NOTE: Been away for a couple of days. Sorry about that. I am going to crank it up. :) Thank you for your support. -Me
The Diego Diaries: Threads
=0=N.E.S.T. And Autobot Staff Meeting
They drove into the Embassy, the doors opening far enough for the hummer to pass. Driving through the rec room and past the Ops Center, they waved to those who peered down. It was calm and quiet and they were as welcome among the Autobots as they ever were. They were also among the handful that knew that Ratchet was all right.
They drove to the conference room, parking and jumping out. Walking inside,they climbed the ladder and walked across the table stopping at the roadblock before them, a babbling sparkling with a dolly. Orion, sitting and flogging a Red Alert dolly against the table spotted them and paused, grinning broadly. Leaning forward he grasped at them, missing them by a mile. He sat back, frowning slightly and then whistled loud enough to shatter glass.
Epps, Lennox and Graham shook their heads, their eyes twirling from the sonic blast. Lennox looked at Ratchet and chuckled. "That kid of yours is a piece of work."
Ratchet snorted and grinned. "He is. He's at that end of the awesome scale. Don't get within his grabbing range. He's got a thing about removing body parts."
Lennox nodded, moving to stand before Ratchet. "You okay?"
"I'm doing pretty good," Ratchet said. "Nothing to worry about but the sparkling is a bit off his feed."
"I can imagine," Graham said grinning. "I'm glad you're still with us in one piece, Ratchet."
Ratchet grinned. "You and me both. Have you three seen the grandsparkling?"
They shook their heads and moved to sit on the three comfortable chairs waiting for them in the center of the table. "We haven't but we would love to, Ratchet. I hear its pretty beautiful," Epps said grinning.
"Its truly an outstanding sparkling," Ratchet said watching as more senior Autobots entered the room. "I'll call them to bring it over." He paused a moment, internally talking to another and then relaxed, grabbing the sparkling on the table before he could flop over and fling himself at the humans. Rolling slightly he began to make his way over, chirping and talking to himself as he wiggled and rolled toward the three officers.
Taking his foot, Ratchet pulled him toward himself, taking him into his servos and holding him up. "You may not break the soldiers. Only Decepticons."
The sparkling, looking at his creator with a grin gave an ear splitting chirp. Ratchet, his optics going dim a moment shook his helm. "You loud little slagger. Like sire, like sparkling."
"Someone called my name?" Ironhide said entering the room. He had Kaon in his arms and moved to sit next to Ratchet. Laying a soft blanket down, he put the infant on his tummy, his little helm bobbing and his tiny winglets ruffling.
"You brought him?" Ratchet asked. "I just talked to Bluestreak."
"Blue's getting his weapons together and wanted a little practice at the range."
"Are we letting our soldiers out now? I thought we were locked in yet," Ratchet asked.
"Daniels just left," Ironhide said. "Fulton and Prime let him go."
"So its on," Lennox said.
Ironhide nodded. "It's on."
They looked at Kaon, who was bobbing his helm and feet, his servos clenched into fists. He had a big smile on his little face and was happy. Orion, on the other hand was entranced with his nephew, determined to get a piece of him in his zeal to love him up.
Leaning forward, he fell onto his own belly and began to wiggle, pushing with his peds and bobbing his helm in a mostly futile effort to move forward. It was enough to stop conversation as everyone watched him struggle. Then he paused, looking at Kaon with laser optics. Rocking himself, he tried to roll over and did, moving slightly closer. He now found himself on his back staring at the ceiling, the object of his intense interest out of view.
Ratchet grinned and patted Orion's belly, the sparkling relaxing a moment. He looked at his creator and then his sire, holding out his servos to be picked up.
"Take him, Ironhide and I'll slide Kaon over here," Ratchet said tugging at the blanket that the newborn lay upon. They traded and when they were finished Orion stared at Kaon from his sire's arms. Leaning forward, his servos out, he fell forward and hung upside down. Chirping urgently he waited for Ironhide to pull him back up.
Prowl entered the room, grinning at Orion. Then he circled the table and sat, pulling Kaon toward himself. He leaned down and nuzzled the infant, enfolding him in his arms. "I'm glad you're here, baby," he whispered softly. "You've met the soldiers?" Prowl sat up and grinned. "You did meet Kaon didn't you?"
"He's adorable," Graham said smiling. "Tiny wings."
"Orion likes them too. He tries to pull them off every time the two are together," Prowl said chuckling. "I'm sure now is no exception."
"It wasn't," Ratchet said smirking. "Grabby little twit, our Orion."
Prime and the others entered and greetings were exchanged, sparklings exclaimed over and the meeting began.
"Daniels just left the base, heading for Virginia," Prime said accepting a datapad from Prowl as he passed them out. The screen overhead held the same information for the soldiers in English. "He is heading for Nevada. We already have tracked his route from Richmond. He's going with Galloway and Weaver. Brinks and a number of other Representatives and a couple of more Senators are going as well. Their names are on the datapad. All of them are being followed by agents of the Secret Service. Warren Roberts, the investigator the State Department sent out to investigate the youngling's hit-and-run is heading that part of the operation. He's also our liaison between the State and Justice Departments and our man for this operation."
"They are going to meet at the same time in Las Vegas I am told and then drive out to the ranch Shockwave has rented for the occasion together," Prowl said.
"We are going to send Autobots out to be in place around the ranch. The owner rents it for occasions with few questions asked and some of the people who frequent it are criminals," Prime said. "Drug cartels and the mafia have rented the facility in the past."
"What's it like?" Graham asked looking at the screen overhead.
Prowl changed the images until the ranch came into view. "It is a large place with a ranch house and outbuildings for guests. It once was a working ranch but now is owned by people who have questionable ties to criminals. The meeting should be held inside of the main house," he said changing the pictures as he spoke. A large rustic ranch house appeared with a shaded walkway all around it. It was beautiful and made to appear older than it was. The view inside showed a great room with a huge fire place and windows offering views of the desert all around them. "The outbuildings will probably hold their soldiers and one of them perhaps Shockwave himself. That is unless he's inside the house."
"Can he project his holographic image that far?" Graham asked.
"The signal will be boosted most likely and I'm sure he can. He offered a pretty foolproof image the last time," Wheeljack said. "He has the technology and I'm sure he's not hesitant to boost it with power linked mini-cons."
Prime nodded grimly.
"What do they do, this power linking?" Epps asked.
Wheeljack glanced at him, his lights flashing darker. "They rewire them, rerouting their bodies to channel their energy into the host. Imagine your internal organs being rerouted to another purpose. They are then attached to the host and slaved into providing power. There is almost unlimited power possible. I am convinced that is how Shockwave maintains such a strong image."
"The other two mini-cons, the ones we rescued … have they given anything of value about their enslavement," Lennox asked.
"They confirmed Wheeljack's theory," Prime said. "He will be very difficult to defeat one on one. But we have the element of surprise."
"We have drawn teams together and some of them will be departing tomorrow to take up positions. The rest of us will be going in a team together," Prime said.
They discussed the several options available, the intel that had been gathered already and the contingency plans that would be utilized if things fell apart. The fire power would be extreme and the numbers should fall into their favor. Prime would have the call and direct the operation through the efforts of his field officers, Jazz and Ironhide.
By the time they were clear on what would be the operational plan, Ratchet was sore from sitting. He rose, moving to lean against the wall, his cane firmly in servo. Lennox, looking at him with a frown shook his head. "You all right, Ratchet?" he asked.
"I will be when this mission is over," Ratchet said. "Its slag that I can't come."
"You don't need to come. Stay home with the sparklings," Ironhide grumped, glancing worriedly at his bond mate.
"The 'little woman' stays home with the sparklings, is that it?" Ratchet said grinning.
"I didn't say that. You didn't hear me say that," Ironhide said grinning. "I'm not suicidal."
Lennox snorted, once again amused by the fact that the toughest Autobot he could see in the garrison could be brought to his knees by a gangling medico. "I thought I heard that, Ironhide. You know, the 'little woman' taking care of the kiddies and cooking and cleaning."
"Bare pedded," Prowl offered with a smirk.
"I didn't hear that," Ironhide said shifting in his chair, avoiding Ratchet's optics at all cost.
"I think I did too," Niall Graham said smiling. "I heard it. Didn't you hear it too, Bobby?"
Epps looked at Ironhide who was squirming in his seat. "I work with Hide. I didn't hear it."
Hooting and laughter greeted that and Ironhide looked at Epps, smiling broadly. "Good call," he said with a chuckle. Glancing back at Ratchet who was leaning against the wall, a smile on his face. "You want to sit, Ratchet?"
"No," Ratchet replied. "I'm tired of sitting. I'm not tired of watching you squirm however. Please continue."
Ironhide only smiled.
=0=Washington, D. C.
The Majority Leader of the Senate, William Daniels gathered his coat and briefcase together walking toward the door of his big ornate office. He would be joining his grandson on a plane to Nevada in a few hours, including a number of other politicians who were flying to the meeting as well. He was a confident man, someone who could marshal press conferences at whim, wield the power of his office ruthlessly and make powerful people bend to his uncompromising ideological bent and personal will.
Walking down the hallway, aides trailing, he considered the next two days. A billionaire with the right ideas was going to be coming on board. He would be an almost unlimited source of funding for campaigns, oppositional research and the acquisition of media and other corporations vital to their mission. He already had a major interest in Intel-Martin and allied companies. That he might be the source of the unexplained murder of the company's boss, Bill Nast, didn't cross his mind.
All he saw was smooth sailing ahead.
Entering the Senate's private elevator, he headed down to the parking lot and the short drive across town and out to the farm he maintained in horse country. His son and grandson would be joining him along with a few businessmen he was courting and they would fly to Las Vegas tomorrow morning. Tonight, they would dine, drink beer and celebrate their good fortune.
They had struck the jackpot, they thought. Nevada was the perfect place to seal the deal. There was no place else to go but up. He sat in his car smiling as he contemplated the future. As he did, a jet was winging westward carrying two teams of Autobot soldiers who had the same destination and other objectives in mind.
=0=TBC
2011 (2)