eugenesis-text

‘What are you doing at the Kledji base, Ryknia’ snapped Quantax before his image had even
stabilised. ‘You’re supposed to be building another Recycling Plant!’
‘I’m gathering a new workforce. What do you want’
‘A convict ship. I have some new prisoners for you.’
‘Autobot or Decepticon’
‘Quintesson.’
‘What have they done to deserve imprisonment’
‘Just send the ship, Ryknia.’
‘This place is for Cybertronians, not our own troops.’
‘You don’t run Kledji. You’re caretakers at best.’
‘That’s rich coming from someone whose job it is to keep Xenon’s seat warm. Enjoy the power trip
while you can, Quantax.’
‘I could have 10,000 commanders above me and I’d still be your superior. Now send a convict ship
before I have you hunted down and dismantled. Is that understood Good. Quantax out.’
‘What was all that about’ asked Jolup, staggering in.
‘Quantax is losing it. He wants us to imprison a dozen Quintessons.’
‘So’
‘So where does he go from here How long before he throws another squad or two in jail It’s a
textbook case of megalomania. And that’s twice now he’s threatened to kill me. Where do we draw the
line’
‘I know what you’re thinking, but Quantax has got an entire army to back him up.’
‘Rubbish. Once you get past the tech-heads and first officers, the Quintesson army is comprised of
mindless automatons willing to follow whoever has the biggest gun and the loudest voice.’
‘So what do you propose we do’
‘Now We send Quantax his ship, of course. There’s no need to be rash, after all. We have all the
time in the world.’
‘Optimus! You startled me.’ Cloudraker dismissed his surprise with a wave of his hand and let Prime
into Delphi’s medi-bay. ‘What can I do for you’
‘A good question. I wish I knew. I felt that something down here demanded my attention.’ He
looked around at the circuit slabs and the other medics, Fulcrum and Aragon. CPU monitors and touchsensitive
polymer screens flashed diagnostics onto rows of drugged-up patients. In the background, stasis
pods were stacked so high that they reached the viewing gallery.
‘Not everyone could be operated on straightaway,’ Cloudraker said by way of explaination. He led
Prime between the circuit slabs. ‘The seriously injured have been sealed in stasis. I know what you’re
thinking, but they were happy to shut down.’ He pointed to Prowl’s quarantine pod, which was wedged
between standard stasis models on the fifth row. ‘Perhaps this is why you came’
‘Dear god…’ Prime reached up to touch the glass. One of Prowl’s eyes had puckered into a rust-dot
that sucked fluid into his head. ‘I knew Prowl was injured, but I didn’t realise it was… What happened to
him’
‘He contracted a metallurgic contagion. Red Alert and Perceptor managed to slow it down before it
reached his brain.’
‘Slow it down You mean it’s still active’
‘Very much so. I’m afraid to transfer him to cold stasis in case the few moments “outside” accelerates
the virus. The only cure lies in finding a compatible donor. Unfortunately, the last Autobot with a
synchronous Vorcode died fighting Pitchshifter in 2010.’
‘Decepticons’
‘Fulcrum thinks that both Shockwave and Megatron would have made compatible donors.
Shockwave’s dead, by the way. And Megatron – well, Megatron’s a different person now.’
Optimus turned away. He couldn’t bear to see Prowl like this.
Nightbeat walked in and nodded a greeting. ‘I’ve never seen this place so full,’ he said, then noticed
the look in Prime’s eyes. ‘I’m sorry about Prowl. I know the medics are doing all they can.’
‘It’s not fair, Nightbeat. He didn’t deserve this.’