The monitor beeped silently as Nightfall's vitals remain stable on the screen, the femme remained unconscious, however, Knockout did promise to look after his friend, but he doesn't seem to be having the best of his life at the moment.

Two sparklings wailed inside the med bay as the poor red medic struggled to keep them quiet, tending to their needs while their carrier rested, he's tried everything, carrying them in his arms, giving them formulas and even going as far as entertaining them with what humans call a 'peek-a-boo'. Such simple creatures humans are. 

But still, all of it ended in vain and Knockout can't even bother anymore. He still has a lot to do and the results of the DNA test are still ongoing.

Babysitting was NOT on his list.

"Primus help me" Knockout groaned as he rubbed his servos against his face plates. The sparklings still crying for their carrier, who remained in stasis for the last 13 hours.

His audio receptors are about to burst with the constant cries, Knockout let out a muffled sob before sighing deeply.

"Oh for Primus sake, Nightfall! Just wake up already!" Knockout cried behind his servos, peeking through his digits, trying to see if Nightfall showed any signs of onlining or if her sparklings show any signs of calming down.

But alas, they aren't. With a heavy sigh, Knockout picked up his datapad that was sitting on a corner, he mostly used it for research in human knowledge, something he uses as a pastime.

He wonders if the human lullabies would work on the sparklings, since Cybertronian lullabies are long lost in the millennium of war, and the fact that femme Cybertronians are mostly eliminated in the war and the birth of sparklings are even rarer, none of them remembers even a single one of them.

And Knockout doubts the current existing femmes are even capable of remembering Cybertronian lullabies, let alone singing them to a sparkling without giving them nightmares.

Exhausted and in need of a total break, the Decepticon medic decided to just click the first thing that appeared on the blue screen held by his servos. 

The soft melody started playing inside the med-bay as the sparklings' cries slowly died down, making Knockout heave a sigh of relief as he watched them finally fall into stasis. 

Relief washed over the cherry-red medic as he slumped against the Nemesis' walls, glad that his babysitting hours are finally over. 

"This is way above the pay grade Lord Megatron offers me..." Not that he gets paid to begin with anyways, but he needed a well deserved break and that's exactly what Knockout will do.

______ 6 hours later______

Shallow and heavy breaths escaped her as she tries to identify her surroundings, she can't open her optics in fear that she might still be in a cell and be trapped there for eternity.

It was agonizing to not know where she was after being in stasis, her processor was still rebooting and yet to remember the full events. Nightfall knows she's escaped but she's afraid that it might have just been a hopeful dream and that reality might make her more insane than she already was.

Slowly she opened her optics, slightly fearing of what she will see but she had to somehow, her sparklings need her and might be in danger-

Wait...

Where are her sparklings...

Nightfall's spark began to pulse rapidly as she quickly got up from the berth, plugging off the cables that supported her in haste and began to frantically look around the room. Her heeled pedes echoed in the quite medical room but there was no sign of her sparklings.

It wasn't until she heard voices from the other room, covered by the automatic doors as if she was meant to be locked in.

Soft and steady, muffled by the walls but still audible for her.

But Nightfall has had enough of locked doors and enclosed rooms, so she barges outside only to freeze on the spot as soon as she does so.

There in front of her were two mechs and on the screen were her sparklings' image and hers as well as the sparklings' sire.

It seems the CNA test that Megatron had ordered Knockout to do was finished and now they're looking at the results.

Nightfall could feel the energon in her systems run cold as she stared at the mechs. Her optics focused on the silver mech she knows all too well, Megatron.

He knows...

He knows

Megatron knows of the sparklings, which she had always expected to as she can't hide them from him after all...but for him to know who the sire is as well- Nightfall feels like she's immobilized, as if her surroundings were spinning. Her gaze trembled as it flickered from the screen and back to her leader.

She was afraid, afraid of what Megatron will do to her and her sparklings, after abandoning the cause and only to return after. She had planned on raising the sparklings on her own, to be near their sire but never knowing him personally. Nightfall was satisfied with that plan of hers...but now, she is unsure of what Megatron thinks now that he knows he's a sire of not one but two sparklings from a traitorous seeker femme.

Megatron and Knockout turned to glance over their shoulders when the automatic doors slid open behind them, their optics locked on her frame.

"Ah she's awake! You've slept for quite a long time, you know...Was worried you might have gone into a coma-" Knockout says with joy seeing his friend finally awake from her stasis only to stop himself when their lord began to approach the frozen femme.

His footsteps fell heavy and his larger frame loomed over her slim one, her wings dropped slightly in fear. After all...she had abandoned the cause and the fact that Megatron had not yet executed her for her treason is terrifying alone...she might even have to spend her time in another brig and raise her sparklings in a cell!

Her red optics had dilated and her breathing got erratic before she shut them tightly.

"...How long?"

Came Megatron's unnervingly calm voice, startling the femme out of her fear and was replaced with a bit of confusion.

"..P-Pardon, my lord..?" Nightfall stuttered as she slowly met Megatron's gaze, which to her surprise didn't hold any fury or the intent to kill her.

"How long did you have them...?"

Is he... asking about the sparklings?

Due to her past condition of having to stay in a brig for two Earth years, her development for her sparklings came slower as the Autobots have quite a limited reserves on energon, she's just glad that her sparklings came out safe despite being born inside an enemy territory.

"Two years, my lord...and just recently conceived.." She answered truthfully. Nightfall has no intention of lying to Megatron any further unless she'll face his wrath.

A heavy sigh came from Megatron before a low chuckle resounded from his vocals.

"Two years." He repeated as his laughter grew in volume, making Nightfall glance at Knockout from behind the warlord for a bit of assistance, only for the doctor to shrug as he too, doesn't know what to do in the situation.

Moments later, Megatron had ceased laughing and glanced down at the femme, there's something about his purple optics that seemed off and Nightfall can't help but be overwhelmed in fear once more.

"Two years you've disappeared....and now you return...with my sparklings no less" Megatron spoke softly as he glowered at Nightfall as he slowly bent his frame down to be face to face with his femme

"I must say, Nightfall...You are quite foolish."

His large taloned servos reached for her face and Nightfall's breathing grew erratic once more as Megatron reached for her face.

"No...my lord, please...I didn't mean to-" Nightfall pleaded as her optics widened in fear, flickering towards Knockout who was witnessing the entire situation, she's asking for his help but they know there's no escaping the warlord and Knockout only seemed to cower in the corner he was in.

She was on her own and is about to be punished by Megatron.

"My lord... please...Please forgive me!"