Cobalt dragged himself into the other corner that Ratchet had occupied as his sick bay. Ratchet's berth was near the corner and Cobalt longed to back out of this. However Optimus was right behind him to stop him from turning and bolting. However in his condition he wasn't moving very quickly. He probably would've made it a few steps before Optimus would stop him.

"Ratchet," breathed Optimus as he stood beside Ratchet's berth.

Ratchet's optics blinked open and they locked on Optimus. "Optimus," he breathed as he sat up and looked at his leader. "What can I do for you at this fine hour?"

Cobalt let out a cough and Ratchet's optics flickered. "I see," he murmured without Optimus or Cobalt saying anything. "Let me scan you Cobalt."

Cobalt wrinkled his muzzle a bit but didn't argue. He leaped onto an examination table and sat down harshly. He coughed again and looked away from his friends. He could feel their burning optics on him and he blinked his eyes in despair. He knew they thought that he was weak and he lashed his tail.

"I'm fine Ratchet," assured Cobalt as he gulped harshly. "It's just a cough."

"Just a cough," repeated Ratchet in the same voice that Optimus had used earlier. He scanned Cobalt and Cobalt tried to cool his inner core temperature so it didn't seem like he was overheating. However Ratchet and Ratchet's scanner wasn't stupid. He grumbled to himself and Cobalt looked at his paws. He knew that Ratchet saw through his lies of how he felt fine.

"Hmm, you're overheating," he assessed as he continued scanning. "At a rapid rate as well. This could be harmful."

"It's nothing," argued Cobalt stubbornly as he tried to leap down from the examination table but Ratchet placed a servo in front of him so that he couldn't. Cobalt look up and growled which brought on another hacking fit. He kept feeling his chest rattle as if something was in there but he knew it was stupid and he was probably hallucinating again. He thought about telling Ratchet about that and thought better of it. He'd probably think he just went mad.

"Nothing my engine block," Ratchet snapped and Cobalt fell under his discriminating gaze and hunched down in embarrassment. "Cobalt how long have you felt like this?"

"Just last night and into whatever time it is now," he replied truthfully which was probably the only honest thing he had said the whole night.

"That isn't too long but some viruses can do that," Ratchet muttered, half to himself as he turned to look at shambles of once outstanding medical evaluation panels. Now they looked beaten down and barely flickered as he researched possible ailments that Cobalt could be suffering from.

"Virus," echoed Cobalt as he looked up at Optimus and narrowed his optics. "I couldn't have a virus."

"Viruses are what make us ill. Whether they are something that we pick up from another Cybertronian or left over ones from other things. It just depends. Were you around anyone that was ill?"

Cobalt snorted in amusement. "Of course not! I have a daughter to take care of. I would not put myself in any unnecessary risks." He thought of Eclipse laying in her nest, thrashing around and waiting for her father to get back to her.

"And that's why you decided to meet Lumber on the border of Decepticon territory," asked Optimus as he looked at his old friend.

Cobalt bit his tongue and lashed his tail. "He wasn't going to hurt me," he argued as he felt the thing rattle in his chest again. "Anyway I'm sure this is just a night thing and I'll be fine in the morning with a recharge. Now can I please go back to sleep."

Ratchet wanted to argue but he didn't have much yet to argue with. "Well it's not the Cybonic Plague so that's good-"

"See," cut in Cobalt harshly. "There's nothing majorly wrong with me. Now can I recharge?"

Ratchet grumbled again. "Fine!"

Cobalt dipped his head and leaped down, ready to return to his daughter when Optimus stepped in front of him. Cobalt looked up and narrowed his optics. "Can I please go see Eclipse."

"I don't believe that's a good idea," confessed Ratchet as he looked down on Cobalt with sympathy in his optics.

"What," gasped Cobalt before he broke out into another hacking fit. He hunched over and extended his claws so that he didn't fall forward. He ended the hacking fit with some wheezing and when he looked up he saw Ratchet jot some things down and Cobalt turned his head away, embarrassment consuming him once more. "You can't-" He broke off to cough again. "Tell me now to see my daughter."

"Cobalt," scolded Optimus as he looked down at Cobalt and Cobalt tried to shrink into the floor. "Ratchet outranks you when it comes to medical decisions. If he says you shouldn't be around her than you have to respect that."

Secretly Cobalt did but he wasn't going to give in easily. He wanted to see his daughter and let her know that he was always there for her. That was one thing that he promised Moon, he would always be there for their daughter. He wasn't going to break that promise.

"Are you really going to forbid me from seeing my daughter," asked Cobalt as he plastered his ears against his head.

Ratchet didn't want to be the one to say it so he looked to Optimus for some support. Optimus took another step to Cobalt who backed up again. He couldn't believe he was actually going to hear the one thing that he didn't want to hear. The thought of Optimus saying this one thing haunted him forever and now it was finally going to happen.

"Cobalt you are forbidden from going anywhere near her," Optimus ordered and Cobalt felt his whole body tense.

"You can't do that," he cried as his spikes on his back stood on end and just that promoted a strenuous effort.

"Cobalt it's for the best-," began Ratchet in his usual passive tone when it came to this but Cobalt just brushed him off.

"No it's not! You can't forbid me from being with my own sparkpup!"

"Cobalt please clam down," Ratchet commanded a bit forcefully. "This spike in emotional stress could worsen your condition."

"I don't care," sputtered Cobalt as he fell forward against, more coughs shaking his body. "She is all I have left. You can't take her away from me." He was now almost laying down as he struggled to haul himself back to wobbly servos. He looked up, his optics pleasing. "Please."

Optimus sighed and looked to Ratchet who seemed lost for words. "I'm sorry Cobalt but that's an order," Optimus murmured as he looked down at Cobalt who looked even more crestfallen then after he found out his mate had died.

Cobalt didn't have the strength to argue anymore. He looked over in the direction his daughter was in and felt grief rising in his chest. "I'm an awful father. I promised my sparkmate I'd always look after her and now look, I'm sick and can't."

"You are not an awful father," Optimus argued but Cobalt was barely listening.

He turned to Ratchet. "Can I at least sleep in the nest and you two can move her with you. The nest is probably already contaminated anyway."

Ratchet saw that as sensible and nodded. "Will do Cobalt."

He rose up to his full height and romped over. Cobalt looked to Optimus. "Do you think this is contagious?" His optics pleaded him to say no. He had slept with his daughter for most the night and was praying that it wasn't.

"I'm not sure," confessed Optimus and Cobalt just hung his head.

"You and Ratchet can take care of her until I can," bared Cobalt as he rose to his full height before doubling over in another hacking fit. "I don't think I trust Ironhide, Bumblebee, or Jazz very much."

"As you wish."

Cobalt looked up again and saw that Ratchet was carrying the tiny figure of Eclipse. She whimpered a bit and he saw her optics flutter open. She looked around until she saw her father on the ground and pawed toward him. Cobalt felt his spark break.

"N-Not tonight little spark," stammered Cobalt as he looked up to his daughter.

Of course Eclipse didn't understand and that made Cobalt feel worse. His overheating and his cough were nothing compared to seeing his daughter not understand why she couldn't be with him. She couldn't speak yet and he knew what she understood was minimal right now. He was just going to have to hurry and convince the others that he was capable of being around his daughter and not getting her ill.

Ratchet took her over to Optimus and Optimus stroked her gently. "You're going to be safe with us Eclipse."

Cobalt hung his head and his paws urged him to venture over. Optimus shot him a look and Cobalt cowered. He padded forward, his tail almost dragging. He really had no shroud of dignity left. When he finally managed to clamber into his nest he felt as if he had just faced Megatron himself. Everything ached and when he coughed it felt as though claws were scratching his throat. He kept feeling the rattling inside him and debated whether or not to tell Ratchet.

He decided against it since he thought that Ratchet would just say that it's another longer reason to keep him away from his daughter. He grunted and turned over, his servos failing a bit in fatigue. He opened one optic and saw a faraway memory of Moon and himself walking together, their servos touching.

He blinked his optic again and it vanished and that made his spark yearn for the times he had had. He had taken them for granted and now he longed for more time with his sparkmate. However that could never happen until he became one with the Allspark. He rolled over and closed his optics, his chest feeling heavy. He wondered if he would be one with the Allspark quicker than he had thought.