expected.

Eventually Raf gave in and ate the vegtables, after hours and hours of Soundwave coaxing.

"Can I go back to my room now?"

"Oh, ah, in a minute, I have to finish up with my work."

"Can't Soundwave take me?"

"He's busy."

"What about Breakdown?"

"He's busy too."

"Doing what?"

"Helping Silas."

"Helping Silas do what?"

"Raf. Just wait a few minutes and I'll take you back alright?"

That was something Rafael didn't need to know about.

----

"How do you quarantine an entire state?"

"How does an entire state get sick?"

Sierra listened to the conversations around her in the cafeteria, her eyes half closed as she picked at the mess of food on her tray.

"I heard they started shooting people who tried to cross from California to other states."

"That's ridiculous."

There was really only one topic that was going around though.

"Did you hear that there's some thug group stealing the medicine and selling it?"

"I heard that they were stealing it and giving it to the sick people."

"Why would they do that when they could make a fortune."

"How would they even...that?"

"Don't...maybe?"

"Oh...kidding..."

Sierra's head snapped up as the noise around her faded to little more than a distant white noise crackle.

Her eyes met with her sister's and she stood up quickly, gesturing for Cas to follow her out of the room.

"Sierra what's-"

Cas was cut off as Sierra pulled her into the bathroom and then into one of the stalls.